"If that isn’t meant to be, I don’t know what is."

Zoe dressed herself and her whole huge bridal party in Elite Bridal gowns… but it was long after she’d picked and purchased the dresses that she realised just how fated her choices really were!

Zoe had been with her gorgeous groom Steve for 11 years when they finally decided to tie the knot, and she couldn’t be happier or more in love.

She initially visited Elite Bridal just to look at bridesmaid dresses, having spotted a style she loved online.  But Zoe was completely taken aback when she walked in.

“Nothing could’ve prepared me for what I was walking into,” Zoe said.  “The store was stunning.  The staff couldn’t do enough for you.  We were seen straight away, and the bridesmaid dress I had my eye on looked even more beautiful on than I’d imagined.

Zoe’s bridal party wasn’t small, and consisted of bridesmaids of all ages!

So she chose matching adult and junior bridesmaid dresses, all in coral chiffon with assymetric crystal embellishments.

For her youngest bridesmaids, she chose ivory flower girl dresses and accented them with a matching coral sash.

“I immediately arranged a date which suited every member of my big bridal party, so we could try on and purchase their dresses.  But a few days later, I also came back with my mum…”

Zoe had been completely focused on her bridesmaids, and hadn’t expected to try on dresses for herself.  But once she’d been in the boutique, she couldn’t resist.

“I picked several dresses out and began trying on,” says Zoe.  “They were all lovely and I did like them, but I never got the ‘bride feeling’ everyone talks about… then I came to the fifth and final dress we’d picked out.

“This dress was my least favourite on the hanger… but as soon as I stepped into it and the sleeves went up my arms, it felt different to any other dress I’d tried on.  It just seemed to feel right.

“The moment I walked out of the changing rooms, my mum’s little face  lit up and her eyes filled with happy tears.  That was it for me.  I said yes to the dress right then and there, and my gorgeous mum said it was a gift to me.

“As my bridesmaids hadn’t been there with me, I decided that when they all came back for their bridesmaid appointment I’d reveal my own dress.  Elite Bridal helped me make it happen, and the reveal was perfect.”

With bridal and bridesmaid dresses picked and purchased, Zoe just had her two eldest daughters to sort out.  They were young enough to still have a lot of growing to do before the wedding, so Elite Bridal helped Zoe select a date the following year to come in and have them fitted for their dresses.

“But our story doesn’t stop there,” says Zoe.

Each of Elite Bridal’s gowns has a style code so we can quickly look up details of each dress, and see at a glance which dress you’ve picked ahead of your bridal appointments.

The dress Zoe had chosen had the style code ‘STE11’.

“I purchased my wedding dress in September 2018, at which point I’d been with my now-hubby, Steve, for 11 years.

“I didn’t come across the style code of my dress until months after I’d actually bought it.

“I couldn’t believe it.  If that isn’t meant to be, I don’t know what is.”

We loved reading Zoe’s story and couldn’t believe the twist at the end!

If you have your own special story to share with us, please get in touch – we love to hear our brides’ love stories and see pictures from your big day.

Just drop us a message on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram @EliteBridalUK – we can’t wait to hear from you!