Sikeston native to appear on TLC reality show

SIKESTON, Mo. -- Future bride Hannah Kean explained what it was like to try on several wedding gowns within a five-hour period to film an upcoming episode of TLC's "Say Yes to the Dress: Atlanta."

"It was a chaotic day," Kean said. "It was like spending a day at the gym -- but just to try on dresses."

By day's end, Kean -- who works on a dairy farm and is a veterinary technician student -- said she found her perfect wedding dress.

"I wanted something Southern because I'm getting married on a cattle farm, and I wanted it to be something country-looking -- nothing super poofy or that looks like a ballgown because we're sitting with the cows," Kean said about her wedding, which will take place on a cattle farm in Stoddard County. "If the cows want to walk up to the guests, they can."

The episode featuring Kean is slated to air at 8 p.m. today on TLC. However, Kean noted, stations can opt to change the air date with little notice.

Kean, who attended Sikeston High School and graduated in 2011 from Richland High School in Essex, Mo., explained how she became involved with the cable reality show that follows future brides as they pick out a wedding dress.

"It's been one of my favorite shows," Kean said. "I was living in Woodstock, Ga., this summer, which is about 20 minutes from where it's filmed."

Kean said she thought it was neat how close she was to Bridals by Lori -- the Atlanta bridal shop where the show is filmed.

"I was goofing off one day and went to the [show's] website. I saw where it said 'Be on TV,'" Kean recalled.

She filled out the online application and clicked send, Kean said.

"I never win anything. I figured nothing would happen," Kean recalled. "That was a Wednesday, and that next Friday, they said they were interested in filming me in Atlanta."

Kean said she thinks the personal information she included in her application might have helped her chances of being selected for the show.

"I talked about cows a lot, and I mentioned that I work on a dairy farm, and I'm getting married on a cattle farm," Kean said. "They want shows that are interesting and not just people trying on dresses."

In mid-September, a crew with the TLC show filmed Kean trying on wedding gowns with her parents, sister, grandmother and family friend in attendance at Bridals by Lori.

"There were 30 people watching me, holding a camera and taking notes," Kean said, adding the camera was with her at all times. "They were constantly watching you, and you had to sometimes repeat the same line over and over again if they didn't hear you."

During filming, she worked mostly with Flo Waters, bridal assistant manager at the bridal shop. She also worked closely with bridal shop owner Lori Allen.

"The main thing we talked about on this show is since I work on the farm [with about 2,000 cows] and forget to wear actual boots, I had cow poop on my shoes, and Lori was freaking about that," Kean said.

As result, the episode is centered around her boots, Kean said, and it's been titled "Something New, Something Poo."

"It's been a unique experience, and it was so fun," said Kean's mother, Tammy Kean of Sikeston. "All of the joking that goes on between the people filming it and the people working there, and there's so much they don't show on TV."

Hannah Kean shared one of her antics that didn't get caught on film -- at least she thinks it didn't.

"At one point, I put a dress on that I thought was really ugly, and I got stuck in it. They had just got that dress, and they had to cut me out of it," she said.

The experience also has given her the opportunity to evolve.

"I used to be really, really shy," Hannah Kean said. "It's gotten me out of my comfort zone a lot, and pushed me to get out of my comfort zone."

TLC has reached out to film her wedding for a new show it's developing, she said.

Pertinent address:

Sikeston, MO