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My Vintage Wedding Dress

September 16, 2015 by 31 Comments

A number of you have asked about my wedding dress, so let me tell you.The day we returned from our Florida engagement trip with both sets of parents, one of Mr. Handsome’s aunts offered to let me try on her wedding dress. At that point, I hadn’t even thought about what I wanted my gown to look like, so I figured I might as well try hers on.

The minute I stepped into it, all the ladies began gushing over how beautiful it was and how easy it would be to altar. ‘Alright,’ I thought. ‘Might as well just go with this one.’ And that’s what I did.

The dress is from the 1980s and was a bit big on me, so we had a seamstress friend work her magic. To the right is the original gown

The seamstress shortened the sleeves, made the bodice a little more snug, and removed some of the lace and beads around the neck. That was all that needed to be done. The best part was she only charged us $20 for the alterations. What a sweet lady!

The dress had a beautiful train with thousands of small, sparkly beads along the edge. It also had a bustle, which came in handy for the outdoor reception. To add a little extra poof to the skirt, I wore a crinoline.

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Filed Under: Our Wedding/Honeymoon Tagged With: beautiful train, crinoline, engagement trip, Florida engagement, outdoor reception, vintage wedding dress, wedding dress, wedding dress alterations

Previous Post: « DIY Wedding Food
Next Post: Getting Crafty…Wedding Card Box »

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Anonymous

    September 16, 2015 at 3:03 pm

    Your dress turned out beautifully! Very cool story!

    Reply
  2. Anonymous

    September 16, 2015 at 3:32 pm

    Beautiful dress!!!

    What about some pics of the bridal party?

    Reply
    • nashvillewife@gmail.com

      September 17, 2015 at 5:06 pm

      Thank you! πŸ™‚ To protect the privacy of the minors we had in our bridal party, I won't be able to post those pictures. Sorry about that!

      Ellie

      Reply
  3. Andrea

    September 16, 2015 at 4:58 pm

    Looks lovely! The seamstress really did a great job. Is that a lace cover over the bodice?

    Reply
    • nashvillewife@gmail.com

      September 16, 2015 at 9:25 pm

      Thank you! Yes, the section under the neckline is lacy netting. It's 80s, but we thought it looked vintage, so we kept it.

      Ellie

      Reply
    • Anonymous

      September 18, 2015 at 1:47 am

      It IS vintage! My Grandma had a very similar lace neckline. She was married in 1943.

      Reply
  4. Shela G

    September 16, 2015 at 5:21 pm

    Beautiful!! Very special that you got to use a family members dress.

    Reply
  5. Chickie

    September 16, 2015 at 6:03 pm

    You are GORGEOUS!!!!!!
    I love it! πŸ™‚

    Reply
  6. Anonymous

    September 16, 2015 at 6:31 pm

    Ellie!!!! You're so gorgeous!!! The dress suits you beautifully! You look so happy and blessed! So happy for you and Mr. Handsome!

    Reply
  7. Anonymous

    September 16, 2015 at 7:24 pm

    You looked beautiful in the wedding gown. The story is an interesting one! What a cast of good natured characters! What would they have done with their stored away treasures if Mr Handsome had not brought you into their lives?

    Reply
  8. Anonymous

    September 16, 2015 at 8:49 pm

    May we know your husbands real first name please? πŸ™‚

    Reply
  9. Anonymous

    September 16, 2015 at 10:29 pm

    Very pretty. That was nice of Mr Handsome Aunt to let you use her wedding dress.
    I like what the seamstress did to the wedding dress she did a good job.

    Reply
  10. Beth

    September 16, 2015 at 10:29 pm

    You look very pretty in it.

    Reply
  11. Anonymous

    September 17, 2015 at 12:56 am

    You answered the question I had about where your especially beautiful dress was from! I really like the sheer over the dress top because you look fully dressed but still have the fashion that is suited to a young lady in her most romantic of gowns.

    Reply
  12. Anonymous

    September 17, 2015 at 2:44 pm

    Are there any bridal party photos

    Reply
    • nashvillewife@gmail.com

      September 17, 2015 at 5:06 pm

      To protect the privacy of the minors we had in our bridal party, I won't be able to post those pictures. Sorry about that!

      Blessings,
      Ellie

      Reply
  13. Anonymous

    September 18, 2015 at 1:25 am

    Just out of curiosity, what is Mr. Handsome's real name?

    Reply
  14. Anonymous

    September 18, 2015 at 1:35 pm

    It looks nice, but I can't help and feel a little bit sad you only thought 'might as well just go with this one' one of my absolute best moments of wedding planning was dress shopping with my mom and seeing her get tears in her eyes and knowing that I had found my perfect dress.

    Reply
  15. Anonymous

    September 18, 2015 at 5:31 pm

    What a beautiful dress and beautiful bride! I could tell it was from the 80s and I love the way it was updated. Your flowers were also very pretty!

    Reply
  16. Anonymous

    September 19, 2015 at 1:40 am

    Since you can't post photos of the bridal party, could you perhaps post a photo of your parents and you in-laws, if they are willing?

    Reply
  17. Andrea

    September 19, 2015 at 3:06 am

    I appreciate your desire to protect the privacy of the minors in your bridal party – very wise. What color were the bridesmaids dresses? How many bridesmaids did you have?

    Reply
    • nashvillewife@gmail.com

      September 19, 2015 at 1:36 pm

      Hi Andrea,

      My bridesmaids dresses were blue. Here's the link to a post that includes a picture of them: https://www.nashvillewife.com/2015/05/bargain-on-bridesmaid-dresses.html.

      I had eight bridesmaids (five sisters-in-law and three friends). Mr. Handsome had seven groomsmen (2 brothers, 2 brothers-in-law, and three friends).

      Have a great weekend!
      Ellie

      Reply
  18. Anonymous

    September 19, 2015 at 6:50 am

    Such a beautiful story, Ellie!!
    Did you get to keep the dress? Just thought maybe if you have a daughter someday you could pass it on to her,that would be so sweet:) Maybe the Aunt would allow it even if she now has the dress,a family Wedding gown heirloom!!!!:O)) Now that would be wonderful:O)
    Blessing to You and your Mr.Handsome!!!

    Reply
    • nashvillewife@gmail.com

      September 19, 2015 at 1:38 pm

      Hi there!

      The dress is currently at my mother-in-law's house. I would LOVE for my daughters (or other girls in the family) to wear it, and Mr. Handsome's aunt would love that, too.

      Blessings to you, as well!
      Ellie

      Reply
  19. Anonymous

    September 19, 2015 at 3:52 pm

    Could you just post a picture of the dress on someone? You could crop it so the face isn't showing.

    Reply
  20. Anonymous

    September 20, 2015 at 1:53 am

    With permission, of course, would you perhaps be able to post a picture of both sets of parents from your wedding day??

    Reply
  21. Anonymous

    September 22, 2015 at 1:16 am

    What a beautiful thing to be able to pass down a dress in the family…. and it's nice it was free too πŸ™‚
    Love,
    Alexis

    Reply
  22. anna banana

    December 7, 2016 at 6:02 pm

    I LOVE the dress the altering made It vintage but modern

    Reply
    • nashvillewife@gmail.com

      December 9, 2016 at 5:10 pm

      Thank you, Anna! The altering was done
      by an older lady who is a pro at sewing.

      Ellie

      Reply
  23. Iris

    September 7, 2019 at 7:33 am

    Hi Ellie!
    I love your posts about wedding planning. It’s refreshing to find a bride who isn’t obsessed about the little details, and just want to have a beautiful enjoyable day with their loved ones!
    Could you please share your mother’s thoughts on the dress? Wasn’t she sad that you didn’t wear her wedding dress instead? I’m only asking because I’ve been considering using my aunt’s beautiful wedding dress for my wedding, but I worry it will saddle my mother, as I don’t consider wearing hers…
    Thanks. Iris.

    Reply
    • Ellie

      September 7, 2019 at 8:07 pm

      Hi Iris,

      Glad you are enjoying my wedding prep posts! I had seen my mom’s wedding dress before, and we had both agreed that it wasn’t the right style for me. I would definitely talk to your mom about it beforehand, but if your aunt’s dress is what makes you happy, I’m sure it will make her happy, too. πŸ™‚ Do you have wedding colors in mind?

      Ellie

      Reply

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Mr. Handsome and I married six years ago and moved to Nashville, Tennessee. Between recipes, photos from our travels, money saving tips, DIY suggestions, post about our daily life with our son, and more, our lifestyle blog features a little bit of everything. Read More…

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