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Happy Sunday. For some reason, it’s 4:20 somewhere.
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Tux budget NYC?
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I think my wife was worried that someone might take her picture while she was wearing it, and those pictures would be with us forever.
I went wedding dress shopping and found a dress I loved, found a sample of the exact dress being sold on eBay for $200, and got it altered to fit me. It was huge on me and Alterations were $1000 😃 but that’s typical tbh.
It’s easy to get wrapped up in the wedding industrial complex and lose perspective on the value of a dollar. Every vendor believes (or at least communicates) that what they’re selling is the most important, make-or-break element of your day, which becomes more and more critical the more money you spend. E.g., what’s the point of having spent so much on your dream venue if you’re going to wear a dress that isn’t absolutely perfect and stunning? And once you’ve dropped $50k, what’s another $4k over budget when you originally planned to only spend $1k on your dress? You’ll go over budget with your veil and accessories anyway…and on and on.
Also, I think a lot of brides have a princess complex (Iliza Schlesinger has a great bit on this) and figure this is their one chance to go all out in the most major, celebrity-type gown. Not throwing shade here, just stating an observation.
Plan to sell it if you’re a popular size
Yes I’ve seen so many posts on Facebook of people trying to sell their dresses with no luck. It’s hard to find someone who is your size who wants the exact style you had.
OP honestly I am right there with you. I don't know how people spend as much money as they do on these dresses. And then I have seen the most expensive dresses get muddy and dirty when it rains which is just heartbreaking. I guess I am just such a practical person though so I never want to spend absurd amounts of money on things I can't use more than once.
I get your point. Some people pass down their wedding dress to their kids, but I think fashion trends change so rapidly. Also not everyone will have a daughter and not all daughters want to wear a hand-me-down dress. I'm very frugal and cut down on things that are unnecessary, which is why renting my dress makes the most sense to me.
I spent $500 on two dresses combined (I wanted a separate reception dress). I found a dress I loved that was three times that much, but like you, I would have felt so awful wearing it knowing how expensive it was, it wasn’t worth it. Looking back, I’m so happy I went with the dresses I did, and I looked beautiful in all of my pictures, despite the dresses not being super high end.
You can donate it for a tax write off
True, but hardly anyone exceeds the standard deductions these days.
Most people don't spend that, even with alterations. You are in the wrong salons. You might also look at JJHouse. They will even custom make it for not much more, which will limit alterations. All these dresses are sewn to order out of China, so using an online source that will ship you samples to try on is on option. I used them for bridesmaids dresses. Tried a bunch on in a salon to get an idea of fabric and style then ordered samples.
I got my dresses from JJ House and loved them! As I posted above, I got both of mine for a total of around $500. The way I did it was order a dress I liked in a regular size, tried it on, then returned it and ordered the dress in a custom size. It worked out so well and no alterations needed!