Every girl knows she is a princess…Right?
Well, every girl should know what it is like to be treated like a princess in my opinion.
Girls everywhere in the world are special and deserve to be respected and treated in a way they grow up understanding equal rights but at the same time experiencing chivalry at its best.
As you know by now I grew up in a house with 4 male siblings and had to be just as tough as they were, but being a girl means I had different needs at times and certainly saw things in a different light than the boys did (no.. I do not see the humour in fart jokes).
Part and parcel of being a girl growing up was having to deal with all the usual girl issues (I know these apply to boys too!) such as the bitching and bullying at school, making sure I am wearing the “right” clothes, having the “right” friends and having the “right” interests (and again, no - country music did not really fit into that category), and so when it came to our year 12 formal it was a major event that we had to spend a fortune on a dress, car, hotel and anything else that was the “in” thing at the time.
When it comes to dress shopping in Adelaide I found there is only so many places that you can go to that are even remotely affordable and that stock dresses above size 6! Mum and I did the rounds and the rounds and the rounds trying to find something that was suitable and affordable.
Time was getting on and the formal was getting closer and closer as I was obviously getting more stressed by the second.
The male parental unit at that time just happened to be travelling to Calgary in Canada for work and offered to investigate dress shops over there. Now I know what most of you are thinking right now that how could an 18 year old girl trust an “old guy” to find a suitable dress, well that was not something that I was ever concerned with as he was my usual supplier / purchaser for everything overseas, from MAC makeup to Bath & Body Works candles (BTW you just have to keep an eye out for the 3 wick candles for special occasions, I can’t go past the Christmas collections each year).
The girls at the Calgary office thought it was a great laugh that he was dress shopping for me and took it in turns volunteering to take him to the local bridal and debutante shops. Now keep in mind here that I was working on a budget in Australia of about $300 and thinking that was exorbitant for one night, so it was a real shock when he texted me a photo of a dress that was perfect but was in excess of double my original amount, but, it was “THE” dress.
The next part of this adventure came when the dress had to be brought back to Australia as part of the normal baggage, thanks must go to Qantas here as the airline staff were very accommodating at looking after the suit bag containing my precious cargo once they heard the story behind it.
As I had not had the opportunity to try on the dress I was panicking about the fact it would not fit when it finally arrived in Australia, I was not surprised when it did not actually fit however I was still extremely depressed at the same time that it would not be right for the night.
As yet another side note here – girls, being a drama queen may make you feel a little better as you release your frustration, but remember you need to stop and listen as well as look at the problems you are facing and tackle them one by one head on, trust me it works much better than kicking, screaming and foot stomping even when those last three things feel great sometimes. I unfortunately did not have a grasp of these words of wisdom at the time I was trying on this dress so there was a measurable amount of the kicking, screaming and foot stomping thrown into the mix.
Now, as usual I have digressed and I know you are all wondering what this is about and what the dress actually looked like, well as you have probably guessed my mum made it all perfect for me yet again. The dress was taken to our friendly dress maker who made it fit perfectly, a room at the hotel connected to the venue was booked and the makeup / hairdresser was arranged.
Well, every girl should know what it is like to be treated like a princess in my opinion.
Girls everywhere in the world are special and deserve to be respected and treated in a way they grow up understanding equal rights but at the same time experiencing chivalry at its best.
As you know by now I grew up in a house with 4 male siblings and had to be just as tough as they were, but being a girl means I had different needs at times and certainly saw things in a different light than the boys did (no.. I do not see the humour in fart jokes).
Part and parcel of being a girl growing up was having to deal with all the usual girl issues (I know these apply to boys too!) such as the bitching and bullying at school, making sure I am wearing the “right” clothes, having the “right” friends and having the “right” interests (and again, no - country music did not really fit into that category), and so when it came to our year 12 formal it was a major event that we had to spend a fortune on a dress, car, hotel and anything else that was the “in” thing at the time.
When it comes to dress shopping in Adelaide I found there is only so many places that you can go to that are even remotely affordable and that stock dresses above size 6! Mum and I did the rounds and the rounds and the rounds trying to find something that was suitable and affordable.
Time was getting on and the formal was getting closer and closer as I was obviously getting more stressed by the second.
The male parental unit at that time just happened to be travelling to Calgary in Canada for work and offered to investigate dress shops over there. Now I know what most of you are thinking right now that how could an 18 year old girl trust an “old guy” to find a suitable dress, well that was not something that I was ever concerned with as he was my usual supplier / purchaser for everything overseas, from MAC makeup to Bath & Body Works candles (BTW you just have to keep an eye out for the 3 wick candles for special occasions, I can’t go past the Christmas collections each year).
The girls at the Calgary office thought it was a great laugh that he was dress shopping for me and took it in turns volunteering to take him to the local bridal and debutante shops. Now keep in mind here that I was working on a budget in Australia of about $300 and thinking that was exorbitant for one night, so it was a real shock when he texted me a photo of a dress that was perfect but was in excess of double my original amount, but, it was “THE” dress.
The next part of this adventure came when the dress had to be brought back to Australia as part of the normal baggage, thanks must go to Qantas here as the airline staff were very accommodating at looking after the suit bag containing my precious cargo once they heard the story behind it.
As I had not had the opportunity to try on the dress I was panicking about the fact it would not fit when it finally arrived in Australia, I was not surprised when it did not actually fit however I was still extremely depressed at the same time that it would not be right for the night.
As yet another side note here – girls, being a drama queen may make you feel a little better as you release your frustration, but remember you need to stop and listen as well as look at the problems you are facing and tackle them one by one head on, trust me it works much better than kicking, screaming and foot stomping even when those last three things feel great sometimes. I unfortunately did not have a grasp of these words of wisdom at the time I was trying on this dress so there was a measurable amount of the kicking, screaming and foot stomping thrown into the mix.
Now, as usual I have digressed and I know you are all wondering what this is about and what the dress actually looked like, well as you have probably guessed my mum made it all perfect for me yet again. The dress was taken to our friendly dress maker who made it fit perfectly, a room at the hotel connected to the venue was booked and the makeup / hairdresser was arranged.
So, the Princess experience was complete, I have said it before and will continue to say that I will never be able to repay my mum for everything she does for me and for the unconditional love she gives me.
I can only hope that all you other girls out there are given the opportunity to experience the Princess experience at least once in your lives and that you can find someone to share your life with that also believes you should be treated as such.
This dress is almost like a bridesmaid dress, perfect for the event it was intended for but not practical for any other time. Fortunately I have been lucky enough to wear my dress for another function whilst at AIM. I cannot ever imagine getting rid of this dress as I hold such strong feelings for it.
So to all the Princesses out there remember you do not need a dress to be special but a special dress can certainly lift you right up there.
Don’t accept being treated badly or put down but believe in yourself and know that once you leave school you will probably never see any of the people again unless you choose to and what seems to be a major issue to you today may not even rate a mention in the years to come.
As always I would love to hear your stories or see your photo’s, please feel free to send them to me.
So for now, lots of love and stay safe and well.
I can only hope that all you other girls out there are given the opportunity to experience the Princess experience at least once in your lives and that you can find someone to share your life with that also believes you should be treated as such.
This dress is almost like a bridesmaid dress, perfect for the event it was intended for but not practical for any other time. Fortunately I have been lucky enough to wear my dress for another function whilst at AIM. I cannot ever imagine getting rid of this dress as I hold such strong feelings for it.
So to all the Princesses out there remember you do not need a dress to be special but a special dress can certainly lift you right up there.
Don’t accept being treated badly or put down but believe in yourself and know that once you leave school you will probably never see any of the people again unless you choose to and what seems to be a major issue to you today may not even rate a mention in the years to come.
As always I would love to hear your stories or see your photo’s, please feel free to send them to me.
So for now, lots of love and stay safe and well.