Two weeks ago, I had the honor of helping two of my closest friends celebrate their marriage!  As a groomsmaid, I also had the privilege of escorting my dearest Nigel into the celebration, and it was delightful! I'm so happy for them and thrilled they finally had the opportunity to celebrate!

It was also really fun to get all dressed up and fancy!  I curled my hair and even wore magnetic lashes for the first time!  Of course, I have been really excited to share all of my outfit details with you!  Let's get to the fun!

If you've been keeping up with my less frequent postings (I've been trying to keep with my "one post a week" schedule, but sometimes life gets in the way), you know I haven't been leaving the house much during the pandemic.  Going to a wedding felt terrifying.  Being around that many people after such an extended period of time was incredibly stressful for me.  But it also felt wonderful to see friends and family I haven't seen in a long, long while, to see their smiling faces, to give and get hugs.  Some kind of community and connection is important for the soul, so a drought of those things can be really hard.  The pandemic has greatly affected my mental health and made my depression much, much worse.  Being able to let loose just a bit, have fun, and laugh was so needed.

You may remember my post from last year in which my husband Sean got ordained and officiated Nigel and Joaquin's marriage, in their apartment, on their chosen wedding day, because the big festivities had to be postponed.  And even though we had planned for a theatrical ceremony, along with the reception party, this year they decided we should just get to the partying.

We arrived a few hours ahead of time to hang out and finish getting ready.  Sean introduced the couple and I walked Nigel down into the reception to the cheers and applause of all the reveling guests!  After some mingling, Sean and I went out with the happy couple to get some photos taken around the venue.  Then it was time for food, drink, laughter, and dance!

The fellas chose this navy maxi dress from eShakti for Margaret and me.  It is truly a lovely gown that fits like a glove!  I'm wearing the 3X-26, which is a little tight in the waist but fits beautifully everywhere else.  eShakti allows for lots of customization options for the neckline, sleeve length, and hemline, or you can order custom measurements.  The prices are very reasonable and the quality feels fantastic.  My order also came with a matching navy face mask.  In making my customizations, I also realized that eShakti assumes all maxi length dresses are being worn with 3-inch heels, so when I put in my height I took 2 inches off to accommodate for my shorter shoes.  The length was perfect!  This dress was up on the website until about a month ago and is now only available in black.

I made a handful of orders with eShakti around 2010 or so, with inconsistent experiences.  The tops I ordered with custom sizing were perfect, but the dresses I tried were incredibly ill-fitting.  This experience has encouraged me to check out eShakti's offerings more often (they have so many dresses I love!) and has me feeling their growth in terms of quality and craftsmanship.

And now, the wedding fun!  I had never been to this venue before (Troutdale House in Troutdale, Oregon) and it was really cute!  I think it would be a grand space for my prom-themed birthday party one of these years!