You’ve lovingly picked, fitted and worn your dream wedding dress, but what to do with your gown after your big day? Here are several options of what to do with this most special of dresses.
Lasara by Watters
Preserve the Dress
Get your dress professionally cleaned and preserved to protect it from discoloration. Some traditional dry cleaners offer this service or use a company such as www.mygownpreservation.com. The service offered by such dress preservation companies is comprehensive and hassle-free – most will provide shipping materials for you to mail your dress, then they will professionally dry clean the gown, make any necessary repairs and package it in a sealed windowed display box.
Reinvent the Dress
Wear your dress again by shortening the skirt and/or dyeing it a great new color. Alternately, give it another meaningful use such as sewing some satin from the dress onto the border of a baby blanket.
Donate the Dress
Give back to your community or an organization of your choice by donating your dress. With its ‘Nationwide Tour of Gowns’ bridesagainstbreastcancer.org hosts 32 shows across the U.S. each year which allow visitors to buy significantly discounted wedding gowns. Gowns are either donated by brides themselves or provided directly by designers, manufacturers and bridal shops. Proceeds from these events are directed to support and educational programs for cancer patients and their families. All wedding donations are tax deductible, so remember to ask for a receipt!
Consign the Dress
As you start your married life, it may be that some extra cash may be most welcome to handle post-wedding bills or savings towards a new home. If this is the case, an option you may consider is bringing your gown to a specialized consignment shop. The dress must be cleaned before selling, but many consignment stores offer discounted cleaning services and a previously-agreed minimum selling price which certainly makes the process easier and stress-free for the newlywed.
Photograph the Dress (one more time…)
Perhaps you were so caught up in the activity of your wedding day that you didn’t get enough shots of you in your beautiful gown. Maybe your day had such wet or humid weather that you couldn’t capture the outdoor shots you had really wanted. Many couples are booking post-wedding shoots as an opportunity to capture those stunning photos in a more relaxed setting or with a specific background that couldn’t be accommodated on your wedding day.
Whether you decide to preserve, reinvent, donate, or consign your wedding dress, be sure that you have some great photographs to remember this special gown. A photo of the married couple is always a great touch for your wedding thank you cards. Checkout the fresh collection of wedding thank you cards at LookLoveSend.com, many can be easily customized with a photo of the newlyweds. And enjoy free shipping on order quantities over 50!
