An Elderly Woman Tries on Her Daughter-in-Law’s Dress, Here’s Why

When this bride-to-be announced her wedding to her family, she was most likely expecting congratulation messages and virtual high-fives. She would never have anticipated the shocking actions of her future mother-in-law. A lot of women report having some sort of shaky relationship with the mother of their fiancé, boyfriend, or husband, some being a lot worse than others. Still, the aspects of this particular relationship ended up causing a huge strain on both the future husband and the bride-to-be.

An Ongoing Dispute

Tracey, the bride in this story, decided to use the social media giant, Reddit, to tell her disturbing tale. The wedding, which was just a few months away, was scheduled to take place in Columbia. Her future mother-in-law, Gina, found her way into every aspect of their lives, trying her best to control as much as she could. They would get into argument after argument, and when the bride caught the woman wearing her wedding gown, she lost it.

A Family in Crisis

The amount of time that goes into planning a wedding can be stressful, and one needs all the family and friends they can get to help. Having a healthy relationship with both your in-laws and your own flesh and blood can be beneficial to the process. Tracey wanted desperately to have a positive relationship with her finance’s mother, especially since she will be part of the family. The mother-in-law didn’t make it easy and refused to connect with her.

Love and Marriage

The array of images they regularly posted on social media told a story of love and happiness. Anyone outside looking in would view the couple as having it all. It was no secret that they were very much in love. As we all know, the wedding dress is one of the most important aspects of a wedding, with many women opting for the very best. This bride was no different in her pursuit of the perfect wedding dress.

Only the Best

Wedding dresses can be expensive, with some of them being as high as $30,000. Many decide to take out loans and second mortgages just to cover the cost of a one-time gown. Tracey wanted to go all out for her perfect day, picking a dress from the brand, Galia Lahav. The company is known for providing gowns for A-list celebrities, like Beyoncé. The retail price of the dress was $11,000, not shocking for a brand worn by the richest in society.

Destination, Columbia

Many couples usually stick to getting married in their home town, saving money and allowing easy commute for their friends and family. There are a lot of couples who would rather have a wedding in another country for the beauty and experience, and that is what Tracey and her soon-to-be husband decided on. They planned the wedding for Columbia and was happy to spread the news about their plans. The mother-in-law, however, was not pleased about their idea.

Concern from Gina

Gina was not shy about expressing her hatred of the idea, becoming very vocal in her dismissal of the whole idea. As Tracey stated in the Reddit post, Gina didn’t understand why the couple chose Columbia of all places, noting that no one speaks English there, a bogus concern that is obviously fictitious. She did have a few real concerns, however, like the cost of the trip and the level of security within the country. Tracey didn’t trust her inquisitive nature.

More Than a Minor Dispute

Tracey felt that no matter where the wedding took place, Gina would never approve. She felt she was against the marriage from the start due to their less-than productive relationship. Tracey knew that she wasn’t particularly the woman’s favorite person in the world, stating so in her post. “She’s polite and very ‘fake’ friendly.” One would wonder where all the disdain for her future daughter-in-law Gina managed to conjure up, of course, there is a reason for her hate.

A Strange Bond

Rick made sure the two women in his life knew they were both important to him. This created a lot of tension between the two women. Tracey didn’t like how his mother behaved around her son, finding many of her actions to be strange. “She’ll do things like sit on my fiancé’s lap, or tuck his hair behind his ear, and cut his food for him,” she mentions in her post. She even talks about her feeding him in public.

A Proven Difficulty

Tracey talked to Rick about her growing concerns about their odd relationship, and after talking to his mother about it, she began to tone down her behavior. Tracey tried her best to keep her mother-in-law out of the planning, but the constant complaining from the elderly woman about ‘not being included’ reached her future husband behind her back. Rick knew he could not let the situation escalate. He decided to confront his mother, but this proved to be more than a chore.

Their New Home

Nothing meant more to Rick than his fiancée’s happiness. He wanted nothing more than to have his two favorite people get along, but he didn’t want Tracey to continue to deal with his mother. “To my fiancé’s credit, once I told him that I thought that was beyond weird, it never happened again,” Tracey said. Everything changed when his mother came over to check out their new home. Her reaction to the place was pretty shocking.

Hurling Insults

Gina did not approve of their new home, offering no congratulations, just harsh words. She also felt the need to insult her engagement ring, calling it too extravagant and expensive. The fact that the ring was made of moissanite went over her head, with Gina claiming that people are starving and dying over those rocks in Africa. Moissanite is a naturally occurring silicon carbide and is extremely rare, yet they cost a fraction of the amount a diamond does.

More Complaints

Gina’s main concern was the amount of money they spent on their home, claiming it was “an extravagant display of wealth and wasn’t them.” Tracey tried to explain that the house was on sale since it was a townhouse, but Gina didn’t want to hear any logic. She wanted her word to be heard and wasn’t willing to hear either Rick or Tracey’s side of the story. Townhouses are conjoined units that are owned by individual tenants.

Body Shaming

Gina went too far once she insulted the bride-to-be’s weight, telling her that she should lose weight before the wedding. Tracey did her best to stay calm. Gina took it a step further by bragging about her ability to stay on a diet and how thin she was while telling the bride to watch the number of calories she ate, saying she was ‘getting too fat.’ No one likes to be judged by their weight, but this bride decided to do it anyway.

A Tale of the Bridezilla

Tracey certainly didn’t want to be chastised by her future mother-in-law for her weight, but it seems like this particular bride had no problem using people’s weight as a guideline for color-coding her wedding. A woman announced on Facebook inviting close friends and family to her wedding, one year before the initial day. The wedding was set for Hawaii, and she wanted to make sure everyone knew the rules for her big day. The post appeared on Reddit once someone noticed its absurdity.

Insane Bride

It is common for a bride to ask their bridesmaids to wear a particular color or style of dress, whether it is hideous or not. Most comply just to help make their most important day the best it can be. This bride, however, took it a bit too far with their demands, asking every single guest, even the children, to dress up in specific colors and styles of clothes, hats, shoes, and sweaters, clothing that would cost them a pretty penny.

An Unusual Request

The post began with a warm greeting and general information about the wedding; then, it took a right turn into insanity. The bride noted that she was giving everyone a year and a half warning for the information she was about to share, wanting to provide them with enough time to pick out something nice. She wanted to create an “incredible visual effect” during a dance she had planned for the wedding reception. Her request was more than unusual.

Dress Code

The bride managed to split up the dress code she had created for the wedding into several different categories. The categories were: women weighing 100 lbs. to 160 lbs. and women weighing more, men weighing between 100 lbs. and 200 lbs. and men weighing more. There was also a separate category for children. Many would find the list insulting mostly due to it being categorized by weight, but the idea she was controlling what they wore in the first place was outlandish.

A Strange Mix of Fabrics 

The list contained some very strange requests of the guests, like women who weigh between 100 to 160 lbs. to wear a velvet green sweater coupled with orange suede pants. She also asks if they could purchase a pair of Louboutin heels, which usually sell for around $700. She wanted all of the shoes to be red to create some sort of effect when everyone “spun and lift.” Along with the sweater, guests were also asked to adorn a scarf designed by the brand Burberry.

Another Weird Pairing

The males weighing between 100 and 200 lbs. were told to wear a ridiculous combination of clothing. The outfit included a purple fuzzy jacket, sneakers, and for some reason, a soda drinking hat. She also wanted these individuals to bring along solid-colored glow sticks. As if her demands weren’t strange enough already, the requirements she had for people of both genders weighing higher than the previously mentioned were a bit tamer, but weird nonetheless.

All Black Everything

Women weighing more than 160 lbs. were given a bit of a break in their wallets. They were told to dress in an all-black outfit, more specifically a black sweater and black pants. They had a bit more freedom with the material as well, allowed to pick whatever fabric they wanted. To add more black to the overall look, they also had to wear black heels. Why she decided to have them all dress in black is a mystery.

You Can’t see Me

Males weighing more than 200 lbs. had to wear a completely different ensemble. They had to dress in an entire outfit of camouflage. Luckily, they didn’t have to hunt around for a pair of camouflage sneakers; they were allowed to the opportunity to wear a pair of plain black sneakers instead. Once again, it is unknown why she chose this particular style of clothing for them to wear, but it makes one wonder what the dance will consist of.

Covered in Red

Those instructions did not stop at the adults. She also had a dress code lined up for the children, as well. They were told to wear an outfit comprised entirely of red. The intent was to have the children create the shape of a heart during the dance. The bride made sure to point out that the color had to be red and only red, not blood orange or any variant of the color.

Formal Wear

The color-coded mess of outfits she threw together wasn’t the only request she had of her guests. They were also told to bring a change of clothes that were considered “formal attire.’ The clothes would be changed into after the dance was over. This time she didn’t bother creating a long list of acceptable clothing, but she made sure to mention that the venue was “extremely upscale” and that people had to look their very best if they were to attend.

Price Tag

Looking at the different clothing combinations, one might think of it as one big elaborate joke, but the bride made sure to dispel any thoughts like that. She wanted to make sure everyone knew to take this all very seriously, stating that if the guest looked like trash, so will they. She even made the bold decision to let people know that their outfits had to be worth at least $1000, which can be way too pricy if you are only attending, not getting married.

More Than Enough Time

The bride was well aware that most people would not be able to afford such a hefty price tag, which is why she made sure to let everyone know how long they had before the wedding was set to happen. One would wonder whether or not there was anyone left willing to attend the wedding in the first place. With the strange clothing stipulations and the crazy price tag for formal wear, would there be anyone left that would still want to attend?

Reddit Says

Due to the absurdity of her post, it didn’t take long for someone to find it amusing enough to post it onto the internet, specifically Reddit. The post managed to get 10,000 shares and thousands of comments. Many Redditors raged about the bride’s body shamming of her guests and how self-centered she was. It makes sense for people to stand against the bride in her decision to categorize people by their weight. Many others decided to focus their critique on the outfits she chose.

Honest Critique

The family the request was directed towards had a few choice words for the unflattering ensemble that was chosen for them. One of the commenters put together a preview of what the outfit would look like, and no one found it appealing in the slightest. Knowing how bad the clothing looked when paired together make the amount it would cost seem like a pointless debt. Coupled with the unforgiving heat of Hawaii, it would be extremely uncomfortable to wear.

The Angry Bride

It’s not surprising that the bride later found out her weird list of requirements for her guests was posted onto the internet. She decided to respond to the hate and criticism on Facebook, a reply that was also later posted onto Reddit as well. Her response revealed how upset she was when she found out her post had gone viral on both Facebook and Reddit. She even stated that the person who posted her post would pay.

Playing Detective

After whining on the internet about the snitch that leaked her preposterous list, she made another post later on saying that there would be a polygraph party held in her home after the wedding.  Odds are it was to find the perp that spread her post all over the internet. She bought the lie-detector test on Amazon for around $99. Not sure if the machine would be reliable, considering professional lie-detector machines can cost triple that and can still be inaccurate.

The Best Machine for the Job

There are plenty of polygraphs available on the market, and most likely, Amazon would sell pretty much all of them. If anyone was curious as to which machine she bought, this is it. It seems to be a USB polygraph test, one that could connect to a laptop. The idea of the party would sound like a cool idea if it weren’t a front to pretend to be the modern-day Sherlock Holmes just to find the culprit who outed her for being insane.

More Ways to Contribute

The bride once again tried to cover her tracks by making yet another post explaining that it was ok if people were not acceptable to her dress code. Those who opposed it could have just brought up the issue with her. She gave a few options for those who wouldn’t want to participate in the synchronized dance, like help the staff clean up or help find the honeymoon. Apparently, there isn’t an option to just show up in support.

Annoyed Guest

The brides last try at getting on her side was the last straw for a lot of people, including the person who wrote this comment. The person points out how an Amazon grade lie-detector test wouldn’t be the best choice to find a snitch, and the idea of wearing heels on a beach full of sand isn’t practical. They also state how they wish they had been the person to repost the bride’s weird demands; most guests probably feel the same.

More Responses

Over the popularity of the post, more and more people decided to weigh in with their own take on the matter. Most focused on the absurdity of the story and how made up it sounded. It could make the story a whole lot better if it were. The biggest complaint about the post was the fact she felt the need to discriminate the guests based on their weight and her insatiable need to find the person who reposted on Reddit.

Visual Representation 

It can be hard to imagine just how bad the outfits could look on a person. One Redditor decided to take matters into their own hands and design a chart of how they would look when worn by a person. Of course, it doesn’t have the same effect as if it was photoshopped onto a real person, but it does the job. Visualizing the outfits all put together really shows just how bad everyone would look if they were to go through with it.

Spiritual Inspiration

The bride, unsatisfied with everyone’s reactions, decided to go on a rant online, stating that she and her future husband were certified spiritual healers, using that to justify the terrible clothing choices she made. Not sure how being in tune with the universe has anything to do with having a bad fashion sense for dance numbers, but it sure seemed like a good enough excuse to her. It goes without saying that no one bought that as a justifiable reason.

Weird Symbolism

The bride decides to explain why she chose the particular outfits. She says she decided for some to wear all black and camouflage to represent the devil and would later ‘exile’ him from the dance. The fact that she chose people of a heavier weight to wear the colors could conjure up a lot of assumptions. Some people could mistakenly believe she is calling all people who weigh a certain weight, the devil, which is a huge no-no.

A Wish for Riches

The bride also tried to justify her reasoning for making people spend $1000 on a hideous outfit. She states that the cost of the outfit is to represent the riches that she hoped she and her husband would gain in the future. In a way, the guests would indeed be bringing a sense of wealth to the wedding, just not one that they could gain from. A lot of people like to use some sort of symbolism in their marriage, but this wasn’t such a great idea.

A Clueless Bride

In a way, we can all understand why the bride went through so much just to try and make her wedding day perfect. All brides want to experience the wedding of their dreams; most don’t try to take it this far. She can’t expect people to spend thousands of dollars for outfits or clean up for a wedding that wasn’t there’s. She needs to learn that the world doesn’t revolve around her, just like Gina, in our previous story.

Back to The Story

Gina’s constant body shaming of Tracey understandably upset her, but it was not the first time the older woman decided to pick on something about Tracey. She would find more and more things to pick on her for, and the fact that she tried to keep in regular contact with her didn’t help. Tracey was getting fed up with the verbal abuse, realizing that there may be no way she could ever develop a relationship with her.

A Needed Distraction

Gina clearly didn’t approve of anything about Tracey, wanting to turn her into a woman that she felt was a better fit for her son. Rick noticed very early on how his mother was treating his future wife, and he did not like it one bit. He knew the situation was getting way out of hand, so he tried to provide a distraction. He asked Tracey to help him move a bed into their guest room, and she agreed.

A Shocking Scene

She followed her husband to the other room, happy to escape the assault the Gina hurled at her. She assisted her fiancé by moving the furniture into the room, taking advantage of the distraction. It took them around half an hour to finish moving the furniture into the room; afterward, she decided to walk back to the master bedroom they had left Gina in. When she walked into the room, she got the surprise of her life.

Unexpected Reveal

She walked into the bedroom to reach the bathroom on the other side and was shocked to see Gina trying on her wedding gown. Gina was struggling to get the dress on, getting her head stuck in the process. Tracey was angry; she yelled out at the woman, wondering why she was trying on her dress in their bedroom. Gina’s reasoning for trying on the distraught bride’s dress was one that was both confusing and infuriating.

A Helping Hand

Tracey was infuriated. She ran over to Gina and demanded the woman take off her expensive dress. The elderly woman, however, could not easily take off the dress at that point, so Tracey decided to give her a hand. She was afraid of the dress possibly tearing, a real concern for anyone who has ever had to keep one in good condition. The endeavor proved to be much harder than she thought and took a turn for the worse.

A Terrible Tragedy

Tracey tried her best to help the woman remove the dress without ripping the fabric. It took many grueling minutes to finally remove the dress; it was an intense struggle, and after the dress was finally off, Tracey saw the damage that had been done to the dress. Gina had managed to completely tear through the back of the dress, leaving a giant gash that ran up the side. The $1000 dress was ruined.

Nothing Left to Say

Gina also ended up putting a dirty footprint on the train of the dress. Tracey was rightfully furious at the condition of the dress. Gina’s reason for trying on the dress was that if it could fit Tracey, it could fit her as well. Tracey was dumbfounded; she could not think of a rebuttal for the woman’s reason. All she could do was scream into her cupped hands that were covering the horrified expression on her face.

Bad Reasoning

Tracey thought back to all that Gina put her through, stating that the incident was the icing on the cake. She could not believe that Gina could stoop that low as to pull a stunt like this. Gina’s excuse didn’t make the situation any less dire. “If it didn’t fit her, then I obviously had some work to do,” Gina says. The dress had fit the bride just fine, so Gina’s reasoning didn’t make much sense.

Playing Bride

Rick shared Tracey’s feelings in the matter, entirely shocked by the actions of his mother. He felt there was more to the reason as to why his mother decided to try on the dress. The couple found a bouquet of flowers lying on the bed beside her and put two and two together. Rick felt his mother was pretending that she was the bride, which is a very strange realization. This wasn’t Gina’s worst offense.

Won’t Make Repairs

Tracey was hoping her future mother-in-law would do the right thing and at least pay for the much-needed repairs the dress clearly needed. She seemed to have put a lot more trust into the woman than she should have. Gina flat out reused to fix the damage that she had caused to the brand name dress. Repairs can get pretty expensive for dresses depending on what needs to be repaired; it’s common courtesy for the one who caused the damage to pay for it.

Won’t Apologize

“She hasn’t offered to pay for any of the repairs to the dress. A section of the train is ripped,” Tracey stated. She had no idea what the price would end up being until she had the opportunity to take it to the seamstress the following day. Gina would not relent and continued to refuse to pay for it. She had absolutely no remorse for what she did and didn’t even bother apologizing. She says the couple spent too much in the first place.

Devising a Plan

Even after the accident, Gina continued to lecture Tracey about the original cost of the dress. She didn’t even comment on the fact that it was her fault that the dress was in the condition that it was in the first place. Tracey could no longer deal with her future mother-in-law’s ridicule and harassment any longer. She decided to come up with a plan to put an end to the woman’s constant judgments of her.

Taking to Reddit

Tracey decided to seek some advice on the internet. Reddit was her choice to find people who would share in her feelings for the whole ordeal. She typed out her entire story onto the site and waited for someone to come along with some much-needed advice. Many came to her rescue, reading her story and quickly taking her side while also giving their two-cents and advice on the entire situation. Tracey was interested in what people had to say.

Legal Pursuit

Tracey understandably felt that Gina owed her some sort of compensation for destroying her dress. She felt the dress was just the tip of the iceberg. A lot of Redditors agreed with Tracey that taking some sort of legal action was probably her best bet to being compensated for the dress. There were a few people that felt that would be going too far, but despite that, they still did not agree with the actions of her future mother-in-law.

Becoming Viral

Her post didn’t take long to spread throughout the site, quickly becoming viral. The post gained a lot of comments and reactions. One Redditor gave the advice to provide Gina with an ultimatum; either she would pay the amount she needed to for the dress to get repaired, or she was no longer invited to the wedding. Everyone else ranted about the elderly woman’s actions and how horrible they were. Rightfully, no one was on Gina’s side at all.

Return to Reddit

Another poster on the popular social media site stated that the actions of the woman made them gag. Tracey wanted to do something to get back at the woman who had been torturing her ever since she found out she was due to marry her son. Tracey decided on what she was going to do, later returning to Reddit to let everyone know the continuation of the story. This is what happened next.

Taking a Break

Tracey wanted Rick to pitch in, letting his mother know that she was no longer invited to the wedding. He agreed that it was the right thing to do, but he, later on, changed his mind and went back on his return. This puts a strain on their relationship. They ended up canceling the wedding for a while, wanting instead to work through the situation with his mother. Tracey feels it would be impossible to get married while his mother was around.

Another Update

A few months after the situation, Tracey provided another update to the public. She kept up an update on the incident with her terrible mother-in-law. She states that Rick was sticking to his word about staying away from his mother this time. Tracey mentions that she regularly keeps an eye on his accounts to make sure he is not keeping in contact with her at all. That seems like a lot of work to keep track of.

Ignoring the Calls 

Tracey and Ricks are hoping to keep their relationship going, with no signs of stopping, even with his mother trying to barge her way into their lives constantly. Gina is apparently still trying to get a hold of the couple, calling as much as she can to no avail. It seems like she hadn’t learned from her mistake and still feels absolutely no remorse for what she has done, now including ruining the wedding before it even came to be.

It Never Ends

Gina found it appropriate to call whenever she wanted, with many of the calls coming in overnight. She would leave many notes underneath their door, notes that most likely included all of the nasty things she’s said to Tracey that lead to the situation in the first place and her hatred of being ignored and kicked out of her beloved son’s life. She clearly didn’t see the apparent issue in her actions, and it just kept getting worse from there.

Conclusion

Gina also sent a load of inappropriate text messages to the couple at all hours of the night. She knew the couple’s schedule and the fact that they went shopping every Wednesday night. One day, when they arrived at the grocery store, guess who was there waiting for them? Gina was seen walking around the entrance around 7 p.m. The couple decided to skip the store and leave before the woman saw them. It seems like they are going to have to deal with Gina for a little while longer.