I want to recycle my wedding dress?

Gleeful

I have long been considering getting a dress maker to alter it to knee length, creating a fifties style sihouette, and getting the lace panels changed to a different colour

I've not done anything about it yet - it's still on top of the wardrobe

Georgiegirl256

jaylee3 wrote: »

Do people actually sell them then? I mean, I can understand it if you get divorced, but otherwise, would people not want to keep it for their daughters/grand-daughters?

I know a lot of people who've sold their dresses. Quite often they are an expensive piece of clothing and so quite a lot of people want to get some of that money back.

Fashions change over the years, and very few people would want to wear their mothers or grandmothers dress. I mean it does happen. I saw a lovely story once about a dress passed down through about 5-6 generations! But for the whole, not so much I wouldn't have thought.

When I was getting married, we got my Mam's dress out, and you can totally see how things date, it's very 70's! I tried it on, but it just wasn't me! We did contemplate taking the sleeves of it (I love them) and putting them onto another dress, but didn't in the end up. She didn't keep it for future generations, she basically just hung it up and forgot about it, didn't even get it cleaned, so out it come complete with a great big sherry stain down the front!

angelil

Georgiegirl256 wrote: »

I know a lot of people who've sold their dresses. Quite often they are an expensive piece of clothing and so quite a lot of people want to get some of that money back.

Fashions change over the years, and very few people would want to wear their mothers or grandmothers dress. I mean it does happen. I saw a lovely story once about a dress passed down through about 5-6 generations! But for the whole, not so much I wouldn't have thought.

When I was getting married, we got my Mam's dress out, and you can totally see how things date, it's very 70's! I tried it on, but it just wasn't me! We did contemplate taking the sleeves of it (I love them) and putting them onto another dress, but didn't in the end up. She didn't keep it for future generations, she basically just hung it up and forgot about it, didn't even get it cleaned, so out it come complete with a great big sherry stain down the front!

Totally agree with this. Fashions change, people have different tastes, and I would never want to put pressure (even inadvertently or indirectly) on a daughter or granddaughter to wear mine (they may not even be the same size or shape as you anyway). Plus, you're assuming that you'll even have daughters or granddaughters! Nothing in life is assured and children are a privilege, not a right.

wik

I kept my wedding dress, even though 10 years after wedding we divorced, last year a dear friend was having a fancy dress ball for her 40th, and my daughter had wanted a fancy dress, so for £4.99 we dyed my dress a tulip red, it was stunning, as all the different fabrics took slightly different colours. I tweeked the dress a wee bit, and my daughter looked stunning

pinkpurplevicki

Thanks for all the replies. My problem is I have 2 sons so no interest from them to keep it. I do love it but like I say I snagged the fabric on the big day so not sure anyone would want to wear it as it is. It is also a coloured dress, it was gold on the bottom and had a blue/gold basque patterned top, which I loved. I do think it would make a very nice keepsake teddy or two that my children can pass on to their children. So thanks, skylight I am going to look into that. I also have found some places online that can make jewellery so might look into that for me!

74jax

Could you not have the top as a top to wear with jeans? The bottom could be made to pretty cushions for a spare bedroom maybe .

Ettenna

I kept mine for over 21 years until just after I divorced him. I then sent mine to Bonnie Babies. Some might think it's a bit odd making garments for stillborn or scbu babies out of wedding dresses but I love the idea. It's not that it's a wedding dress, it's that it is lovely fabric that would cost a fortune to buy.

springdreams

pinkpurplevicki wrote: »

Thanks for all the replies. My problem is I have 2 sons so no interest from them to keep it. I do love it but like I say I snagged the fabric on the big day so not sure anyone would want to wear it as it is. It is also a coloured dress, it was gold on the bottom and had a blue/gold basque patterned top, which I loved. I do think it would make a very nice keepsake teddy or two that my children can pass on to their children. So thanks, skylight I am going to look into that. I also have found some places online that can make jewellery so might look into that for me!

Another site to look at for a memento teddy made from your wedding dress is:

treasure me keepsakes

on facebook

Below are some of the photos of wedding dress bears from her FB page.

She also makes mementos from baby clothes.

Bettie

I gave mine to a lady who dressed dolls as brides and sold them for charity.