One of the cornerstones of living an environmental life is the “reuse” part of Reduce-Reuse-Recycle. Wedding dresses are a huge one-time-use item, and often a big part of the wedding budget. Consider a preowned wedding dress to keep expenses down (and who doesn’t want that these days?) and to reduce the impact on silk production, transportation costs (financial and environmental) and disposal. Yeah, I know most wedding dresses don’t end up in landfills, but it keeps the stuff in the attic to a minimum.
This recent New York Times article discusses the financial advantages of preowned wedding dresses:
Even previously owned high-end couture gowns from designers like Vera Wang, Monique Lhuillier, and Amsale sell for 25 to 50 percent or more off the original retail price, giving brides a realistic alternative to finding “something affordable without sacrificing quality,” said Nina Willdorf, the author of “Wedding Chic: The Savvy Bride’s Guide to Getting More While Spending Less” (Perigee Trade). “Smart shopping to find value for less is really chic right now,” Ms. Willdorf said. “It’s not like buying a used sweater that’s been worn for years. A wedding dress has been worn once and only for a matter of hours.”
The eco rewards are just as good - the lower consumption of materials and resources is great for the environment.
5 places to find your preowned wedding dress online:
Don’t forget about eBay or your local secondhand or thrift shops. There are some excellent bargains to be had out there.
Curious? Check out this $6000 Vera Wang dress, asking $2000 (SellYourWeddingDress.com)
Looking for designers using eco-friendly materials? Read “6 Eco-friendly Wedding Dress Designers You *Really* Need to See“.
February 6th, 2009 at 9:50 pm
What a great idea. I will suggest buying a second hand dress to my friends when they get engaged.
March 19th, 2009 at 9:52 am
We would LOVE to be included in your list of where to find not ONLY previously owned wedding gowns but ALL things post wedding!
“Share the Love…Save the Planet!”
Please visit our site and contact me directly if you’d like!
THANK YOU!!
May 27th, 2009 at 9:44 pm
This is so true! These dress can definitely be worn more than once!
June 24th, 2009 at 11:50 am
Just had to mention www.oncewed.com! This site has listings of fabulous designer gowns both used (oncewed) and new. Also be sure to browse through all of the great DIY projects!
September 15th, 2009 at 6:49 am
I once met a girl who was so into recycling, she was only interested in dating divorced men!
All kidding aside, most wedding dresses are gorgeous and it’s a shame if they’re only worn once.
October 31st, 2009 at 7:05 am
I have found my dress on www.buyselldress.com. There much more options to choose than on other similar websites, as for me.
October 31st, 2009 at 7:06 am
www.buyselldress.com without dot at the end of cause in previous message, sorry.
November 6th, 2009 at 12:47 pm
I have to agree with georgianna… www.oncewed.com is another site for preowned wedding dresses that is absolutely amazing! I’m so excited that I’ve found these site! Now maybe I can afford to have the dress I really want!
November 14th, 2009 at 9:00 am
[…] after I first published this post – and thought it would be a good idea to add the link to Blue Planet Wedding.com. This site is a great resource for all things ‘green’ wedding! Plus there are links to […]
December 23rd, 2009 at 2:10 pm
I did like the oncewed site but I found that every time I went on it, a virus would attack my computer (this happened 3 times, cause I didn’t learn the first time). Maybe it was an isolated incident. But I did get my wedding dress from preownedweddingdresses.com and it’s perfect! I will definitely re-sell it once I’m done!
February 5th, 2010 at 1:37 am
I also found http://preownedweddingdresses.ca which might be better for anyone located in Canada.
February 10th, 2010 at 9:22 pm
I bought and sold a dress on PreOwnedWeddingDresses.com and had a great experience with both. (I bought one dress too early and changed my mind).
The second dress I bought is perfect and I’m thrilled with it. And the seller was so friendly and sweet.
I did list my first dress on oncewed.com too - but only got scammers emailing me.
February 22nd, 2010 at 12:43 am
Don’t forget Recycled Bride - http://www.recycledbride.com/
March 26th, 2010 at 12:41 pm
Glad you posted this! I have bought a ton of 2nd hand wedding dresses for my photography and, I hate to say this, but some still have the tags on them. Definitely worth looking into.
May 11th, 2010 at 2:17 am
Here is another yesbride.com
May 16th, 2010 at 11:59 am
I really liked your writing, keep at it for us all!