How to Make the Most of Your Wedding Gown
Okay, so, how many of your have heard the phrase “it’s a wedding gown, you’re only going to wear it once,” in some iteration, over the course of your engagement? And yes, while that might be true, why does it need to be? Really. You’ve spent time researching, pinning, screen-shotting, shopping for, and delicately handling that dress, so it definitely deserves more time to shine/fun in the sun than you think. Literally IN THE SUN, it’s what newlyweds Nick and Zoe did with their wedding ensems after their wedding day. And we can all do ourselves a favor and follow suit (quite literally, because this groom rocked his Hugo Boss red velvet jacket for a whole year following his wedding, nearly as much as his gorgeous wife did with her gown).
Let’s talk about their wild post-wedding tale.
Starting with the fact that this beautiful couple got married in New Jersey (where I’m from, and that’s exciting, because usually nothing tooooo exciting happens in Jersey 😉) on December 31st 2017.
Here’s the fun part, all from Zoe, posted on their couple Insta account @marrymeintravel just a few hours ago:
“We’re Nick and Zoe Aust. We got married on December 31, 2017 and then took off on the honeymoon of our dreams. We always knew we wanted to drop it all and travel the world together one day so we saved for about 2 years and then figured it was now or never! From Jan to Oct 2018 we traveled to more than 33 different countries. 🌎.
We brought along our wedding attire because why not? We were doing something not everyone would understand anyway so why not bring along the outfits that we have our very best memory in! 🤵🏻👰🏻.”
Oh yes, it involved quitting their jobs and peacing out on their people for 10-ish months, but luckily their adventure was well documented - in some of the most AH-MAZING photos we’ve ever seen. Seriously, the color in the shots is epic. In just under a year, the pair visited 33 countries, and her Watters dress (the Ferrera gown) went international.
So, for anyone who tells you you’ll never wear it again.
Tell them that you have other plans… And if you need some help, channel Zoe and her #youonlyliveonce frame of mind. On one of her earliest posts, she shared that she and Nick were going everywhere they’ve ever wanted, doing things they’ve always wanted to do and bringing her dress along because... Why not? Life is short. Go on that vacation. Wear your wedding dress again and again. Change your job. Move to a new place. Do whatever it is that makes you happy.
Girl, thank you for giving us the green light.
And for anyone just a little shy about going off the grid like they did. Here are a few more ideas for what you can do with the gown, instead of letting it sit in the closet. Which is what I’ve done for nearly 5 years, and yes, I’m ashamed to admit it, but it is what it is. I’m sure there’s a lot of former brides like me out there..... Umm. I hope.
Trash it. In a tasteful way.
Zoe swam in her dress in the crystal blue water of the Indian Ocean - and it was an absolutely STUNNING trash the dress example. If you’re game for something like this, then do itttt. It can be 🔥🔥🔥
Bring it on your honeymoon.
If it can fit in your suitcase, bringing your outfit can help make your honeymoon together hot as hell.
Have a post-wedding boudoir shoot.
And let the dress be the feature, among other things.
Play a part in someone’s #somethingborrowed.
There are lots of places where you can donate your only-worn-once wedding dress, but we’re big fans of Nearly Newlywed. The founder actually bought her Vera Wang wedding gown from a former bride who wore it for her wedding; she then sold it to another bride who wore it for hers, and then sold it to another bride even after that. We love the idea of doing something like this and setting up a pseudo penpal-ship via a hashtag, that you can create all together and then use on your posts with the dress. Sisterhood of the traveling dress IRL.
Make some jewelry and wear it starting after your first anniversary.
We’d say use some of the materials from your gown to have a clutch or pair of shoes made for your anniversary dinner, but we like this idea even better. Look into artisan jewelry shops/Etsy designer boutiques, like Erin Pelicano, and see if you can have snippets of your dress fashioned into heirloom jewelry. Something that you can treat yourself to as an anniversary gift and/or consider gifting to your future sons or daughters to wear on their own wedding days (yes, custom cufflinks are cool AF for your son!).
Make some rad updates for a vow renewal.
Of course, you can always buy a new dress for a future vow renewal, 5, 10, 15, 20+ years down the line, but a sweet alternative is to use the gown you said ‘I Do’ first in, and have a seamstress or designer friend make some of-the-moment updates on it. If you wore it long the first time around, then make it into a cocktail edition for the renewal event. If it was sleeved for a winter wedding, then consider doing a destination wedding for your 2nd-time vows and summer-rizing the style.
