Thursday, July 9, 2009

What To Do With The Dress??

Want to know something sad?


My wedding dress...still at my parents' house...uncleaned...


In September I will have been married for 2 years.


Horrible, I know. But I'm thinking it's about time I do something about it. My poor parents shouldn't have to be keeping that huge garment for me anymore and I should step up and do something with it.

So here's where you come in lovely ladies! Where did you get your dress cleaned?? Did you get it preserved? Where do you keep it? What the heck did you do with the thing?

I'm not quite sure that I'm into selling it just yet...I think I'm still holding out for that chance I will be able to wear it one more time :) I just love it so much!







I'm not naive enough to think that my daughter will want to wear it...and I don't know if I want to chop it up for a christening outfit for her either. I am troubled.

Please help.

30 comments:

lola said...

hahah, mine is still hanging, uncleaned, unpreserved, in my closet at my parent's house.

The seamstress who did the work on my dress said that from what she's seen preservation really doesn't do too much, as fabrics will naturally fall apart with time. I don't know if that makes you feel better at all!

Brittany Ann said...

I have the same issue. What to do? I've strongly considered the christening outfit myself. But we also have an heirloom christening dress that five generations have worn in my family.

I considered cutting it down, just so I could use pieces in family quilts or in my daughters wedding dress, etc. Still not sure!

Ugh, and the price of getting these suckers cleaned? Have you looked? It's ridiculous! My dress is silk, and they wanted to charge me more than $250!

Brittany Ann said...

P.S. I'm with Lola.

Don't preserve. I've seen too many women watch theirs turn yellow after paying an arm and a leg to have it professionally preserved. It's not worth it.

d.a.r. said...

Ha I blogged about this in May!!! I'm chopping mine up into a baptismal gown. Preserving it seems like a waste of money, personally.

I'm also going to keep part of it to make a handkerchief for my daughters to carry on their wedding day, if they want it. That way my dress is there, but they don't have to actually wear it haha!

Coyne and Pinckney Stationery said...

Hello! I have the exact same issue (almost 2 years too!). I've thought about cutting it down for christening gowns and other things, etc. but I too, love it so much I can't decide!

You may be interested in checking out our new giveaway at candpstationery.com for a chance to win Free coastal, preppy note cards!

Have a lovely day!

Shaina said...

Such a hard decision. I just had mine preserved and I think that was the right call...right? Right??! :) I also had it preserved at the same place I had it pressed pre-wedding, and they only charged around $75 I think to do the preservation - a total STEAL. Of course, now, it's all sealed up in a box, untouchable, and I can't really look at it again...but that's okay, right? Right??! Sigh.

My good friend just took her wedding dress out of the closet where it had hung in the back, sealed in the garment bag, for the last 8 years of their marriage. And...it was completely yellowed and looked awful. So she sent it to be preserved, 8 years post-wedding...and it cost her $600. So, that seems to be a good reason to preserve. I think. :)

Dollface said...

I dont have a dress yet.. but if I did I would preserve it and put it in the box and maybe in the attic or somewhere like that... xxxooo

Unknown said...

Yeah...About that...HA HA, mine is hanging in our closet still uncleaned and un preserved as well:p I'm just too lazy to take it to have it done! Not sure what I want to do with mine either...Hmmmm

Adventures in Newlywed said...

What a beautiful dress! I'm considering doing 'trash the dress' pictures...but am holding off until our 5th wedding anniversary (I want to renew our vows in the same dress)...

Lindsey said...

Your dress is gorgeous! And guess what? My dress is still hanging in my parents' house and not cleaned and I've been married 1.5 yeras so don't feel too bad.=)
I want to sell it, but I want to hold on to it a bit longer so my friends and I can have a "Wedding Dress Party" and all wear our dresses one last time!

A New England Girl said...

As I'm not married, I am totally useless in this department. :) I don't even have any helpful suggestions! I don't think I'd ever be able to cut up a wedding dress, although I know quite a few people do. I don't know what I would even begin to think if I had a dress that I needed to do something with... hm.

Whatever you decide, I hope you are 100% happy with it! You have a gorgeous dress and I'd hate to hear you regretted a decision later on. Hugs! And good luck! :)

THE Stephanie said...

Oh girl, I can beat you on this one. I've been married for 10 1/2 years and mine is still at my parents, uncleaned. I know, beat me with a stick.

Clean it now!!! Don't be me!!! :)

THE Stephanie said...

Gorgeous dress, by the way! Very pretty!!

Christina said...

I think I am going to have my wedding dress made into a christening gown for my future children.

Lucy Marie said...

My dress is also still at my parents. It has been cleaned though. They have a dry cleaning depot in their business so I got it done there. I don't know what I'm ever going to do with it but even if it just hangs in my closet until someday when my daughters decide they want to play with it and try it on, that will be fine with me. I have lots of great memories of dressing up in my grandmothers (my mom has both of their dresses) and my mom's dress. I want them to at least see it, although I'm like you, I do realize they will likely never want to wear it.

Jessica said...

I am struggling with this same issue! We've been married for a year (this Sunday) and my dress is still uncleaned hanging in my old bedroom at my parents' house. I'm the same as you...I don't want to sell it, but I don't think I have a need for it anymore. I guess I'm just sentimental!

Your dress was beautiful!

Baker's Cakes said...

I had mine dry cleaned (just dropped it off like you do a shirt!) and it's hanging in the bag in my closet! I know that my daughter will not want to wear it when she gets married, but I've always thought about shortening it so she can use it for dress up now...

Krystyna Lizabeth. said...

i have no clue what to tell you or give you advice for the dilemma but YOUR DRESS WAS FREAKING GORGEOUS AS WERE YOU IN IT.
your husband is a lucky man :)

Teach.Workout.Love said...

LOL not sure what u do with it bc ive never been married... but its a beautiful dress!!

Children of the 90s said...

I'm not married yet, but my favorite wedding dress story is from my coworker. She sold hers for $700 to a drag queen on Craig's List. Granted, this isn't the route for everyone, but it certainly makes a good story!

Unknown said...

Mine is sitting somewhere in my parent's house. And I don't even know which one.

Blue-Eyed Bride said...

i did a post about this last fall and i got some crazy suggestions. i would NEVER pass up the money for chopping it up for a christening gown! haha... money or a hacked up dress? i know, i know, to each his own.

i had mine cleaned and then the economy took a turn for the worse, so i haven't tried to sell it yet because i don't think i'd get a good amount for it at this time. i'd hate to sell it and then it not be worth it financially. it's a big decision. i'll be interested to hear what you decide.

Danielle said...

We pretty much had the exact same dress! I am so in love with it!

Mine is definitely still hanging in the garment bag uncleaned...grass stains,etc on it.I figured there is no use getting it cleaned since I'll never wear it again.

I am not a big fan of preserving because then it puts it in a box and you can never get it out and just try it on or look at it.

I suggest just letting it hang. haha :)

Emily said...

Your dress is beautiful!! I don't know what I will do with my dress after my wedding...but I love the "trash the dress" photos that some brides so with their professional photographers!

Lyryn said...

Here is a question for you... why do you want to keep it?

If you want to keep it for your daughter then I would get it preserved; but you know as well as I do that your daughter might not want it one day.
Another idea is to get the dress cut and make them into dedication dresses.
Or my last idea... and my favorite because I'm a photographer is a Trash the Dress photo shoot! Put your dress on again and you and your hubby get pictures taken doing whatever you want in it. Paint in it, go in a lake in it... whatever is fun! Ware a cool pair of shoes and trash that dress.

Just an idea!! :)

The Shabby Princess said...

I am sooo not helpful! Mine lived at my parents house for 2 years until one of my friends who is a photographer wanted to use my husband and I as "models", so, I had them send me my dress to use for some "bridal" shot for my friend. The shoot never happened, and now my dress is in my upstairs closet just hanging out (literally). I haven't had it cleaned (it's not really that bad) or presevered (because I don't want to spend the $$), but, I can't part with it! I just can't sell it. I can't. So, yeah, I'm not very helpful!

Tami Heim said...

Why not take it and have a baby's christening gown made from some of the fabric? That way you can start a tradition and it can be passed down through the generations. I wish I had done that with mine! Currently mine remains sealed and in the closet. Maybe I will have a granddaughter that will be interested one day! LOL. Who knows what it looks like after 29 years!

Christening gown - that is my best shot!

Love you - Your Godmother!

the undomesticated wife said...

I have mine preserved. The dry cleaner who cleaned it also did the preservation. Don't keep it in a plastic garment bag though, the plastic is what causes it to yellow. Mine only cost $100 to preserve, so that wasn't too much. I've been married almost 13 years, and when I peak into the window in the box, it's still just as white as the day I wore it. I doubt that if I have kids they'll want to wear it (you know how styles change), but even so, it will be clean and ready to go if I end up selling it. I just can't get rid of it yet. ;) Your dress is beautiful!

the undomesticated wife said...

Oh, and even if you don't preserve it, at least get it cleaned. That way if you do sell it or use it for something else, at least it won't be as difficult to clean. :)

Buford Betty said...

I didn't have mine cleaned for years.. haha! Unless you really think a daughter is going to wear it, I don't really see the point in preserving it. It's like putting it on lockdown and you don't want to break the seal - and it costs a lot to have it done well.

I had mine cleaned finally and I'm attempting to sell it... I loved my dress, but I have tons of pics of me in it - I don't feel the need to hold on to the actual dress. But then again, I'm not one to put a lot of sentimental value in "things" - so maybe that's just me!