My husband and I got married in January of this year. It was a wonderful day. We actually met through a vegan dating app, and our shared values about animal rights was one of the first things that connected us. We are also money conscious and try to be creative and make informed decisions, knowing that beauty and quality are not necessarily related to cost. I find it rewarding to achieve a result as or more beautiful than something expensive, for a fraction of the price. That is what I believe I achieved with my wedding dress. Not only was it less than $300 total, but I get to say I had a unique wedding dress, whose design I participated in.
As most brides know, retail wedding dresses start at a high price. $700 would be considered on the cheap end, and the average wedding dress in the U.S. costs $1700. Then, dress alterations usually cost around $400. If someone feels comfortable with spending that, it is obviously okay and it is their choice! But I do believe it's important to know there are options, and I find that for many people, those high numbers are discouraging. You can have a beautiful wedding dress for a lot less.
I initially got an outlet Mori Lee wedding dress online for a good price, but I found it was uncomfortable to walk, sit and be in since it was so long and big and full of embellishments. I decided that on my wedding day I had to be comfortable so I could fully it enjoy it, so I decided to change it. I thought to search outside of bridal shops. After searching a lot, in a beach store I found the base of my wedding dress, a beautiful ivory lace dress, for $90. It was sleeveless, so I bought two of them ($180) to add butterfly sleeves with the same fabric. I got that done for $85, as well as tightening it more. I bought a homemade satin embellished belt from an artisan in Facebook Marketplace for $25. The end result was sophisticated and beautiful, similar to some of the wedding dresses I liked the most. I felt beautiful, comfortable, happy that I didn't spend a fortune, and proud of the end result.
Thinking outside the box is fun😄
-Maggie S.
Founder.
Photos by Madelin Berry