My wedding dress, a lovely Christian Michele sleeveless beaded gown with train, is currently up for sale on eBay, with a listing that ends on 11/11 (Sunday evening). You can take a look at it here until eBay takes it down. The dress is currently selling for under $7 and, while I am selling it regardless of how much it goes for, I am a little disappointed as I wanted at least $100 for it (since the dress’s original retail was $600 and its in great shape). But there are still many hours in the auction left to go and it doesn’t really matter, so that is neither here nor there.
No, the bigger issue here is that I am getting a very hard time from friends, relatives and even complete strangers who happen to overhear me talking about this for selling it at all. The expressions range from a simple shocked “Really?” to a total horrified freak-out in which I am then given a lecture. Oddly enough, not a single person that I have met thinks this is a good idea.
The thing is, I really liked my wedding dress. So much so that I don’t think that it should be doomed to a lifetime of being in my closet. I think someone else should be able to wear it on their special day and enjoy it. Besides, what are you supposed to do with a wedding dress anyway after the big day?
Here are the arguments that I am hearing and my take on them:
It is unromantic to sell your dress. You should keep it to remember the day.
Dear god, why? Yes, my wedding day was a very important day. So was the day my brother was born but I didn’t bronze the shorts I wore to the hospital. I have millions of pictures and other memories of that day. Why do I need to take up all the room in my closet to keep the dress. Selling my dress doesn’t mean I love my husband less than someone who does keep their dress. It just means that I want closet space.
Your daughter might want to wear it someday.
Let’s say I have kids really soon and that this daughter gets married really young. That means that we are talking a minimum of two decades before this dress is worn again. If my daughter really wants to wear a 20 year old dress that will likely have yellowed with age by then I will be very worried about her mental well being. Fashions change, material doesn’t keep and no one wants to burden their child with the obligation to wear “mom’s old dress.” It’s HER wedding, not your second chance. Let that be your mantra. Besides, my mother kept her dress for me and it was a good 5 sizes too small by my wedding time. Not to mention that it’s ghastly, has turned brown from being in storage and it is hippie-esqu (no offense, mom, but it is). I am going to do my future daughter a favor and NOT keep my dress.
The dress is too pretty to sell. (or) You looked to lovely in it to sell.
Listen, people, I am not going to wear this dress around the house or to a club or anything. Seriously, I am never putting it on again. It is actually already too big on me since I lost so much weight since the wedding. So, are you saying that I should only sell things I look ugly in? The fact that it is pretty is WHY I am selling it. This way someone else can enjoy it.
You should at least wait a few years.
This argument makes less sense to me than any others. What difference does it make if I come home the night of the wedding and list it on eBay that second or if I wait 5 years? As far as I am concerned, the difference is that the dress will become out of style the longer I wait, so that makes no sense to me. I would rather sell it now while it’s still in style. But I am trying to understand the logic here. My one aunt begged me, with tears in her eyes, to at least wait a year or two so this is obviously somehow important to someone.
Maybe I am just a bad person or a heartless soulless bitch. Maybe I just haven’t heard the right argument yet. I am opening it up to the Internet to decide.
If you are married did you keep your wedding dress or get rid of it?
If you aren’t married yet, what do you plan to do?
If you got rid of your wedding dress, do you regret it?
Guys, what is your take on all of this?
I would really love to hear from some people because I am starting to think I am alone on this so please comment below.
Hillary DePiano is a playwright, fiction and non-fiction writer who loves writing of all kinds except for writing bios like this.
Join my mailing list!
Get the news before anyone else and have the first crack at premieres, sales and other opportunities!Â
You have Successfully Subscribed!