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How to Declutter Your Wedding Dress (With No Regrets!)

June 25 // 3 Comments // 4 Minute Read

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Thinking about giving away your wedding dress? Don’t feel guilty! Give it to a good cause and find out here where to donate a wedding dress!
This post may contain affiliate links. Read my full disclosure policy here.
 

As we prepared to downsize into full-time RV living, I said goodbye to three significant, sentimental items from my life:

  1. Seven boxes of books
  2. Our cute little VW Golf (we traded it in for a truck to tow our new-to-us Fifth Wheel)
  3. My wedding dress

I cried when I said goodbye to two out of the three. 

You might be surprised to know the one thing I didn’t cry over was … my wedding dress!

When I took to Instagram stories and told the world I was finally letting go of it, I received a barrage of messages from those who had done it already and applauded my decision … as well as those who thought I was nuts for giving my dress away.

If you’re shocked at my decision and fall into the second camp, here’s my question for you…

What’s the Point of Keeping it?

Everyone I talk to who hasn’t (yet!) donated their wedding dress says one of the following things to me:

  • But there are so many memories attached to it!
  • I couldn’t imagine anyone else wearing my dress
  • I want to wear it again … someday … to renew my vows
  • My daughter might want it for her wedding
  • If I get rid of my wedding dress, my marriage would be doomed (yes, someone actually told me that!)

My response is always the same: think about the purpose of your wedding dress.

Didn’t it serve its purpose on your wedding day? Does it serve any actual purpose now? Or are you attaching memories to a thing you’re not actively using or enjoying?

And no, the once-a-year decluttering of your closet, when you fondly fawn over the dress in the very back, doesn’t count.

Because even if your wedding dress has been carefully preserved and sealed in a box, but never pulled out, worn again, or enjoyed, is it really that important to you?

How I Decided to Donate My Wedding Dress

I asked myself the same questions and came to this conclusion:

I am not going to wear my wedding dress ever again (if Joseph and I renew our vows, I want a new dress!). If I ever have a daughter, she is not going to want to wear it either and I would want her to choose her own dress!

So I’m literally just moving it around from place to place.

For 11 years, my dress hung in the back of five different guest room closets. When it came to us downsizing into the RV, I decided I wasn’t going to let it hang in our storage unit while we traveled.

It was time to let it go.

I have some advice for you if you decide to do the same thing.

Where to Donate a Wedding Dress:

Just so we’re clear, I don’t want you to think I don’t care about my dress at all. I loved my dress and felt like a princess on my wedding day. So I wanted to donate it somewhere special.

Keep in mind that most organizations require your dress be professionally cleaned. Some places also have a limit on hold old your dress can be (so if you donate your dress for a good cause, do it sooner rather than later!).

Here are all the places I found where you can donate your wedding dress.

  • Brides Across America – takes dresses that are 5 years old or less.
  • PreownedWeddingDresses.com
  • Brides for a Cause – 2013 or newer
  • FairyTale Brides
  • The Bridal Garden
  • The Bride’s Project – 5 years old or less
  • Brides Against Breast Cancer – 2 years old or less
  • Adorned in Grace – 5 years old or less
  • Wish Upon a Wedding – 3 years old or less

Remember, your donation is tax-deductible!

I really wanted to give my dress to a bride with breast cancer so she didn’t have to worry about paying for a dress in addition to her medical bills. But my dress was considered too old even though I was married in 2007.

If you find yourself in the same boat, you can:

  • Donate your wedding dress to a charity that makes Angel Gowns (gowns for infants who have passed away at or soon after birth)
  • Make it into a christening gown. There are plenty of Etsy shops who offer this service, or you can try it yourself using a tutorial.
  • With either of those options, you can also keep a scrap for yourself and turn it into a pretty necklace via Etsy

Because I couldn’t donate my dress to one of the above organizations, I decided to hand mine over to Goodwill. It would still be decently priced and available to someone who might not be able to afford a more expensive dress (although I only paid $150 on clearance for mine!)

I went back a week later to find it already gone! My home felt lighter and my heart exploded with all the warm fuzzies knowing that my dress went to a bride in need.

It hardly crosses my mind anymore.

Is it Time to Donate Your Wedding Dress?

I don’t deny that there are a lot of emotions surrounding the decision to declutter your wedding dress. And I don’t want you to think I have a cold heart and am telling you that you must get rid of it.

That’s not my intention.

Instead, I want you to just think about it’s purpose.

A guiding principle for me has always been to be intentional about the items I possess and live by my priorities. If your wedding dress is a priority item for you, then don’t feel guilty about keeping it.

But if it’s not worth storing in the back of a closet never to be seen in the light of day until you move to a new location, then don’t feel guilty about giving it away either.

It’s just a dress. 

Your marriage is much more important!

Let’s chat about wedding dresses:

Have you given yours away yet? What did you do with it?

MAKE YOUR DECLUTTERING DREAMS COME TRUE

Ready to declutter your home fast? All you need is ten minutes to power through these clutter-prone hot spots!

Disclosure: Some of the links in the post above are affiliate links. This means if you click on the link and purchase the item, I will receive an affiliate commission. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will add value to my readers. Read my full disclosure policy here.

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Comments

  1. Frex says

    August 30 at 5:37 pm

    We are right before our wedding and my wife-to-be found her dress in charity shop. I think donating is great 🙂

    Reply
    • Kalyn Brooke says

      September 6 at 5:08 pm

      That’s awesome, Frex! Congratulations!

      Reply

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  1. Friday Favorites June 2019 ~ Life Currently & What I'm Loving This Month says:
    June 14 at 3:25 pm

    […] way back when I posted about my wedding dress? I still have mine but Kalyn recently wrote a post how how to declutter your wedding dress with no regrets. She includes a great list of places that will take […]

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Hi, I’m Kalyn—a recovering perfectionist who nerds out about organizing systems, personal productivity, and helping you prioritize what matters over the pressure to do it all. I have a feeling we’re about to become the best of friends! Learn more >>

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👩‍💻 | I help value-driven women lead manageable + meaningful lives.
💬 | INFJ / Enneagram 1
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I wrote this in my journal the other day: 📓⁣

I wrote this in my journal the other day: 📓⁣ ⁣ “I’ve been thinking about what tech boundaries I want to instill, including boundaries related to work and productivity. I’ve become less careful about my media consumption, and it’s having a negative affect on my mental health.” 💞⁣ ⁣ Have you ever felt a similar tug? ⁣ ⁣ I can’t begin to tell you how many times I pick up my phone because I’m bored or lonely or jealous or unhappy. It almost always makes me feel worse. And yet...I struggle to stop. 😝⁣ ⁣ Here are the ideas I’ve been trying this month and I’m already seeing a positive effect:⁣ ⁣ ➕ No logging into social media after 8pm. I need to wind down for the night, not get lost in my phone! 📲⁣ ➕ Open Instagram with a purpose—either to post or to interact. Stop endlessly scrolling.⁣ ➕ My only screen time before 9am should be for Bible Study apps or News. 🗞⁣ ➕ Turn my phone on Do Not Disturb during Tiger Time (when I need the most focus for work) 💪⁣ ➕ Work no more than 4 hours on my business per day. If a task isn’t complete, push it to the next day. This time frame has really helped me prioritize! 💻⁣ ➕ Watch one show per day (or two if they are short!) and leave movies for the weekend. 📺⁣ ⁣ What tech boundaries have you set up? Are any new as of this year? I’d love to hear your ideas! 😃

What’s one thing you budget for that other peopl
What’s one thing you budget for that other people might not? I always find those interesting. 😃⁣ ⁣ You might have a mortgage. I budget for campgrounds. You might want a separate clothing budget, while I’m fine combining it under “Beauty and Style.” Recently, we also added a new line item for our motorcycle—something I NEVER thought would appear in our budget. ⁣ ⁣ See, we’re all different! ⁣ ⁣ Recently, I rearranged my budget categories and created this “cheat sheet.” Sometimes I forget where things go, like picking up new wall art for the living room. Does this item belong in the categories of Household Items or Home Maintenance? 🤔⁣ ⁣ Now I know! And I save time processing receipts each Friday. 🧾⁣ ⁣ What budgeting categories do you use? Share one of your random budget line items with me in the comments below! 😃

I call 2020 the Year of Abandoned Books. ⁣
⁣
I

I call 2020 the Year of Abandoned Books. ⁣ ⁣ I’m never afraid to stop reading a book if it doesn’t live up to the hype. Why invest more time in a book I’m not all that excited about when I could be exploring new authors and storylines where I can’t wait to turn the page? 🤷⁣ ⁣ But in 2020, I let more books go than I normally do. I suppose my patience dwindled when I thought the world was ending. Not that I thought the world was actually ending…but you know what I mean. 😉⁣ ⁣ As an Enneagram 1, I hate giving up on a book. I’m prone to the all-or-nothing mentality, even in my reading habits. My eyes could glaze over boring prose and I’d still repeat to myself: “You MUST finish this book!” 😫⁣ ⁣ Why? ⁣ ⁣ No one is adding a plastic star to your Book-It pin, (Remember those?) This isn’t assigned reading from your high school English class. This is YOUR reading life. ⁣ ⁣ And YOU should choose what books deserve your attention. 📚⁣ ⁣ There are too many good ones out there anyway. Like one of my favorite reads from 2020. 😍⁣ ⁣ This week’s newest blog post rounds up everything I read last year (43 books total!) including 5-star psychological thrillers, a delightful royal series, a couple self-help books, and of course, historical fiction.⁣ ⁣ Click the link in my bio to read it! ☝⁣ ⁣ What were your favorite books in 2020? Our literary styles might be a match made in heaven! ✨

My planner/journal lineup for 2021. 👆 ⁣
⁣
T

My planner/journal lineup for 2021. 👆 ⁣ ⁣ These small but mighty sidekicks will be my saving grace this year. 📚⁣ ⁣ 1️⃣ Bullet Journal (Blue) - for everyday planning and goal setting⁣ 2️⃣ Regular Journal (Yellow) - to track gratitude (5 things a day!) and to process ALL the feelings⁣ 3️⃣ Growth Journal (Sand) - a space for me to brain dump everything I learn from books, podcasts, sermons, etc ⁣ ⁣ That last one is new to me as of this year and I can't wait to flip back through all my notes come December! 📆⁣ ⁣ What planners/journals are you using for 2021?

Self-care is just as important as making your famo
Self-care is just as important as making your famous sugar cookies this holiday season. 🍪⁣ ⁣ Because let’s be real. ⁣ ⁣ That Hallmark-esque Christmas magic disappears the moment disagreeable family members annoy you. Or when you feel irritable over too many late nights and little-to-no sleep. Or when expectations over meals and traditions and social activities fall short and leave you feeling disappointed. 😬⁣ ⁣ But instead of dwelling on these stressful moments and using them as an excuse to completely disconnect from reality (as I’m often tempted to do!), view them as an opportunity for you to respond with poise. 💞⁣ ⁣ ➕ Journal your feelings. ⁣ ➕ Go for a walk. ⁣ ➕ Prioritize what’s essential. ⁣ ➕ Remember to breathe.⁣ ➕ And try not to eat your feelings…okay?⁣ ⁣ Here’s your permission slip if you need one: You don’t need to do or participate in everything! Take a time out when you need it. 🙌⁣ ⁣ That’s the best way you can protect your emotional well-being over the next few days.⁣ ⁣ Merry Christmas, friends! 🎄


I know you’re ready for this year to be over. 🙋‍♀️ The last twelve months brought so many hard things into our lives—relationships were lost, our country became more broken and divided than ever, and oh yeah, we walked through a pandemic too. 🦠 🤯 No biggie, right? Ha! 😅 And while it’s easy to look back and wish we could skip 2020 altogether (or at least insist on a do-over), I don’t want this year to be the one where the hard overcame the good. 💕 Just as hard days don’t mean ruined days, hard years don’t mean ruined years. 2020 can still be good. 💪 For me, I want to remember the fun and exciting things we did. The adventures we had. The new shows we watched, and the books we read. The new life hacks and things I discovered that made my life easier or just brought me joy. 💞 You’ll find it all in my latest blog post (link in profile). If you still need to buy a gift for a loved one (or for yourself!), you’ll find plenty of fun and affordable ideas to fill up the rest of your gifting list. 📦 Otherwise, enjoy a stroll down the good side of 2020’s memory lane and leave your favorite things in the comments so I can try them. 👋


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