Calling all second time brides!

sgaussoi

What did y'all do with your first wedding dress?  I called my local parish to donate it to them and they said there wasn't a need and referred me to another parish who never called me back.  I have all the accessories (veil, tiara, shoes) as well as things from the ceremony (ring pillows, cake knife) and I'd like to get rid of them.

Also, what did you do with your original wedding photos?  Keep or toss??

MikesAngie

You can donate your gently used wedding items to the Goodwill, Salvation Army, Every Girl's Dream Inc,  The Bride's Project, The Bridal Garden, Brides for a Cause, or Brides Against Breast Cancer.

If you have children from your first marriage I would suggest keeping the pictures, if not you can do whatever you heart desires with them.  Please note that those in your family that have copies will not necessarily want to toss them.

Edited for spelling errors...

radleyboo

My dress is still hanging in a closet at my parents' house.  Not sure what I'll do with it.  I never had it cleaned or preserved so I may just donate it.  I still have my photos as I had 3 children with my ex, and I will let them decide if they'd like them someday.

debbiem56

I donated my dress and gave my 3 kids the pictures.

krispi921

My mom sold my dress at a consignment shop years ago. (It really was a pretty dress!)

I think my photo album is at my parents' house somewhere. I couldn't bear to throw away something we spent $1300 on (even though I have no desire to see them anymore).

sgaussoi

Thanks all!  We didn't have any kids together and I'm having a hard time justifying throwing out something we spent so much on! 

princess pop

My dress is hanging somewhere in my parent's house. I keep saying I will donate it, but who knows when I actually will.

I still have my photo albums, they're just tucked away. 

beautifulmama28

In Response to Re: Calling all second time brides!:
[QUOTE]I still have my dresses from all my weddings.  My first marriage ended with his death, and I don't see why I should throw out the dress I loved from the second just because the guy was an Anal Orifice.  I may donate them eventually, although my stepdaughter has said she might ask to borrow my first wedding dress for hers someday (which would thrill me no end). Try a consignment store. Some charities take dresses for military brides, or there's one for Brides for Breast Cancer. I've also heard of people making theirs into a baby quilt or christening gown for their first child or grandchild. Put a post on Craigslist. Free gown to any bride who wants it.  someone will take it.  Put a post on the Trash to Treasure or Budget Brides board, too.
Posted by RetreadBride[/QUOTE]

ROFL @ anal orifice! lol

beautifulmama28

I have mine in my hope chest, and since I have 4 girls (and only one dress lol) I've told them they can each have pieces of it for their gowns/accessories on their days etc. Its an old Alfred Angelo believe it or not (tea length high low with big poofy 90's sleeves, GAG!)

The pictures haha, this is funny....when ex and I split, we initially lived in the same house together for the first 6 months AFTER we filed (almost a full year after it was over, can you say PAINFUL?! lol). Our wedding album had ended up in our bedroom at one point, and we played this game where initially I put it on his dresser, and a few days later I found it on mine, then it went right back to his, then it showed up on mine. It was incredibly childish lol But in the end I decided to pack it away for my kids someday.

Honestly I don't hate my ex,...is he s PITA? yes, constantly, but he's also the other half of my 8 beautiful babies so I can only dislike him so much lol.

Lisa50

I cannot remember what I did with it.  I guess that means I gave it away to charity.

My photo album is here at home, waiting to find a home when my son (age 20, college sophomore) gets his own place.  When digging through my parents' attic, I found the notebook I used when planning the wedding.  My son was helping with the clean out.  He has the notebook.  *sigh*

Dancer2873

Mine was cleaned and preserved I have been trying to sell it on craigslist and preowned weddings.com but still no luck!

niki&rob

I gave mine to a friend so she could use for a halloween costume hahaha she was the bride of frankenstein

theretamaragoes

I sold mine on Craigslist. I only got about $200 for it... but honestly, I was just glad to have it out of my closet!

photokhris

I sold mine on ebay for around $250. I still have the pictures and toasting glasses, my FI and I are planning on having a bonfire someday!  

bchprincess

My first gown I sold when we were still married. I could never see hanging on to something that I would never wear again. I paid 150 and got 200 for it. It was at an end of yr sale. It was a beautiful lace gown granted (80's lol) but still beautiful. This gown I paid 1000$ for it, an Anjolique plus 250$ to tuck in the cap sleeves and add 2buttons and I couldn't get 150$ for it. It was encrusted with Swarovski crystals on the entire bodice front and back. Go figure. So I donated it to the SPCA.

decembergrl2014

I donated my dress, tiara and shoes to the American Cancer Center. (The veil was my something borrowed, so that was returned after the wedding.) Once my ex and I sold the house and I was packing to move, I found the wedding album and tossed it, but not before looking at it one more time. I think my parents still have their album from the wedding, but it's not in plain sight, so I don't even think about it when I'm there. (I also sold my ring a week after filing for divorce.) We didn't have any kids together, so I figured why keep it?

Jells2dot0

bchprincess said:

My first gown I sold when we were still married. I could never see hanging on to something that I would never wear again. I paid 150 and got 200 for it. It was at an end of yr sale. It was a beautiful lace gown granted (80's lol) but still beautiful. This gown I paid 1000$ for it, an Anjolique plus 250$ to tuck in the cap sleeves and add 2buttons and I couldn't get 150$ for it. It was encrusted with Swarovski crystals on the entire bodice front and back. Go figure. So I donated it to the SPCA.

I sold my first wedding gown while I was still married as well. I paid almost $4000 for it so I was able to sell it on Ebay and still get over $1000 for it. I knew I didn't want to have children and didn't see a point in hanging on to somethingbig and poofy that I'd never wear again, even if I did stay married to him!

mnwatson1

My first dress got destroyed when a cat got into the box it was in out in the garage, and decided it was a good place to pee.  *LOL*  I guess that should've told me something! 

As for wedding pictures, I burned them.  My son wasn't born when we split, and has NEVER known the ex and I together, so I really didn't see the point in giving him pictures that represented a "happy" time that was never real.  Ex was extremely abusive, but it took me being pregnant with my son to realize I needed to get out.  So giving him those photos would've just been giving him a lie.

WonderRed

I think I just donated mine to Goodwill.   

Emily104

My dress had been preserved and cleaned after the wedding, and I recently took it to a bridal consignment shop.  Honestly, if it doesn't sell there soon, I'll just donate it.  It sat in a closet for the last few years and really means nothing at this point. 

As for the photos... well... I think I have a cd or something with them somewhere... we never even got around to ordering real photos, so luckily I don't have albums full of old wedding photos.  I think that disc is in my mom's basement somewhere, and I would be happy for it to just stay there and get tossed as some point.

4Monsters

I donated my dress just recently and I'm not sure where - wherever it is I donate all of the kids' outgrown clothes lol  As for wedding pictures and other wedding related items, they're all boxed up.  Didn't want to get rid of them but don't want them hanging around either.  So they're all boxed up together and the kids can look at them at some point if they want

mariebmw1

I donated my dress to Making Memories-I think it was called. Help. It's time for my second wedding. What should I wear? I'll be 60 next birthday but look younger. I don't want to look like a 20-year old, but I'd like to look sort of like a bride. Any suggestions? Thanks

climbingsingle

My dress is preserved and sitting in my parents' attic. My ex and I didn't have any kids so I didn't feel the need to hang on to it. But for some bizarre reason, my mom wanted to keep it. Hey, maybe she wears it around the house sometimes :-P

I threw away all the extra pictures but kept the album. I still don't know if I should throw it away. I thought maybe one day I'd like to look at it, but it's been 10 years and I've only opened it once. 

right1thistime

 

wilson24019

I wore a pink bridal sheath with a jacket.  I was able to take mine to a seamstress who cut it off street length, took off the appliques and turned it into a very dressy suit dress.  I wore it when I kept the book at a friend's wedding and also wore it to a very fancy Bar Mitzvah party.  I could have worn it other times too if I had not gained weight.  It is still in the closet.  If I lose the weight, I'll probably wear it again to something else.  It is perfect to wear as a dress to a wedding or other fancy event.

katieg520

I think my mom donated it to Goodwill.

ADoyle16

I dyed it some other color and used it as a Halloween costume. My first wedding was at a Renaissance Faire, so it was pseudo-Elizabethan and in my opinion, badly made. I laughed when I saw that the costume store that made it went out of business a couple of years after my divorce was finalized. The headpiece was actually my grandmother's veil piece so that's stored in a closet. I have no plans to use it again, as I'll probably go with a different type of veil this time around.

octoberbride9

Mine is preserved in a box at my mom's house. Maybe my daughter will want to use some part of it someday.  The cat ate my veil a month into my first marriage...

kristirhodes2014

Look on facebook for Angel Gowns by Michelle. I gave my first wedding dress to her. She takes the wedding gowns that are donated and makes itty bitty gowns for families who had a young baby pass away.  

ejpentecost

I donated my dress. When I moved out, I left the pictures with him. His girlfriend probably threw them out. 

If I had the pictures, I would get rid of them. I don't think it would be respectful to my new relationship to be hanging on to them. They represent what supposedly was one of the happiest days of my life.... with someone else.

Knottie2851598

I gave my first dress back because it was my previous mother-in-laws. I didn't feel right getting rid of it but I really did not want it sitting in my closet. 

I do still have my wedding photos though. My son likes to look at them sometimes. I have talked with my FI about it and he doesn't care and completely understands why I keep them. I might not love my ex-husband anymore but he is still the father of my child and I want him to be a part of my sons life.