What To Do With Your Wedding Dress After Your Wedding?

Some women prefer to preserve their gowns as an heirloom, repurpose them into meaningful keepsakes, or wear them again for an anniversary photo shoot, not minding the closet space the dress takes.

Others take a pragmatic approach and sell or rent out their gowns. The dress will forever remain in your memory, so why not reimburse at least part of its price?

There are also fun and creative ideas for old wedding dresses – you may get crafty, throw a wedding dress-themed party, or trash your gown on camera.

Wedding Dress Preservation

Wedding dress preservation is the process of dry cleaning, treating, and packing the gown to retain its initial state for many decades.

Unlike one-size-fits-all dry cleaning, wedding dress preservation is performed by professionals experienced in working with bridal wear.

Without preservation, white wedding gown fabric may become yellowish and deteriorate over time. Brown oxidation spots and mildew growth are other common issues.

This option is ideal if you aren’t planning to take your dress out of the closet for a good while. You may later pass it on as an heirloom to your daughter or granddaughter or open it in 50 years.

The preservation box is usually sealed air-tight, so it’s not your best bet if you wish to indulge in nostalgia every so often.

Wedding dress preservation price ranges from $250 to over $1000, so it’s a significant additional expense. However, it’s worth the money if the dress carries a symbolic value for you.

Sell It

If you’re a practical person who doesn’t hold on to things, selling your dress is the easiest and most beneficial option. It’s a great way to free some space in the closet and reimburse a part of your wedding expenses.

Wedding dress resale value tends to be about 50% of the initial price for middle-end brand gowns and 60-70% for gowns made by famous bridal wear designers. So, if you bought a dress for $1,200, you could get about $600 back.

Of course, you should pay for professional wedding dress dry cleaning before publishing it for sale. Even if you think the dress is in perfect condition, some stains only show up over time, such as sweat and sugar.

Alternatively, you may list your dress in an auction instead of setting a fixed price. This option is best for vintage and designer gowns that can be seen as a rare and valuable find.

Another tip is to make high-quality pictures from different angles.

Don’t forget to include a couple of close-up photos with the most beautiful dress details and, preferably, a full body picture to show how the dress fits your figure.

Donate It

Wedding dress donation is another quick way to free space in your wardrobe. As opposed to selling, donation won’t give you any profit but will grant you a sense of pride for helping someone in need.

Wedding dress donation is an option for altruistic brides who believe that each woman deserves to wear her dream dress at least once in a lifetime. Furthermore, donations are tax-deductible in many states.

Some charities donate dresses directly to brides in need.

For instance, Brides Across America give gowns to military and first responder brides, while Brides Against Breast Cancer resell gowns at low prices and donate funds to help fight breast cancer.

Other organizations repurpose donated dresses to help other disadvantaged communities. For example, Forever Angles of Virginia turn gowns into free dresses for infants who have passed away in the NICU.

If you’re a history enthusiast and wore a vintage wedding gown, consider donating it to a local museum.

However, you shouldn’t show up with the dress at the museum’s desk – contact them first to find out about their donation policies.

Make It Casual

If you don’t want to preserve the dress in your closet but also don’t want to say goodbye, you can always repurpose it into a casual clothing piece.

Even the most luxurious wedding gown fabric, such as lace and silk, can be well-suited for casual wear if you pick the right silhouette.

Depending on the amount and type of fabric, you can transform it into a summer dress, skirt, or shirt.

The truth is, some wedding dresses don’t even need to be transformed – minimalistic slip-style wedding gowns and laid-back bohemian dresses look excellent in casual ensembles if paired with relaxed accessories that tone down the gown fanciness.

Of course, you’d need a high sewing skill level to repurpose a wedding dress on your own. If you aren’t particularly crafty, find a trustworthy tailor who has experience working with delicate wedding dress fabric.

You’ll likely have a lot of fabric or embellishments left after transforming a voluminous ball gown into a short casual dress. In this case, you may use the remaining materials to make a clutch or tote bag.

Get Crafty

Creative women can transform their wedding dresses into keepsakes that can be passed on from generation to generation or serve as a meaningful interior decoration constantly reminding you of your big day.

Dresses made from opaque fabric make perfect cushions and quilts. If you don’t have a lot of fabric to work with but have lace and beads, you may use them to create a beautiful jewelry box or photo album.

Women with great sewing skills may turn their wedding gown into a doll dress or teddy bear. Another popular but much simpler idea is angel-shaped Christmas tree ornaments.

Some wedding dress keepsakes can make an ideal addition to your daughter’s bridal look.

Not many women wear their mother’s wedding dresses, but earrings or shoes decorated with beading from that dress seem like a good compromise between tradition and personal choice.

Repurpose it For Children

Adults rarely wear pure white garments with lace detailing and embellishments in daily life, but such attires look adorable on kids. Christening gowns are the most popular children’s clothing made from wedding gowns.

It’s no wonder, as christening gowns are traditionally white to represent purity, just like wedding dresses.

Alternatively, you may transform your gown into a beautiful party dress for a birthday or New Year’s celebration.

If your dress is made from natural opaque fabric and has a minimalistic design, it can make comfortable and practical casual wear. Natural fibers such as cotton are breathable and, despite white color, wash-friendly.

Photoshoot Ideas

Wedding anniversary photo shoots have become increasingly popular in recent years.

Wearing your gown again in 5, 10, or 20 years is a romantic and nostalgic wedding dress repurposing idea that reminds you how happy you were while saying “I do.”

Bear in mind that white fabric may become yellowish even after a few years of hanging in the wardrobe.

You’d want to give the dress for professional dry cleaning or preservation to ensure it retains its condition until you decide to wear it for a photoshoot.

However, a recreation of your big day isn’t the only wedding dress photoshoot idea. You may opt for more creative themes, such as a runaway bride or fun “trash the dress” trend.

What are “trash the dress” photos, exactly? As the name suggests, in such pictures, the bride is ruining the dress in the most bizarre ways – for instance, you may cover it in paint or burn it.

Themed Party

The wedding dress-themed party idea first appeared in the infamous series “Friends,” where Monica, Rachel, and Phoebe decided to hang out in their apartment wearing bridal gowns.

This has inspired thousands of women across the U.S. to recreate the episode in real life.

Your married friends will likely appreciate the idea as they get another chance to wear their gowns.

Your unmarried friends, in turn, can try on different styles before the party, which can later help in choosing their real wedding dresses.

Most importantly, themed parties are so fun! It’s a chance to take creative pictures with friends that will make you smile for years to come and watch romantic women’s comedies you wouldn’t watch with your S.O.

Rent It Out

Many brides consider wedding dress rental as an alternative to purchasing one. Meanwhile, the possibility of renting your own gown is often neglected.

How to rent out a wedding dress, you may wonder? Simple – there are numerous online platforms offering women to post their gowns for rent at a small listing fee.

Renting out your wedding dress is a great way to earn some cash on the side but also preserve your memories. Furthermore, you help others to get their dream gown at a lower price.

However, be aware that each time you rent out your dress, you risk getting it ruined. This isn’t the best option for brides who see deep sentimental value in their gown.

Even though you may take a security deposit to reimburse the dress cost, you may not manage to repair the damages.