The wild and wonderful ways you can repurpose your wedding dress

For many women, their wedding gown is the most meaningful (and expensive!) dress they’ll ever own and while some can’t bear the thought of parting with theirs, others jump at chance to resell it to make some money back.

For those of a more sentimental persuasion, there are plenty of ways to enjoy your dress for years to come, as proven recently by a group of Aussie mums on Facebook. Dozens of women in the Facebook group ‘Mums Who Cook, Clean and Organise’ have shared photos and stories of what they did with their dresses after their wedding day and they range from beautiful to bizarre.

Check out their responses below and tell us which is your favourite and what you did with your wedding gown!

Re-purposed

“Made it into a christening gown for our fourth child then had it altered for our fifth child for another christening gown.” – Lynda Wilson

“Kept it. Twenty-one years later my daughter is wearing it. [It’s been] altered to suit her body shape. She gets married this Saturday.” – Kylie Ruthjersen

“Made it into my daughter’s christening dress.” – Kelly Francis

“In my original box, planning to make three christening gowns to give one each to my kids.” – Catherine Galea

“I had my daughter’s christening gown made from my dress. Hoping it will become a family heirloom.” – Michelle Murphy

“Cut it up, poured fake blood over it and wore it for my Halloween-themed 30th birthday party. Yes, we are divorced.” – Cassy Riley

Donated it

“I kept mine for about 15 years, then sent it to Angel Gowns, they make outfits for premie babies that aren’t lucky enough to survive. I liked the idea that it was going to bring a little bit of joy for someone in a very sad time.” – Deirdre Clark

“I donated mine and had it professionally cleaned so someone that couldn’t afford to buy a nice dress could enjoy it.” – Charmaine Maisey

Framed it

“My dad made this dress box for me. It now hangs on my wall. – Emily Rawlner

“Got this display case. Why hide something so beautiful?” – Ingrid Cochrane

Kept it

“I wear mine every anniversary. It’s so fun!!” – Shelby Edwards

“Keeping! I get it out occasionally to measure how chunky I’ve got since we got married.” – Heidi Edwards

“Still got mine, doesn’t fit of course. 50 years in July.” – Jean Trembath

Sold it

“My MIL [mother-in-law] talked me into selling mine to a rental place. So sorry I did, and so was my daughter. She said she wished I had kept it.” – Maev Froggy

This article was originally published on May 15, 2021, and has been updated on April 2, 2024.