Luann by Greg Evans and Karen Evans for September 06, 2016

You think that you’re going to find one for under 200 dollars? Good luck with that. Maybe if you put and ad in the paper an older woman might let you borrow hers or even sell it to you. Her late or ex husband may have been a jerk and she’d want to be rid of something that reminded her of her wedding to him. Either way, good luck. BTW, where is the car? Has it been ticketed? Has it also been towed for ransom? Has it been stolen? Has it been stripped in place?

A wedding dress for less than $200? Maybe you can find one at Wal-Mart.

Gotta love the “if I can find” part.

Paceys bridal, Eastern Ave.

Up next: Brad has an affair, with the wedding planner :p (no, probably not ;) )

You’d have better luck with a dress $500 and up

interesting, an aunt that she needs to find and no mention of the uncle that gave her an used car during her EMT classes period

$200 Wedding dress: Two flour sacks and a roll of lace from the nearest craft and fabrics store ;)

(Mosquito netting for the veil!)

OK, so Toni believes that her aunt is still alive, but isn’t sure how to reach her. Presumably the uncle who left her the car isn’t in the picture. With her tiny family, I wonder if she’s thinking she wants lots and lots of little ones running around, or has her brother made her too painfully aware of all the responsibilities involved in raising a child? Have she and Brad ever discussed (where we could hear, anyway) how they feel about children?

I’d suggest asking Fishbait to perform at the wedding, to insure that he’ll actually show up.

people of little faith http://www.lightinthebox.com/ball-gown-v-neck-chapel-train-lace-and-tulle-wedding-dress_p2719503.html?currency=USD&litb_from=paid_adwords_shopping&sku=1_36%7C20_9546&utm_source=google_shopping&utm_medium=cpc&adword_mt=&adword_ct=95826894611&adword_kw=&adword_pos=1o7&adword_pl=&adword_net=g&adword_tar=&adw_src_id=2615402740_361110131_26465017931_pla-158912315771&gclid=CP-JjfX_-c4CFc9efgodvW0KrQ

I bought material much, much cheaper than $200 dollars and, found a pattern, and my mother-in-law did the rest. i made the silver, pearl, and iridescent indigo beaded belt to go with it. My Grandma fixed the food. For the reception, I told my friends to bring their musical instruments and everybody jammed. friends and relatives took the pictures. A friend made the flower arrangements. Another friend made our rings. My husband and I made our wedding invitations. No need to start off marriage in debt!

Like I said before – Toni is a loner. No friends to invite to her wedding. Hard to know why – but it is what it is…

Time to pull Gunther out of retirement

Does Toni not have any friends she would like to invite? And as for a $200 wedding dress, who needs an ultra-expensive dress you are only going to wear once? I made my own wedding dress and it turned out beautiful for under $100. It even got worn more than once. Once for the wedding and altered for Halloween as Frankenstein’s Bride.

and someone reminded me, Toni and Brad can ask someone good with putting together dresses that recently went to Peru ;) to do wedding dress

Firefighter co-workers would be added to friends. The dress at salvation army, or by Gunther as a favor for Luan as her gift to Toni. The reception at the theater, catered by TJ.

Brad only has to perform the onerous duty of taking Toni’s measurements for the dress. :-) LOL

The biggest cost is the cake.

This should have ended with the romantic kiss. I have bad vibes about Brad’s “to do” list for Toni. All that bliss is about to go south. Better call Tiffany.

I can’t imagine why she would want to wear a veil, or even a specifically “wedding” dress.

$200? She dropped a zero.

A quick search of eBay give some surprising results.

http://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?ssPageName=GSTL&nkw=white+wedding&_blrs=spellcheck

I can envision that Brad keep Toni maddeningly in the blind about the wedding plans up until the day of the event., and the on the morning of she is kidnapped by Brads mother, the Aunt, and Luan and taken blind folded to the site of the wedding where she is kept in seclusion being dressed and prepared for the event. Brad in full tux she in white with vale, Luan as made of honor, TJ is best man, her niece as ring bearer. her brother shows to give her away.

It IS possible. ;-) My wedding dress was $150.00 (probably because it was made in China) and the seamstress did an exquisite job. Just a matter of surfing the internet for days. ;-)

Shannon isn’t a guest; she’s part of the ceremony. And shouldn’t Jonah be part of the ceremony, too? Since their father is deceased, isn’t it Jonah’s responsibility to give the bride away in marriage? It’s too bad that Toni has absolutely no friends, though. Of course, neither does Brad (other than TJ), so maybe they’re kindred souls.For some excitement,Toni should invite Mr. and Mrs. Dirk.

Awww, poor Toni. You REALLY have no idea, do ya, hun?

Don’t forget her girlfriend from e m t class and Jonahs ex wife as for the wedding gown borrow Nancy’s old wedding gown

I bought a prom dress for my wedding dress. It was 199.00. NOBODY except me, my mom, and the women at the dress shop had any idea it wasn’t a “wedding” gown unless I told them. Smart shopping. Of course, that was back when prom dresses still had some actual material to them…

Gunther

Thrift shops have wedding dresses all the time, and you can just buy a nice white formal dress as well.

I just hope that when Toni sees what Brad plans out she doesn’t suddenly realize that she actually does have an opinion about the wedding plans, and hates everything Brad wants to do.

I am struck by Toni’s recurrent speech pattern: obviously…, probably…, and if I can find…, in panels 2 and 3.

And, by “white, obviously,” is Toni implying the she and Brad have not “done it” yet, or is that color symbolism obsolete in our Age of Permissiveness? Just wondering….

Excellent idea! I love it! Have the bikini along with a white baby doll and you have the wedding dress and the boudoir scene all mapped out for under $200. All the men would be cheering her on and wishing they could be with her after the nuptials!

The great journey begins.

My daughter insisted on planning and paying for her own wedding. Since she was across the country from me, it would have been difficult for me to plan anyway. She bought a second hand wedding dress (beautiful) for $300, saving thousands. She also made all the table and reception decorations (she’s an artist) and her friends who had a band performed at the reception (for free as a gift). Rented a hall at the Holiday Inn. Whole wedding with food and drink? Less than $2000. Not bad. Who is willing nowadays to do this? My own wedding back in 1981 was already a $10,000 affair!

Finding a dress for about $200 can be done. Places like Davids’ Bridal have yearly off the rack sales and because Toni is a normal size, she should have no trouble finding one. Or, there are bridal rental stores. Those seem to be popular.

If a person had to search for a relative to attend a wedding, that relative isn’t that close and doesn’t need to be invited.

Consignment shop perhaps?

3 guests? I don’t have a LOT of friends, but I can find more casual aquaintances I would invite than 3.

Or Brad’s mother might still have hers.

“Perhaps a long tee shirt would do the trick.”

Look for a liquidator for the dress. You might find one for under 400.00 . 200 is within the realm of possibility, but it may need some altering…

Another great way to not spend so much (apart from knowing someone expert in dress making), is to make sure to wait to purchase a dress from a store, and if you ask my wife, to hold out till after the first part of the “peak season”. My wife waited till just after May, and our wedding was in October. She was truly happy with her dress, and the price ($300, <$1500). She related to me, that that infamous day of “Dress Sales” may seem to have lower prices, but they can get even lower, and with good timing, you won’t "lose an arm in the leg in the process (price wise and “competition” wise)".

Consignment shop. I scored a $2000 dress for $200. My veil cost more than my dress.

Hmm….Interestingly, in both instances, there was an “easy, obviously, probably, and…if I can find…” for Toni’s part, both for guests and dresses.

Please, just get it over with already.

Maybe someone can make her one.

SECOND TIME AROUND! Find a really nice, high quality dress. If it wasn’t designed as a wedding dress, it won’t take much to modify it.

Most men would kill for a girl like Toni, beautiful, and she doesn’t want to spend a lot of money. Toni would look good in a potato sack – just bleach it white!

Helllloooooo, eBay…

“Scarcity”“Unfurl The Sales, Hard To Pur-port”“Fishing For A Dress? Block And Tackle!”

“I Never Would Have Guest”“I’ve Seen All Good People” (♬)“Endeavor And Lace”“Thought Of Train”“A Veiled Response”“Seams, Not So Easy”“Humble, In A China Silk Shop”“Chiffon Off The Old Stock”“Here’s Two Good Friends…Tonight Is Kinda Special…” (♪)

“Quality Over Quantity”

or“The Hunt For White December”

Toni, give Luann $200 and ask her to go shopping for you. She will be out the door before you know it!

White?

“Brought to you, by”…

“Number One Machine And Supply”…..“For the top of the line in quality fabrics and sewing machines, the name to remember is Number One!”…“With Number One, you can make it sew!”-“Pragmatic Adjustable Threaders”….“For the busy multitaskers….as well as the most thrifty! So handy and effortless, even a chef could do it, in the middle of the supper crowds!…Just don’t spool your dinner…”-“Subpoena Invitation and Greeting Card Company”….“Got a family reunion? A boring engagement you want them to suffer enjoy and sit through attend? Send ‘em a special custom note, from Subpoena…. they’ll be sure to know you cared enough! And they’ll be sure to make it…”

-And, “by”…“The Marta Stalwart Collection”….“This week, on sale, at OkayMart…”

Wedding dress under $200.00 , try renting one.

She can get a nice simple white dress at any dept store for under $200. Or go on-line. It doesn’t have to be a ‘wedding’ dress per se. I like the idea of Gunther making it tho!

make your own.my wife made hers; way under 2004

My dress was under $200 and it was beautiful.

Gunther can make the dress.Or Prue can get a theatrical rental.

Don’t firefighters spend a lot of time together? She must be close to her co workers and want them at the wedding.

Goodwill & Salvation Army. Not only are you being environmentally responsible but your money is going to people overcoming challenges. Plus, under $200 (usually)

A $200 Wedding Dress, You Say?

Toni? YOU are in LUCK My Dear!

Your Unca Mordy just so happens to have this STASH of White COFFEE Bean Sacks Laying around that would make a GREAT Wedding Dress!Annnnnnd, I’ve Got a Bunch of Grandma’s Old Tea Cozys that would make a VERY Lovely Veil! YOURS for $199.00 Plus Tax! (Hey, I Gotta Pay the Governor)

No Worries! Just get Good Old Gunther to Sew All of that Stuff together for Ya!

Oh DON’T Fret about Him. He’s Got LOTS of Free Time on His Hands while Team Evans Continues to STALL His ‘Romance’ with Tiffany….,

I think we’re due for a visit from…Mister Gray.

My second wife found a dress for less than $200. It was on the clearance rack and was last year’s style and looked pretty amazing. I never realized it was out of style, and I don’t think anyone else did either…weddings are so over the top outrageous these days.

I got the dress for my 2nd wedding for $200 at a store that specialized in used wedding & prom dresses.

I liked the part “white..obviously” I can see that being true with Brad (poor guy) but it stretches the imagination considering her past.

David’s Bridal during their $99 sale. With her size, she shouldn’t have any issues.

Well past the crises, and opting for a more reasonable and rational wedding, a “normal” wedding. They did not even talk about the wedding party, and there is so much STUFF in even a modest normal wedding. TJ will want to cater food I bet along with being best man. And Shannon will be in the wedding as well as being a guest. I think she might have meant Jonah as being in the wedding party. That should be interesting, although it would not be the first time brothers-in-law can’t stand each other. Getting a wedding dress under $200? Possible, but not likely. I think though that it will be at the Fuse in the end and a lot of stuff will be donated. So we go apace.

I thought Gunther was the resident fashion designer? Is he still available?

There are quite a few thrift shops here in San Diego where that would not be out of line for a wedding dress…

My youngest daughter found her wedding dress at a consignment store for $35. It was the most gorgeous wedding dress that I had ever seen.

Or buy a dress that you will actually wear for other occasions. It’s easier to fit your budget and not be a major waste of money. Worked for my wife.

What is traditional. Nothing more should be read into it. ’nuff said.

It would be beautifully sentimental if Nancy would be flattered by having her dress used. They have been drawn as somewhat similar in size.36 years ago i wore a previous season’s style, gotten for $75, but in today’s money that is still more than $200.Is the rest of their budgetting unrealistic? If so, they will not be able to afford Cottage 4 2. They might instead wind up at the place Toni had first suggested even before it was renovated: the Fuse.

Haven’t read all the comments but Gunther can make her dress. Gunther can save the day!

You can rent wedding dresses much like you can rent tuxedos. My wife did this and that was in 1988. A very expensive designer for very little. But it was more that $200 even then, but not by much.

Wait, what do you mean “and my aunt, if I can find her?” Toni…did something happen to your aunt? Is she in danger? Call a search party! PANIC! AAHHH!!!!!!!!!!……..or maybe I’m overthinking it?

Rent one from Rent the Runway. Or, just find a nice white dress in a nice store (I did mine at Woodward & Lothrop for $99).

“Wedding dresses”; another pretension of the Wedding Industry borne put of a desire to keep up with the rich who can afford such things.That’s how we ended up with “lawns” in front of our houses, by the way.

Just buy a regular white formal dress – doesnt have to be from a bridal shop. Those special occasion dress are stylish in chiffon, silk and rayons – same fabrics used in bridal dresses. Bridal dresses are just more detailed and more fluffy. I’d choose a nice $200 white dress from Macy’s over a bridal shop. Simple design/style and wearable after the wedding for a variety of special occasions.

My bride made her dress. It was simple, gorgeous, did the job, and cost less than $100.

8While I have been away at a variety of Labor Day holiday events I was unable to comment, but now that I have returned, I must say that this surprising turn of events (from the “red herring” dream sequence of elopement) is, to me:1. Wonderfully fun and refreshing. I am delighted how things are currently proceeding.2. This turn of events REALLY shows very strongly how much of a caring, thoughtful person Brad is and is trying to further become. All along he has been working hard to try to do what he believes the two of them want. When Toni finally told Brad about her discomfort…. Brad worked hard to shift gears and change his efforts to better suit what Toni requested and now the two of them are both in a great space. 3. I was especially pleased to see Toni list Shannon first and foremost on her list of relatives for the wedding from “her side”. I think having Shannon listed first further confirms to us how strongly Toni cares about Shannon…. even when she gets exasperated by the various Jonah induced challenges. 4. Wedding dress for $200? Sure…. there are a lot of different ways to proceed…. many already mentioned….. thrift shops, Craig’s list, super clearance sales, using another “type” of white dress. I suspect that Toni has enough ingenuity to get a wedding dress she wants for the budget she wants as well.

Time to ask Gunther for a Favor. :-)

An ex-fiancee of mine found a dress for our cancelled wedding for under $200. It wasn’t a wedding dress per se….

My veil was my “something borrowed”, a friend gave me a blue garter, and another friend and i sewed a coryphodon incisor into the hem in a handkerchief as my “something old”.

Ok guys. Googled “wedding dress under 200”. Here’s what I found: http://wedding-dresses-photo.blogspot.com/2016/01/wedding-dress-under-200.html

White?? Who thinks Toni is still a virgin?

This is a comic strip. It is complete fantasy that there would be a woman like her.

BTW, it wasn’t a ‘dream sequence’ It was a misdirection that played out to be a visualization of what Brad was SAYING to Toni.

Wow. Planning a wedding overwhelms her. She apparently has no friends to invite. Toni is a loser.

Oh, if memory serves about 40 years later, the trick i found most useful when sifting through the discard heap for slabs to split was also using touch to find possible “inhabitants”. If that recollection is right i wonder if i coukd still do well enough w bad eyes?

Easy peasey. Get married in what you wear to work or what you are comfortable in.

A wedding dress does not have to be a gown. She can find a white dress for under $200.

Toni doesn’t have a single friend? Even introverts usually have 1 or 2 close friends.

Goodwill. Consignment shop. Heck, I got my dress off ebay!

if one goes “G, create me a wedding dress” he might go crazy

but if you go “G, make me a wedding dress EXACTLY like this one in this magazine” he will do it exactly like that

I agree, Gunther could make the dress for under $200.

lol a White dress from the ex-g/f of such a bad boy?

Gunther could make her a stunner for half that!

Bad vibes. The wedding dress is a red herring. Toni just wants to move in with Brad, and eventually make it legal, but the traditional values of this strip prevent that. Brad’s “to do” list will get bigger and just become too much for Toni who may well pull a “Rosa” and skip town. Trouble is, Brad needs her and she really wants Brad. I still see an elopement in their future. Besides, the character, Brad, is way too dull to exist on his own.

Brad’s body as a high school teen than a few years later as a firefighter https://proanacharm.files.wordpress.com/2015/05/after-weight-loss.png

@blunebottle (SUBMIT isn’t working):“BTW, where is the car? "It’s a long driveway into the Wedding planner’s mansion…..I don’t think they are at the planner’s. It looks like they’re at a park. Look at panel 1, and you’ll see Brad is holding his smartphone. He must have called the planner and explained the situation. If they were at the planner’s, he could have talked to her in person.

The firefighter crew are as much Brad’s friends as Toni’s. That’s why she doesn’t find it necessary to list them as her invitees; they would aready be on Brad’s list.

When I got married my dress cost $198 dollars. Stereotypical wedding dress. Where there is a will, there is a way.

it shouldn’t be that hard to find a cheap wedding dress. That’s what goodwill is for right?

Well, my own Mom didn’t have/wear any wedding dress when she married my step-dad back in 1976 (they broke up in 1984, divorce was final by that next summer). Nope, she just wore an ordinary mostly-white sweater-dress (medium-length). And that was just fine.

If I recall, Toni attended her “fire fighter classes” with a friend. Maybe they’ve had a falling out since then. Personally, I would love to see her ex Dirk attend as a guest, along with his family.

Here’s a wedding riddle for you:My husband proposed to two women. Both said, “Yes.” And the weddings happened. Yet, i am the only wife he has ever had. Can you guess what happened?

I think there are places now where you can rent a wedding dress. We can rent tuxes right so why not a wedding dress too?

If we can’t have FAQ, perhaps we can have ORC or Overly Repetitive Comments. These make it difficult to read through the day’s comments.So far the tedious entries include 1) No wedding dress is that cheap. 2) Easy to find them that cheap. 3) How can she wear white? She’s no virgin! 4) I know! Have Gunther make the dress!

Okay, here is how my hubby happened to have two successful proposals, with two weddings resulting, but only one wife:The second woman was one to whom he proposed for a friend. She was fed up with our friend postponing so had stopped speaking to him. Our friend realized his loss so he enlisted Steve, who had one successful proposal (to me) already completed, to propose to his girlfriend for him. They are still married 36 years later. Actually, three couples, all friends on our dorm hall got engaged that year and married the next, and all of us are still happily married.

My wedding dress was $240, came from a bridal shop, and wasn’t on clearance or discount. It was also beautiful and I felt beautiful in it. Been married 12 years with no regrets for having a wedding that cost under $4k total. Commenters here need some imagination. Not all weddings have to cost $40k.

Or you can go to http://www.gocomics.com/luann/2010/06/07

seems like Brad is already burdening toni with things she needs to think about… which he probably could have figured out on his own. But Brad should take a cue from the fact that that she lists three family members that are important to her: Shannon, Jonah and her aunt. Brad should keep it small and simple on his side..i.e. just invite three people, Frank, Nancy and Luann.

My sister got hers for 60. From JcPenny’s and added some flair to it. She didn’t want to have one with all of that crap on it that makes it weigh like 40 pounds. It was a beautiful dress as of course was the bride.

For all you hating on the $200 wedding dress go on Amazon search for Wedding Dress and you’ll find over 30 dress in many styles for under $200. The expensive dress is a product of the wedding industry feeding you BS your average sub $500 wedding dress is made overseas for about a total of $50 in material and labor.

Something occurred to me. Brad is meeting the planner at 4PM. This is the same day the shower stuff and Jonah BS started. Which means Toni was coming home from a NIGHT shift.

LUANN: So was Toni referring to virginity in her “white, obviously” remark? That’s the topic today. As the strip is so ridiculously circumspect about sex, one has to look for clues in past iterations of similar situations. And there is a recent similar situation. After three years with Quill, Luann was considering going to New York with him, so the Evanses had Luann’s mom step into the limelight and say,

“Have you thought about protection? About disease and emotional consequences? What you’d do if the worst happened? Are you prepared to deal with parenthood? Your father and I struggled with this same thing while we were dating and we chose to abstain.”

And in the light of Mom DeGroot’s “we-waited-until-marriage-to-make-love” speech to Luann, it’s clear that the Evanses and Toni mean that she (and by extension, Brad) REALLY IS a virgin.

The strip really is that lame and emasculated.

I just googled “cheap wedding dresses”. There are many pretty ones, and some very fancy (lacy & long). Personally, I think Toni would be most comfortable in a pair of white sweats. If that’s not possible, the simpler the dress the better.*She also has to decide her attendants— if she has anyone other than Luann and Shannon, whom she has already asked.

Toni can have mine. Successful marriage, but my daughter had other ideas about what she wanted to wear. Now what do I do with it?This one site has lots of pretty dresses white under $100. There are plenty more. http://www.simplydresses.com/shop/viewitem-PD1200186http://www.simplydresses.com/shop/viewitem-PD1473738http://www.simplydresses.com/shop/viewitem-PD1524297http://www.simplydresses.com/shop/viewitem-PD1319874

So, activist1234, for you, sex is like punching people, eh? God, you’re weird. There is no nobility, no superiority, no morality in resisting natural impulses when there are two consenting adults. As neither Toni nor Brad have shown a single religious impulse, there is no reason not for them to have taken their relationship to physical intimacy.

Ooops on the double post. Apologies

THRIFT STORES LIKE Goodwill OR salvation army USUALLY HAVE SOME

To those who have been reading too much into the symbolism of a white wedding dress, you remind me of Joanie Caucus’s mother in this Doonesbury sequence (June 1981):

Forget the dress, Toni will never make it to the altar or judge’s chamber or barefoot on some beach. She will get cold feet and hot foot it out of town. Thing is, I’m on her side. Simple ceremony, sign the papers, don’t tell anyone, and just disappear for a couple of weeks.

not sure about where they live but David’s Bridal in Texas has lovely dresses under $200. In fact in the spring they always have a sale and put a select bunch on for $99. They may not be as sharp as the Say yes to the Dress gowns but they are nice and affordable.

Does it strike anyone else as unexpected that the dress topic got so very many posts?

A wedding dress?Piece of cake for Gunther

Goodwill or Salvation Army Thrift Store! I got one there for $50.00, spent $200 for alterations, then donated it back when I was done.

Nope. My hubby is the man this woman would fantasize if she did not have him, not a political party…

Spoiler Alert: Brad goes for the win for less than $200, Alex…

she could go to a 2nd hand store and find one.

lightinaboxdotcom beautiful wedding gowns under 200.00 that’s where i got mine.

I got my wedding dress on Amazon – $68 and it fit perfectly (ok, 98% perfectly – the sleeves were just a teensy bit tight, which I could have fixed, but it wasn’t worth the time). Floor length, poofy skirt, fitted bodice, corset back, cap sleeves, and just the right amount of sparkle (silver sparkles) on the white dress that is obviously a wedding dress. My veil was made out of my mom’s wedding dress, so it only cost $2 for materials to finish it. And I got married 4 days ago, so no inflation costs needed on that. So I have no doubt Toni can find herself a dress for that price.