Will you use your dress again?

kitty8403

Just curious how many of you girls are planning to do anything interesting with your dresses post-wedding. Mine isn't extravagant by industry standards but still by far the most expensive piece of clothing I've ever owned. I can't fathom just sticking it in a box for a few decades in hopes a relative eventually wants to use it. Plus, it's a metallic, not straight white, and a relatively sleek silhouette, so I'm thinking about trying to get it altered into a special occasion dress or even a fancy blouse to wear out for, say, holidays or anniversaries. 

Other ideas: 
*satin pillowcases or small throw pillow
*fabric backing for memory shadow box
*cover fabric for wedding photo album
*scraps worked into baby blanket or large quilt
*formal table runner (holiday events)
*handmade lingerie

What are you thinking of doing?



 

HisGirlFriday13

My dress already was an heirloom (it was my aunt's), so I'm hoping that my daughter, or her granddaughter, will want to wear it.

My mother's dress, though, I'm planning on having turned into a christening gown for DH's and my children when we have them. Mom is totally on-board with the idea, given that she knows no one else will ever wear the dress.

charlotteetier

I love the idea of turning the dress in to a shorter party dress, I've seen online and some places also dye it.

I have a friend that had the pillows made, which looks great in her house but wouldn't fit in ours. I was also just going to donate mine to a charity that gives dresses to military brides (at least then someone would get some use of it).

Cookie Pusher

I'm donating mine. I'm not wearing a traditional gown (it's actually a white prom dress), and I'm teeny tiny. Some teenage girl out there will be able to wear a nice dress with my donation instead of it just sitting in a box in my closet.

SammiNJonni

I have not decided yet. Maybe have it cut down to a party dress. I also saw the new trend of having it framed and hung in a walk in closet.

FiancB

I would like to have some nonwedding photos taken with it, maybe with my horse or some location that we won't get in on the wedding day. After that, not sure. I've seen the frame thing and I like it but logistically not sure how well that would work. I love the christening gown idea for those who are religious. I can't picture it being turned into a party dress but maybe an awesome seamstress can come up with something. I'd sell it but I've not had the best luck trying to sell a gown before. 

jdluvr06

I'm going to use mine again. It isn't a traditional dress. It is actually a mint green knee-length dress so I can wear it to parties without having to alter it any.

blabla89

SammiNJonni said:

I have not decided yet. Maybe have it cut down to a party dress. I also saw the new trend of having it framed and hung in a walk in closet.

I saw this in one of the houses on my neighborhood's tour of homes. It actually looked really nice, but it was a ridiculously huge closet.

My closet (or the one in FI's condo that will eventually be mine) is barely big enough to hang all my clothes plus a wedding dress, so there's definitely nowhere to mount it for now. But I'm not good at letting go of sentimental things so it will probably just hang in the closet for several years.

ktjanesmom

One of the real housewives of Beverly Hills had her dress in a kind of window box thing.  The dress was on a form and in a glass box and mounted inside the wall.  Very cool.  But that was Beverly Hills. 

KPBM89

I'm planning on framing mine.  My current closet will fit it, but barely, so I will probably wait until we move again into a bigger home to actually do this.  

rajahmd

I've already worn mine again. Benefit of getting a colored dress. It's currently at the seamstress being shortened.

I plan on wearing it woth my cap and gown when I graduate from medical school in May. The access fabric will be saved- I wanna make something with it, but no idea what.

manateehugger

Nope. Planning on donating it. 

phira

Like @RajahBMFD, my dress isn't white (or off-white or whatever), so it'll be easier to wear again. I don't think I'll be able to get it shortened beyond getting it hemmed/slightly shortened for the wedding (it's much too long because I am not terribly tall), but it's an evening gown, so I can wear it to evening gown events. If we have a daughter, she could wear it to prom if she wanted (assuming she inherits enough of my genes; my partner is soooooo skinny).

KGold80

I have no clue if I will ever wear my dress again. I can't imagine where it would make sense to ever wear it again and that makes me sad. It is actually really comfy and lightweight!

doeydo

I think I will just keep it and maybe display it or something in my imaginary/dream walk-in closet.

lc07

@cookiepusher Me tooooo! Willing to share a pic of your dress? I'd love to see it! 

I was married in 2011 and didn't wear my dress again. But I could if I had somewhere formal enough to wear it since it's an evening gown (and was on some prom dress sites) and not a traditional wedding dress.

I haven't been able to donate mine, yet, though I love the idea. I just love the dress too much.

Cookie Pusher

@lc07 This is mine. I found it on eBay for like $75. It has to be shortened about 6", but it's well worth the cost. I love this dress because I can actually wear my regular bra under it (I don't do strapless)!

lc07

@cookiepusher I LOVE IT!! It's gorgeous. And that's an awesome price. Good job!

FiancB

@Cookie Pusher I can definitely see you in that! I think it's perfect. 

flyingfoxes

KGold80 said:

I have no clue if I will ever wear my dress again. I can't imagine where it would make sense to ever wear it again and that makes me sad. It is actually really comfy and lightweight!

I tried that dress on too and it really is lovely!  

chibiyui

I'm torn between saving it and doing the ridiculous frame in a walk in closet thing, or donating it. I like the idea of having it shortened, but I don't think it's a dress that lends itself to that. 

flyingfoxes

Mine will be preserved, but I don't know how long we'll keep it stored.  I like the idea of donating it so someone else can use it.

Cookie Pusher

Thanks @lc07 and @FiancB! The eBay seller was so, so sweet. I ordered the dress in 2 sizes (combined shipping) and she gave me as long as I needed to figure out which size I wanted (normally has a 2-week return policy). She even gave me a full refund without the restocking fee when I sent one of the dresses back. I don't know what it was, but as soon as I saw the picture of the dress, I knew it was the one. It's just so non-fussy and carefree feeling, perfect for a garden wedding. Plus, since it's empire waist, I don't have to diet to fit into it! lol

Blergbot

I'm either going to donate mine or turn it into a party dress. It could be shortened pretty easily, just not sure about dying it.

phira

Cookie Pusher said:

Thanks @lc07 and @FiancB! The eBay seller was so, so sweet. I ordered the dress in 2 sizes (combined shipping) and she gave me as long as I needed to figure out which size I wanted (normally has a 2-week return policy). She even gave me a full refund without the restocking fee when I sent one of the dresses back. I don't know what it was, but as soon as I saw the picture of the dress, I knew it was the one. It's just so non-fussy and carefree feeling, perfect for a garden wedding. Plus, since it's empire waist, I don't have to diet to fit into it! lol

The same thing happened to me when I found my dress! A lot of people were worried about me buying a dress I found online, especially since I had to have it ordered through a boutique and I couldn't get a refund on it if I didn't like it. But I knew it was the right dress for me.

KytchynWitche

I could, conceivably, wear it again. My dress isn't really a dress, it's a separate skirt and corset top. It doesn't have any beading or detailing, and I think the top could look really nice with dark jeans and a blazer.

The other thing is that I've always wanted to start a clothing exchange. We don't really have thrift shops or charity shops here, so I'd like to open a place where people can get rid of clothes they no longer want/need (provided, of course, that the clothes are in good condition), and where people who don't necessarily have massive funds at their disposal can get "new" clothes. I'd like to encourage people to donate/sell any formalwear they don't want/need any more to the shop so that a dress code need never stop anyone from participating. We don't have prom here, but we have the matric farewell, and every year we see a lot of kids staying home because they can't afford to buy or rent a dress/tux to wear to it. Anyway, I think my wedding dress would be a good place to start.

hlvonb

kitty8403 said:

Just curious how many of you girls are planning to do anything interesting with your dresses post-wedding. Mine isn't extravagant by industry standards but still by far the most expensive piece of clothing I've ever owned. I can't fathom just sticking it in a box for a few decades in hopes a relative eventually wants to use it. Plus, it's a metallic, not straight white, and a relatively sleek silhouette, so I'm thinking about trying to get it altered into a special occasion dress or even a fancy blouse to wear out for, say, holidays or anniversaries. 

Other ideas: 
*satin pillowcases or small throw pillow
*fabric backing for memory shadow box
*cover fabric for wedding photo album
*scraps worked into baby blanket or large quilt
*formal table runner (holiday events)
*handmade lingerie

What are you thinking of doing?



 

@kitty8403

My FMIL wants to make the baptism outfits for our kids (when we decide to have them) so the train of my dress will most likely be used for that. 

hlvonb

SammiNJonni said:

I have not decided yet. Maybe have it cut down to a party dress. I also saw the new trend of having it framed and hung in a walk in closet.

@SammiNJonni

I never got that trend either - unless they were keeping it there for a specific reason (keep it clean until they use it later for something - not sure what).

Drewsgirl31

Another idea for those of you thinking about donating, there's a group that makes dress/outfits out of them for babies who pass away in the hospital

jenna8984

I have no idea yet. Mine would look super awkward shortened. I have this fantasy of wearing it on the beach in Jamaica for my 10th anniversary but it's a really tight fitting style through the hips/butt and I know it'll never fit in 10 years hahahah. I love it so much I don't think I could bear to sell it or cut it up, but I might change my mind on that once a few years pass.

wandajune6

I'm planning to donate mine, though I'm not sure of the charity yet. We don't have the space to store it and I dot know what I would do with it. I'd rather that someone else have the chance to enjoy it while it's still in style than store it indefinitely.