So I get a call around 9:30 pm on Thursday, from one of my dear bride-to-be friends, Sarah: "Hey Kim—sooo there's been a slight change in strategy. You wouldn't by any chance want to CAMP out at Filene's Basement with my sisters and I would you?"
Now, I like to think of myself as a bit of a spontaneous and adventurous person, so my immediate response was "Well of COURSE I would! Count me in!" Afterall, it was for a very noble cause—and I was planning on getting up around 4 am anyhow. Forgetting for just a moment that it was currently 30-degrees (and dropping) outside, with a snow storm advisory and steady drizzle of freezing rain. Hmm, let's consider the logic of this for a moment here...
...An hour later I find myself in my car, bundled up head to foot, (camera in tow of course), on my way to Filene's to embark on a mission. Well, contrary to what the weather would have indicated, we were hardly the only ones with this grand "camp out" idea. When I pulled into the icy parking lot, Sarah's tent was third in line followed by about 4 others throughout the night. It wasn't until around 6 am though, that other wedding vendors, news teams and radio stations began to show up to cover the event. Sarah was one of the lucky brides to get interviewed!
And for anyone reading this that is unfamiliar with the Filene's Basement "Running of the Brides" event, here's the gist:
As the name suggests, it's a free-for-all, no-holds-barred, mad dash of hundreds of brides and their cohorts to racks filled with zillions of deeply discounted designer wedding gowns. Rumor has it every year that there are a handful of top tier gowns (think Vera Wang) normally priced at $6,000-$10,000 that will go for as little as $299. I'm not sure what the record was this year, but in years past the racks go from full to empty in less than 60 seconds.
Many brides come accompanied by teams, many of which are dressed in creative "uniforms" to prevent getting lost amidst the melee of dress grabbing. Proudly representing Team Betts/Jacobs, I documented this emotion-filled event—all the while keeping watch for "the ONE".
All in all, though not entirely sane, it was a fun (albeit frigid) experience that I'm glad to have shared with Sarah!
