Wedding Dress Repurposing

Trashmagination Creative Reuse Podcast

The most challenging items to creatively reuse are sentimental items, and your wedding dress is often an item that lives in your closet for decades “just in case” you find a use for it. But what if your dress could help another bride? And how could you make your dress something you see every day, rather than something taking up storage space? Get ideas on where to donate or sell your dress, as well as projects to transforms your dress into a keepsake.

This episode was inspired by one of my favorite podcasts – Happier hosted by Gretchen Rubin and Elizabeth Craft. This week they responded to a listener asking for advice on what to do with a wedding dress.

My Wedding Day

Note: My own wedding dress is still in my closet but researching this episode has given me many ideas! My dress was secondhand and I fell in love with it for the soft lace at the shoulders.

Please let me know if you make items from wedding dresses or accessories at [e-mail]!

Where to Donate Secondhand Wedding Dresses

Many of these organizations use the profits from the sales to help a charity, so buying a secondhand dress not only saves you money and reduces waste, but it also helps someone else.

• Brides Against Breast Cancer
• Brides Across America – They give a military or first responder bride a free wedding gown
• Brides for a Cause
• Adorned in Grace – Supports organizations to help victims of sexually trafficking

Most only want dresses that are less than five or seven years old. But it’s worthwhile to search for local companies who take older dresses, like the one where I purchased my own dress.

Websites Where Brides Sell Dresses

• Nearly Newlywed
• Still White
• Pre-Owned Wedding Dresses

Creative Reuse Ideas for Wedding Gowns and Accessories

• Artist who specializes in drawing wedding dresses in a frame-able sketch (to make it easier to let go of your gown)
• Angel Gowns which takes wedding gowns and makes gowns for babies who will not come home from the hospital – They are also looking for volunteers to sew and donations for shipping costs.
• Trashmagination’s Pinterest board of craft projects from wedding dresses
• wedding dress lace in a locket
• Wedding dress lace in a frame – some people used it as a background for their wedding invitation in the frame
• Wedding dress lace scarf that wraps around your neck – or a wedding dress scarf that combines lace and t-shirt fabric
• Wedding dress lace earrings if you have lace that has a solid flower, feather or similar shape you can cut out
• Miniature version of your wedding dress which you can frame

Fairy Godmother Creations makes all sorts of items from wedding dresses, including christening gowns, communion dresses, memory bears, doll clothes, purses, pillows, blankets, tree skirts, stockings, tooth fairy pillows and fabric flowers.

View this post on Instagram

Back in October 2017, Jacqui contacted me with a very special project. Jacqui had her Grandmothers and her mother’s wedding dresses and wondered if I could do something with them as keepsakes for herself, and three other family members. It’s taken us two whole years to get this off the ground but boy oh boy, it was worth it. Thanks for trusting me Jacqui These are Jacqui’s words about it ————————————- This is the most treasured piece of jewellery in my life. You have done such an honor to have it made into a piece of artistry that will last forever and be handed to generations. Rather than a wedding dress in a cupboard, this can be worn proudly and the story and love shared. My mother and father were soul mates married 50yrs. My father passed sadly to cancer 3 yrs ago. My grandmother had 2 x 25yr marriages. This wedding dress was her 1st and dearest love of her life whom she now rests with. All beautiful caring parents and grandparents to farming families of the Adelaide Hills. …..pieces are going to my mum, sister, myself and niece.

A post shared by NUTS ABOUT COLOURS AND PATTERN (@gabby_resin) on Jul 23, 2019 at 11:24pm PDT

Renting Wedding Items

Reduce the impact of your wedding by renting items.

• Happily Ever Borrowed – A wedding accessory rental service, featured in episode 184 of the podcast Side Hustle School
• Rent the Runway – rents designer wedding dresses (check out this interview with the founder of Rent the Runway, Jenn Hyman, on the podcast How I Built This
• Borrowing Magnolia – They send the dresses for you to try on at home.

Share Your Wedding Flowers After the Ceremony

While we are talking about creative reuse at weddings – check out these organizations which pick up your wedding flowers after the event and share them at nursing homes and other places.

• The Full Bloom
• Random Acts of Flowers
• Rebloom
• Petals with Purpose
• Repeat Roses

Show Details

• Script for this podcast episode about creative reuse of wedding dresses (not a transcript but gives the main ideas)
• The Trashmagination podcast theme music is Kitchen from the Marian Circle Drum Brigade.