My Eco Travelling Wedding Dress
How I found my designer dress for 50% off retail price but ultimately got it for FREE, and now I'm turning it into an eco-wedding dress that is travelling the world! #thetravelingweddingdress2018
I love that I made my wedding into an eco-wedding dress, and I hope it will travel the world to beautiful destination weddings or the bride’s hometown.
In this article, I wanted to share my journey with you about finding my dream designer wedding dress, which retails for $6000 and got it secondhand, ultimately for FREE.
SEARCHING FOR THE DRESS
When I first started looking for a wedding dress, I knew I wanted to get it secondhand. I had seen women I admire sell their dresses on a website called StillWhite.com, so I did what all brides do I went to try on dresses at a few bridal shops to see what I liked and for the experience of just trying on amazing dresses.
I had found a few designer dresses that I liked online, so I went to a Fremantle shop with them in stock. The dress was called Avril by Rue De Seine, and in retail, it cost $6000 AUD, which was completely out of my budget! But, of course, I fell in love with the Avril dress because of its beautiful lace and train.
So I did what probably all brides do: go home and tell their partner we need to bump up the dress budget! HAHA
Lucky for me, I knew I could find it cheaper secondhand online. I don’t know if it was luck or meant to be, but a local lady, Nicole, had the dress up for sale, which meant I could go and try it on… and OMG!!! It was for someone else, but the seller Nicole let me come and try it on just in case the first buyer fell through, and to my luck… it did!
Her dress had been altered even better to have a more open, backless look, which I LOVED, as my back has always been one of my favourite features. I believe I paid $3000 and I think she was asking $3250? (don’t quote me on that) but I did ask for it to be reduced and she was happy to sell it to me for my asking price.
Our wedding day came with a world pandemic
So it was more stressful than any other wedding, probably in the history of weddings!
Guest cancelling daily, altering catering and seatings with my wedding planner and trying to manage how to help friends decide to come to Bali based on what the news said.
It was tough, but in the end, it was a magical day with the family and friends who were courageous enough to come to Bali regardless of the media storm about not travelling! It was a hard call to make and one that we, as a family who live in three different countries in the world, did not take lightly, but we all committed to going.
I am so glad we did because it was an adventure none of us will ever forget, and it was time spent together before we were not allowed to see each other for years later.
SELLING THE DRESS
Then came time to sell it, and I got cold feet because I was pregnant with our first kid. Suddenly, I started thinking that if I had a girl, maybe she would want it.
Regardless of my hesitancy, I put it up for sale for $3000, and I got women wanting to buy it and came over and tried it on. However, she said she wanted to lose weight to fit in better, which made me feel sad for her that she felt that she had to change her body to suit a dress for her big day like so many women have felt for SOOO MANY YEARS!
Ultimately, I didn’t sell the dress to her because I just got cold feet, and Tony said it was okay to not sell it until after the birth of our first child. Who ended up being a beautiful boy named Phoenix. Fast track to 2023, and we had our second son born in October, and I knew it was time to get the dress back up online and sell it. I had gone through my decluttering phase and knew I could get much money from it. I really wanted to get a new laptop, so I said to myself if I sold my dress, I could put the money towards that which I use every day, so it would be money put towards something very useful to me vs a dress just hanging in the closet for no reason… or the silly reason of thinking my unborn daughter could wear it! HAHAHA the silly things we think about to avoid letting go.
Nicole (dress own #1) messaged me on Instagram and told me it was hard for her to sell the dress to me at first, but once she saw how happy I was in it, it made it so much easier for her to sell it.
I had already asked her to print a photo of herself in the dress and write her favourite memory in a journal, as I always intended to sell the dress after using it.
So now it was my turn to let go, write my story in the journal, and send it to the next Bride, who bought it from me for the same price I purchased it. So, in the end, I wore my wedding dress for FREE!
And now I get to put the money towards my new laptop! #WINNING!
I have also met some cool women (brides) along the way, and I can’t wait to see where else this dress travels. That is why I also created a hashtag so that we can see where the dress ends up over the years.
The Journal that will travel with the dress:
First Dress Owner: Nicole, Perth Australia - 1st December, 2018
Second Dress Owner: Kim, Bali, Indonesia - 17th March, 2020
Third Dress Owner: Shipped to USA in Nov 2023 - Wedding to take place in 2024
We have become friends on social media and will update this story once she has her wedding, but she has tried it on, and it looks amazing.
I can’t wait to update you when she celebrates her wonderful day!
Life is filled with beautiful things and moments, and I had my special moment wearing this beautiful wedding dress. I hope it continues to bring joy to MANY more women and that this journal I created continues with the dress on its travels. Even though I may never read the journal again, that’s okay. I’ve sent it to the world for many more women to write stories.
Even though I don’t have a daughter to pass this dress on, I have sent it to another woman who loves the dress and wants to wear it on her special day. I think that is just as special, and I hope it gets at least ten brides to wear it before it gets really damaged!
I am sharing this UNTOLD story with you all in hopes it makes you think differently about buying new or, if you do buy new, how you can sell it after use to create less waste in the world. Don’t listen to the silly ideas in your head that sometimes stop you from following your first initial intention. Letting go is just as beautiful, if not more, than holding on. Be creative in EVERY possible way you can in life that you love. If travelling the world isn’t part of my current priority, it doesn’t mean that this dress can’t!
Kim x