You’re looking back and it seems like it was only yesterday that you said “I do” at the altar, you’ve returned from your honeymoon, you’ve received the materials from the photographer, and you’re reliving all of those glorious nuptial moments with a heavy nostalgia. And your wedding dress is still hanging in your wardrobe.
It’s one of the most valuable things that you own, not in regard to price, but to the emotional weight of such an important dress. It took you hours to find, and became the real centrepiece of your wedding – but what to do with it now? We’re here to give you five ideas on how to give your dress a new lease of life.
Sell it
It might seem a drastic option, and is definitely not the right idea if you have a real, emotional attachment to your dress. However, there are many brides who buy their dresses for practical reasons over sentimental ones, and many who feel that whilst beautiful, it is merely an article of clothing taking up space. If this reflects your own attitude, selling your dress is a good choice, and will in most cases provide quite a decent amount of money that could contribute towards a deposit on a house, or on any number of things for your future together.
Rent it
This option can be considered the best of both worlds, the middle ground between selling your dress, and keeping it. It is perhaps the only way to continue enjoying the beauty of your dress, and also make a tidy profit from it. You can rent your wedding dress online, or through specialised wedding shops, or even through charities, for brides who cannot afford to splash out for their big day. A minor issue is that brides will not be able to make alterations if necessary, and so the potential clientele is reduced, but there is still a large market for this kind of product.
Donate it, or gift it
Think carefully…do you really need the money? It could be that donating your wedding dress is one of the best, and most charitable options that you have. As aforementioned, it is unfortunately often the case that aspiring brides have few resources to work with – think of the joy you could bring to another woman in love by simply giving away a dress that you’re probably not going to wear again anyway. Another similar option is to gift it to someone that you know, or even a friend of a friend, in the same way that you did with your bouquet at the reception!
Trash it
Hear us out before you discard this idea completely. You might not have heard of this practice, but it’s a great way to create some real art out of a beautiful piece of clothing. Many brides hire photographers, and then enjoy an art attack – painting, cutting, ripping and destroying it without any other motive than to just enjoy yourself. Normally, brides who do this will book a place completely opposite to the venue of their wedding, and create a book of contrasting photos.
Reuse it
In recent years, many brides have been inclined to choose a more simple kind of dress that can be worn more than once, or adjusted to become a more casual outfit. Indeed, many choose to transform their wedding dress, from making small adjustments to dying it a different colour, or using the fabric to create new items of clothing and accessories, including underwear and cushions. You can make your wedding dress the gift that simply keeps on giving…
If none of these options are catching your fancy, it’s best to hold on to your dress until you’ve made a firm decision – you don’t want to give it away in the heat of the moment and then regret it! Just make sure that whilst you have it in your wardrobe that it is regularly cleaned, and kept away from contaminants!
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