Go ahead, pinch yourself! Yes, that magical day really happened! Needless to say, your wedding day was just as perfect as you dreamt of it to be! You can swear the sky gleamed bluer than ever that day, the air was perfumed with love, and as you swayed to that carefully selected song in the arms of your sweetheart, all the pieces fell into place just like you hoped, and everything felt just right! Sure there were many elements which contributed to this magical day, the delicate roses, the cake which stole the show, and of course- The Dress! The dress took the center stage when it needed to, and stepped back and let you shine when you needed it to. It fit you like it was intended just for you, and the lace etched your back perfectly and the sparkles in it glowed under the glimmering chandelier. Just like any good dress, your wedding dress will always carry within its fold the memories and anecdotes from the day, the giggles of your bridesmaids, the nerve-tingling enticement seconds before you walked that aisle, and the sanctity of the vows. However, the wedding is now behind you, and the dress is in front of you, looking as gorgeous as it did the first time you walked into that store. So now what?
Sell the Dress, Donate, or Store it?
And now that your wedding day is over, what do you do with that beautiful piece of art hanging in your closet? While in some cases the life of a wedding dress is just one day, in other cases, it might get to live on for a long while. Ask yourself what you truly want. Do you store it for your unborn granddaughter to wear someday? Do you sell your wedding dress off for a good price? Do you give it away for donation? While we will walk through each of the possible options, know that no decision is the wrong decision. It is your dress! Own your decision with pride!
Store away to keep
While much is said about wedding dress reselling, sometimes one might just want to keep that slice of memory for themselves so that they can get a peek of the special day every time they open their closet. There is nothing wrong with wanting to hold on to that dress, and don’t let anyone tell you otherwise. If you have no intentions of reselling your wedding dress away to anyone and want it for yourself for good, special care should be taken to ensure it is stored right away. There are certain things which you might want to keep in mind.
• The fabric of the dress is important for you to decide on a way to store your wedding gown. If the dress is made of a light and airy material and the cut is that of a breathable sheath style, you are good with hanging the dress in your closet. With a heavier dress with a multitiered silhouette, heavy beading, and textures, hanging might stretch the dress out and spoil it, in which case, you can go for flat storage.
• After your wedding day, you might want to have your dress professionally cleaned or repaired (if required) before you store it away.
• The environment is crucial while making the call of storing your wedding dress, as many elements might cause harm to the dress like sunlight, moisture, etc. Someplace airy, dry, and dark is perfect for storing your pretty dress away.
• Just like the temperature and moisture in the air, odors can also affect your dress! Keep your dress away from prolonged cooking smells or cigarette smoke which can cling to the fabric and damage fibers of the dress, speeding up aging or causing discoloration.
• Using the right materials while storing your wedding dress is crucial. Invest in materials like padded hangers, fine quality undyed, unbleached cotton muslin garment bag, a large, white cotton sheet to wrap your dress in, storing it flat, are all essentials and you will be glad you invested in them, and your dress will remain perfect for years to come.
Store to give away or reuse!
A wedding dress evokes a lot of emotions, and it makes sense that a bride will be sentimental about the dress that she gets married in! So it makes sense you might want to hold on to it a little longer rather than selling your wedding dress off before you figure out what exactly you want to do with it!
Here are some ideas and inspirations:
• Give it to a family member: There is something so beautiful and romantic about a dress which has been passed down for generations. If your dress is of a quality that will stand the test of time, and the style of the dress is classic and universal enough, you can pass down the dress to your daughter, granddaughter, or even your sister. They can either use the dress in its original form, or use parts of it to be incorporated into their dress, and it will just be as special! There is something beautiful about a dress carrying a legacy of so many women within the same family, won’t you agree?
• Dye it a fun color: So you are not ready to give your dress away, but are not keen on wearing it as a wedding dress too? Upgrade it! Dye your dress a fun color, and it will give the dress a whole new vibe! Whether you want to go for a mauve pink or a sleek black, it will be the perfect formal gown perfect for any number of special occasions. And you get to carry a little piece of your fairytale wedding with you too, whenever you wear it. This works especially well for wedding dresses that are of a simpler cut like a trumpet cut, slip dress, or an A-line, the fabric is compatible with the dye, and there is nothing much going on in terms of embellishments. Make sure you get it done from a place you trust and get a consultation prior to getting it dyed because the last thing we want is for your dress to be ruined!
• Get Crafty: If you want to still be able to use your wedding dress, turn it into something else! And there are so many different ways you can go from here! Work with a seamstress to create a brand new dress, a co-ord set, or even accessories from your wedding dress and you can wear them again and again. Whether you want to make it a tradition to wear it for your anniversary every year, or to wear it more often in your day-to-day life, giving your wedding dress an upgrade is always a great idea. You can also make accessories like a pretty lace bag, a necklace, a crop top, a silk skirt, among other things!
Sell the dress
If you have decided that you will rather sell the dress, than storing it, let it be known this is a sustainable option, as it will slow down production and encourage wearing preloved wedding dresses. Selling a wedding dress is not only better for the environment, but it is also economically more affordable for another bride-to-be, as she gets to wear a pretty dress that has only been worn once before and is in perfect condition. Decoding how to sell your wedding dress however is a whole another story. Choosing the right medium for your wedding dress is elementary, as it can help your dress reach its ideal new match faster! There are several different ways you can put up your wedding dress for reselling. Let us go through each one of them so that you can find the right way to do it, at your convenience!
• Online markets for all products: These are the online marketplaces that are not particular to wedding dresses, but rather provide a wide assortment of different products. Whether it is a Facebook Marketplace, Etsy, or eBay, there is a huge variety of alternatives and each platform works somewhat differently.
• Online Markets for Wedding Dresses: These are the platforms that empower the seller to sell only wedding dresses and require a cover fee for sellers in return which essentially makes things easier for a bride to sell her wedding dress in a few moves. While you can sell your dress on any of the platforms that you like, we suggest going with a site that centers on wedding dress resale primarily. There are an extensive collection of such wedding dress resale platforms out there for you to pick from.
• Second-hand Offline Shops: If you will rather sell off your dress in person in a real shop, several second-hand wedding dress boutiques are laid out in your city too. It's worth investigating around in your neighborhood, and you might befall upon the most perfect shop that will buy that dress off your hands. However, every shop operates a little differently and while some buy the dress from you the day you bring it in, others might offer to sell the dress on your behalf. Be sure you talk about the precepts and payments before you sell the dress.
Donate
Want to pass your wedding dress on to a worthy bride, but unwilling to sell your wedding dress too? We get it! Donating your wedding dress is a sustainable move and surely some brides-to-be will love to chance upon the perfect “just-worn-once” dress in a hanger of a thrift store or a charity shop. However, there might be some confusion about how to do this efficiently. Here are some ways you could donate your gown:
Your neighborhood thrift store: Just imagine the joy in the heart of a bride browsing through the wedding section of your local thrift store and finding the dream wedding dress! Donating your wedding dress to your neighborhood thrifting center can be the easiest way to ensure the dress is out of your hands quickly. All you have to do is drive in and drop the beauty off!
Theater group: For prominent theater groups and even college theater clubs, a wedding dress that is being donated helps immensely, as they can easily add that to their costume collection and they don't have to buy on.
Charitable Causes: There are several charitable causes in the country which cater primarily to providing wedding dress to brides across the country for free. Doing this will not only help a bride out but will also help you dispose of the dress in a more meaningful and charitable way. Some of them are highlighted below, but there are many more!
• Adorned in Grace is a place that resells donated gowns and accessories, with all its profits being used towards deterring sex trafficking and supporting sex trafficking victims.
• Brides Across America provides wedding gowns for military and first responder brides that are afflicted by economic difficulties and deployments.
• Brides Against Breast Cancer uses the donated wedding dresses to make them much more affordable for others, all the while helping them fund breast cancer causes.
• Brides for a Cause sells the donated dresses to solicit funds for several different women-focused charities.
• The Brides Project supports those diagnosed with cancer by granting your wedding dress. The dress must originally be from the last five years.
• The Bridal Garden takes wedding dress contributions to further benefit education for New York City’s disadvantaged children. They generally accept anything which is reasonably clean, in sellable condition, and was acquired within the last five years.
• Fairy Tale Brides On A Shoestring accepts new or like-new dresses which are 5 years old or less, and also vintage gowns so that they can sell those wedding gowns to the bride with a budget at a shoestring price.
Angel Gown Programs: There are many Angel Gown programs across the country which are essentially places where seamstresses and tailors offer their time to turn wedding dresses into garments for babies who passed away at birth. As many of these programs run on volunteers, they appreciate a donation, however, they often close the donations if they happen to have an excess of old bridal gowns.
Tax-deductible Donation: Donating your dress to a registered non-profit organization will ensure that the amount paid will be tax-deductible. Ensure that when donating, you get the donation receipt, and in case you lose it, you can always ask for a duplicate copy. Not only will it help out with your taxes, but you can also rest assured that your pretty dress will find a good home.
Wedding dresses are special! There are no two thoughts about it! Whether you are wearing a designer name that you have been idolizing since you were 10, or your dress is full of unknown stories and was picked from the local thrift store, every dress which has been carefully chosen by a bride-to-be is special in her eyes and makes her glow and look like the most beautiful in the room! Just like choosing the perfect partner to “do life” together, the perfect dress to make you feel like a queen on your special day, choosing what to do with your pretty dress is an equally careful decision for the bride to make. No matter what you end up doing, selling the wedding dress or donating it, as long it is a decision that makes you feel at peace with yourself, you are golden!
Please wait!
