The Last Unicorn

Every quest has to come to an end at last.  We mortals crave this closure.  There has to be a moment when our hero finally stands on the pinnacle holding her prize aloft, shouting her victory, having arrived.  For me that moment is now and that prize is this dress to end all dresses, and the very last unicorn I hoped to capture-- Unique Vintage's Lavender Cupcake dress.

Perhaps you think I'm over dramatizing my conquest; it's just a dress after all.  But, it's not just a dress, it is the dress.  It is the epitome of everything I love about dresses--the vintage style full skirt and fitted waist, the sweetheart neckline, the  feminine rich colors contrasting in smooth lilac organdy and frothy lavender tulle ruffles.  

You may remember in my post from a month ago, that I just bought one of UV's newer cupcake dresses in berry after having given up on finding this dress, but still being so taken with the style.  I can firmly say, now that I have this dress, that it is the dress to end all dresses and nothing could ever top this, so why bother searching any further.  I have arrived.  I don't exactly know what this means for my shopping/fashion blogging in general, but I don't see how any other dress could possibly top this one.

This dress is a little different than UV's current line of cupcake dresses and I think I like it a little better than the newer versions.  The main difference is that the tulle isn't stiff, so it lays flat and the skirt has less volume.  In newer versions the tulle is stiff and the skirt is fuller which at times can give it an awkward shape.  Not so with this dress, it is practically perfect in every way.

This is precisely the dress I was looking for when I went to prom so many years ago, I just didn't quite know it.  I was invited to prom sort of last minute.  At that time I wasn't in school anymore, but had left to homeschool and graduate early.  Still, a very sweet boy asked me to go with only one week to find a dress.

At that particular time, my parents' farm was overwhelmed with work and they (and I) often worked 16 to 18 hours a day just to keep up with everything, so while my mom said she could spare me for a day or two to go dress shopping, there was no way she could join me.  Without any other women in my life to go with me, I decided to go it on my own with a guy friend who agreed to go along simply because he was in between jobs and incredibly bored.  He had no sense of style and didn't venture any helpful opinions, but he didn't mind driving me around all day.

I went to every vintage clothing shop, knowing from the start that I would have a vintage 1950s-1960s dress.  Full skirt, sweet heart neckline, the works.  The only trouble was that no one thought to give me any money to go dress shopping with and I only had $20 in my wallet.  The day started out hopeful, but by 4pm I was getting desperate.  All the vintage shops had were hideous 80s prom dresses and all over priced at that.  There was one last shop I wanted to try.  It was an antique store, not clothing shop, but they did occasionally carry vintage dresses.

Nothing on the first floor.  Nothing on the second floor.  The third floor was mainly storage and large furniture pieces.  I was walking down stairs, about to leave the store and go home empty handed, when a pile of fabric in the corner drew my eye.  I walked toward it, gaining speed, excited and hopeful that some hidden gem might be buried there.  Then a corner of the loveliest dusty pink caught my eye from the bottom of the pile.  I tugged.  The most gorgeous dress unfurled.  It had no price tag, so I darted down the stairs and asked the clerk.  She shrugged and asked if I thought $7 would be a fair price.  Too excited to speak, I nodded my head, paid the lady, and fairly skipped back to the car.  

When I got home I tried the dress on and other than the straps needing a little adjusting it was a perfect fit.  I felt like it was a Godsend, my perfect vintage dress, and I always look back on that story with a thankful heart as one of the sweetest moments of my troubled teenage years.  This dress may not have quite the emotional impact of that original dress, but it definitely takes me back to that moment.  It has all the beauty of the original but with so much more elegance.  You see why it stole my heart the moment I saw it, and why I've spent so long searching for it, and why no other dress could possibly measure up.  But, then again, maybe they don't have to.  Maybe it's ok for this dress to be the pinnacle and all other dresses to just be neatly, sweetly, themselves.

I know a lot of kids missed out on their prom this year, many others missed out on special occasions as well, and who knows how next year will be.  So, I do want to encourage anyone who's been searching and thinks they've found the perfect dress, but won't be able to wear it---get the dress!  Wear it every chance you get or else create the opportunities to wear it.  You won't regret it.