N.S. brides enter wedding season with ‘nervous apprehension’ as COVID-19 restrictions lift

The past two years have been difficult for couples looking to tie the knot, thanks to the pandemic and provincial health regulations.

Ireland Desmarais has been engaged for three years and says COVID-19 is a big reason why she and her fiancé haven’t gotten married sooner.

“I have a lot of family from Vancouver, so it’s going to be a big process to get them here,” says Desmarais.

“COVID has put a damper on a lot of it.”

But with restrictions no longer in place, Desmarais says she felt ready to start wedding dress shopping. On Sunday, the bride-to-be found her wedding dress at Opportunity Bridal, a touring one-day pop-up shop that offers more than 800 dresses, from sizes two to 28.

“I am so excited. It was nothing that I expected, but it’s beautiful,” she says.

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Serena LeGoffic, Desmarais’s mom, says it was an “amazing experience.”

“My daughter found the first dress, and then she tried on about a dozen after that and we kept going back to that first dress,” she says.

Ricarda Forbes-Loth, the national sales manager with Opportunity Bridal, says the past two years have been a big learning curve, and she’s happy to be back on the road connecting with brides.

“It was a very lonely two years just waiting around,” she said. “I love being on the road, so it’s perfect.”

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Forbes-Loth says she’s had to opportunity to speak with many Canadian brides and says most of them are heading into the 2022 season with ‘nervous apprehension.”

“Everybody wants to get excited, but with the last two years, I’ve met several brides who have had to reschedule two or three times, so there’s the anticipation, but nobody has a crystal ball,” she says.

“But I think everybody is ready to start partying.”

Having found her dress, Desmarais says it gives her hope and optimism to start planning her big day, which she hopes will go ahead in January 2023.

“Probably after today, I’m going to get a jump start on getting things done,” says Desmarais.

Her mom said she’s “all hands on deck,” ready to help out.

“COVID keeps rising, so we’re trying to just deal with that on a day-to-day basis but this keeps us positive,” says LeGoffic.

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