A Beautiful Tradition that Ought to Spread? (repurposing the wedding gown)

Archdiocese of Washington ^ | July 1, 2012 | Msgr. Charles Pope

[samiam1972]

We may try to make my second daughter’s First Communion dress out of my wedding dress. Sounds like a good idea but I’m no seamstress and really am better off just buying something. I have a year to think about it. ;0)

[ottbmare]

A beautiful idea!

[married21]

My big, fluffy dress was made into my daughter’s baptism gown, and much of the rest became her first communion dress. I’m so glad she got to wear it two different ways already, before she grows up and gets married. I’m sure she will want her own style.

[Doomonyou]

They Zotted the picture! what’s up with that?!?! It was just a photo of a wedding dress for crying out loud. ;)

[boatbums]

We got married on our first sailboat, anchored off of Longboat Key, Florida. My dress was white cotton with battenburg lace at the hip and hem. I wore ballet flats and carried a small bouquet of daisies and pink roses. Our wedding cake was a marbled cheesecake double layer and iced with pink rosebuds. Our pastor married us on the bow at sunset with my close family lined up along the deck and a larger friend's sailboat tied up with ours carrying an additional dozen or so friends. It was GREAT! We had a much larger reception a few weeks later at a clubhouse. All in all, it probably cost us $500.00 for everything. We celebrated our twenty-first anniversary last April.

I think it is a real shame how much money gets spent these days for weddings. It has a lot to do with egos more than anything else. I say go ahead and re-purpose the gown if possible. Spending thousands to wear it one day is crazy! Wonderful memories stay in the heart and can be visited again through pictures and video for a long time.

[Kenika]

WoW..... I can’t ever see how you could enjoy an empty nest... Next will be the grandkids.... Best Wishes (It’s not me)

[Tax-chick]

LOL! At least I got a good laugh, while it was there.

[CatherineofAragon]

Your wedding sounds absolutely lovely! Cheesecake as wedding cake...now that’s an excellent idea.

Agree with what you say about many big weddings and ego, although I won’t say that’s always the case....I’m sure some girls just grew up wanting the fairy tale, or want to go the traditional route. But for me, I think I would have looked back and thought, “What did I do?” when it comes to the money spent and the headaches involved. After all, it’s about the marriage itself, in the long run.

[stpio]

Do you think the style will change soon? I can’t take
the strapless wedding dresses. No modesty for anyone. The bride yanks/hikes her wedding dress up like a swimsuit!

[LadyDoc]

My mother used to make vestments for an organization that sent them to missionaries. They also would take your wedding gown and make white vestments from it: usually from satin or damask silk dresses with a train.

[NYer]

Do you think the style will change soon?

I think that women who wish to dress modestly can find an appropriate gown. These strapless, uplift and, in some cases, transparent gowns are for secularists who want to look sexy on their wedding day.

[Theo]

What a great idea! I’ll pass this along to our wife. How meaningful if our four daughters wore outfits made from my wife’s wedding dress ...

[NYer]

How meaningful if our four daughters wore outfits made from my wife’s wedding dress ...

Speaking from personal experience, daughters want to select their own wedding gowns. However, after the wedding, repurposing an old wedding gown into a baptismal gown for the next generation, instantly creates a family bond AND new tradition. Babies are not selective and a baptismal gown, crafted from a former wedding gown, ensures the baby will be vested in white and a one-of-a-kind creation. It also ensures you should have enough fabric from the one gown for each daughter's new child. Go for it!