Nataya Dress Review: Susan and Bill's Timeless Wedding Tale

Susan shared her heart-warming story with us from her beautiful second wedding and left us all in admiration. We are sharing it with all of you here to offer some inspiration on how to elevate your wedding day, adding an extra touch of magic with the perfect Nataya dress.

Thank you for choosing us to be a part of your special day, Susan, and for sharing your beautiful photos with us!

Your story is truly remarkable, serving as a powerful reminder that love transcends boundaries, beauty knows no age, and women everywhere can benefit from the affirmation that love can find you at any stage of life.

She is wearing our Downton Abbey inspired dress in Ivory to perfection. You can find it here: https://nataya.cc/qv2

"SOMEWHERE IN TIME" STORY

Susan: “First, a little bit of background. Bill and I were both 60 years old when we married on 6/28/21. Second marriage for both; we were both divorced when me met in an orchestra in 2018 (he plays drums, I play clarinet). On our first date, we found that we both had the same favorite movie, which is "Somewhere In Time" starring Christopher Reeve and Jane Seymour. If you have never seen it, is a wildly romantic time travel movie, and most of it was filmed on site at The Grand Hotel in Mackinac Island in 1979. We have watched the movie together countless times, and of course when we got engaged and started to plan our wedding, it was the first and only choice for our venue (even though neither one of us had ever been to Mackinac before). We eloped and did not tell any family members or friends until after the wedding. There were no guests at the wedding, it was just the two of us, our professional photographer, and the officiant. Our goal was to re-create the vibe and the romance of the 1912 setting for Somewhere In Time.

Nataya: Where did you find out about our dresses?

Susan: I found your wedding dress on-line. I believe I searched keywords "second wedding dress" or "mature bride dress" or something of that nature.

Nataya: What event did you wear the dress to? Tell us a little about how your day went.

Susan: I only wore the dress for one event, and that was my wedding to Bill.  The day went perfectly. We married on the front porch of The Grand Hotel on Mackinac Island. It was the most romantic day of my life and the dress was perfect for the venue. The hotel was built in the late 1800's and has a long rich history. We truly felt like we had been transported in time and dress was ideal for a 1912 wedding.

Nataya: How did the dress make you feel? What do you like about it and why did you choose this one?

Susan: The dress truly made me feel beautiful and romantic, which is a stretch for me because I am one of those women that virtually NEVER feels good about my appearance. I am not a very self-confident person but this dress made me feel amazing. I was amazed that this dress could make me feel the way I did as a bride, even though it was second wedding for both, and we are in our 60's

Nataya: Did you receive any compliments while wearing the dress? If so, could you share them with us?

Susan: I have never received so many compliments in my life, as I did when I wore this dress. It was almost embarassing. Total strangers walking up to me and starting a conversation. And, true story. The officiant was late, Bill was waiting on the grand porch, and I was waiting in the restaurant / bar area with our photographer. Two different guys approached me and started hitting on me. The photographer was in stitches and took photos to prove it.

Nataya: What events would you see yourself wearing the dress again?

Susan: I am not sure; I will likely wear it for anniversary dinners with my husband.

Nataya: Anything else you would like to add.

Susan: Two stories about this dress.

I found this dress on line approx. 3 months before my wedding, so I did not have time to waste. My size is XL (I am 6 feet 0 in tall and 180 pounds). At the time, you did not have this dress available in XL or even in 2XL. The medium or large would not fit me, so I purchased the dress in 3XL. I looked far and wide for a different dress that would be available in XL size. No matter how much I searched, I could not find a dress that I loved as much as this one. So I finally just bit the bullet, purchased the 3XL. When it arrived, it was beyond my expectations and I felt it was the only dress on the planet that I could possibly wear for my special day. I took it in for alterations, which were done perfectly and made the dress fit me perfectly, and it was worth every single penny.

Mackinac Island is a very unique location. There are NO motorized vehicles allowed on the island (with the only exception being a fire truck and ambulance).  You can only access the island by ferry; once you arrive, you can only get around the island by horse drawn carriage, bike, or walking. We arrived on the island late at night, later than we had intended but that is another story. When we were on the ferry from St. Ignace to Mackinac Island, it started to rain. And oh boy, was it a torrential rain. The skies just opened up and dropped buckets of water for hours.  We got off the ferry with all of our luggage and garment bags, and it was so late that there were no carriages available to take us from the port to The Grand Hotel. So, we had to walk uphill, dragging all of our luggage with us, approx. 45 minute walk in the pouring rain and freezing cold. Fortunately, I had my Nataya wedding dress in a waterproof garment bag, so everything made the journey dry and intact.  When we walked into the lobby of this magnificent hotel, we must have looked like a couple of homeless people, soaked to the skin and freezing cold.  The people behind the desk really gave us dirty looks. When Bill explained who we were, what wedding planner we were working with, and that we were to marry on the grand porch the next day, they gave us a free upgrade to a premium room.  When we got to the room, we found that it was the "Somewhere In Time" commemorative room, which contained tons of memorabilia from the filming of the movie in 1979.