The wedding is officially over (or, in some cases, never happen) and you have this beautiful, albeit puffy, dress that you really can’t wear again. The traditional option is to take your wedding dress to a drycleaner to have the dress preserved (which will cost you upwards of $50) for that future daughter/granddaughter.
1. Make a Quilt. If you have a family member or friend who is into quilting, you can have them turn your wedding dress into a quilt. This is a great option for those who don’t have children or only have sons (it makes a great gift to them when they’re getting married)
2. Dye it. Depending on the fabric, you may be able to have your dress professionally dyed, so you can wear it again as an evening gown.
3. Shorten it. Have the dress shorten and wear it as a cocktail dress
4. Sell it. Hopefully, you will only get married once, so if you’re not the sentimental type, sell your wedding dress on eBay, craigslist, via a consignment shop. Often, you can recoup up to 75% of the price of the dress.
5. Donate it. Wedding dresses are expensive (as you by now know), so why not donate the your dress to someone who can’t afford to purchase a dress. You can give your dress to your local Salvation Army or Goodwill. You can also donate your dress to projects like Brides Against Breast Cancer, which sells the wedding dresses to help fund programs for women living with breast cancer or the I DO foundation, which gives 20% of the proceeds from your dress sell to the charity of your choice.
Do you have other great tips for reusing a wedding dress? Post them below…
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Donate it to a good cause! Here are some great places you can donate your gown:
http://bridesagainstbreastcancer.org/
http://www.bridalgarden.org/charity.html
http://heavenlyangelsinneed.com/HomeMenu.php
http://www.idofoundation.org/resources/dresses/
Hallowe’en costume. Corpse Bride, zombie bride, bride of Frankenstein…or color it hot pink and go as Barbie!
i bought a bridal gown for $10 at a yard sale when i was like 8, the lady was tiny so my mom hacked of the bottom and i was a bride for halloween!
Great ideas! Some brides have donated their gowns to their local thrift shops. Others have used their bridal gown to make a crib dust ruffle.
My sister-in-law cut hers up and is planning on using the fabric for a Christening outfit for her kids.
The idea of donating Wedding Dress is not a big deal because hardly there may be any lady who wear her wedding dress. So, its better to donate it to some charity so that the women who cannot afford can get it. The blog is really motivational and others should learn the feelings expressed.