30 Times Brides Found Their Wedding Dresses Without Breaking The Bank And Proved How Good They Look By Posting These Pics
One of the biggest dreams that many women have is to get married in a beautiful dress, but finding a man to walk down the aisle with will only get them halfway. The next part is actually buying the dress, and they can be really expensive. In fact, the average wedding dress cost in the United States is $1,000. Not everyone can or wants to spend that much money on it. So they improvise. And to great success.
There's a subreddit called r/Weddingsunder10k and it's perfect for those who are planning their big day on a budget. Brides and grooms are sharing all kinds of tips and tricks that saved them a dollar or two. Or a couple of hundred! Some of the most popular posts are women sharing pictures of their stunning dresses, revealing they didn't have to spend a fortune on them. Clearly, more expensive doesn't always mean prettier.
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$30 Salvation Army Find! Fits Like A Glove, Already Altered To A 32” Rib Cage And Has The Breast Pads And Perfect Length. Either The Previous Bride Was My Exact Size Or This Was Made For Me Oh, And Pockets!!
Rosemarie, the writer behind the blog Busy Budgeter, said the dress was the only thing she didn't want to compromise when she was planning her wedding. "I really wanted an amazing wedding dress," she wrote. "But where can you find an any dress for the $200 I had budgeted, much less an amazing one? I went to Bridal Shops and tried on an array of dresses. They were beautiful, stunning, elegant, and they were also between $700-$1,500, way over my budget."
Dress Was $170 On Etsy, Cape Veil Was $170 On Etsy, Alterations Were $170! Very Excited For Our Small Airbnb Wedding (Hopefully It Won't Get Cancelled)
Rosemarie tried to shop online, but was worried. "It never looks as good on you as it does on the model. I looked for an alternative evening gown that I could wear as a wedding dress, but had no luck."
"So my mom, my 10 year old future step daughter and I drive to the location, which is open Saturdays from 10 am-12 pm. St Anthonys bridal is located in Maryland, and we find the place with no problem at all (thanks to GPS!) located inside an establishment called Dogtopia."
As they walk inside, they immediately see dresses everywhere – hanging on racks sorted by sizes. "The woman at the front desk tells us that all dresses in the store are on sale for $150 plus when you purchase a dress you also receive a free veil. She gives us some direction as to the dressing area locations, and which type of dresses can be found in which areas and sends us into the adjoining rooms. The only request? If the dress is not for you- hang it up and return it to the rack that you found it on. Not a problem."
My $368 Wedding Dress From Etsy Came In Today And It Looks Exactly Like It Does In The Pictures!! (More Info In Comments)
ikr but im too thrilled about the line of beads on the back
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I love this even more Day wear usually starts at around $20,000, though it does depend on the brand [Chanel Haute Couture usually cost between $40,000-80,000], while bridal can easily cost $100,000-150,00, depending on the embroideries.
I don't knkw where you are from, but $368 is still a lot in my country 😅 it is gorgeous, though.
I know wedding dresses can cost much more than this, but $368 isn't cheap
So they find Rosemarie's size and hit the dressing rooms with 2 dresses. 10 dresses later, the bride-to-be looked in the mirror and there it was, the dress! "It wasn’t until after I left that I noticed the designer name on the tags that were still flawlessly attached. So naturally I googled it."
It was a Demetrios designer dress. The online retail of these dresses are about $3,000.
So what did Rosemarie had to suggest to others who find themselves in the need of a budget wedding dress? "Try heading over to Google, and typing in their state and “non profit wedding dress” to see if they have a similar store close to them."
Thought I Found My Dress Months Ago.. Then This One Came In The Mail. Finally, At 4’11 I Feel Bridal And Grown Up Lol. Price: $82
My $70 Wedding Dress! (Thrift Shop Score)
I Went To Try On Dresses At A Boutique That Was Way Over My Price Range, When I Got There And Said My Absolute Maximum Budget Was $600, The Stylist Said That The Dresses On The Floor Start Around $1000, But She Was So Nice And Found Me A Beautiful Discontinued Dress In The Basement For 400$!
My Vintage 1950s Wedding Dress (Purchased From Etsy For $170 Total) Arrived Today! Nothing Extra Was Added For All This Amazing Skirt Volume
Found Dream Dress For $200
Purchased My Dress From Salvation Army For $20 And It Turned Out Beautiful In The Pictures. Also Homemade Bouquet For About $3.
Lovely bouquet! It complements the cream tone of the dress too.
I Found My Reception Dress For $25 At Goodwill
Got This Beautiful Dress For My Halloween Wedding Handmade On Etsy For $311 With Rush Shipping Included.
I Said Yes To A Hail Mary Of A Dress After Almost Losing Hope, And I Love It! 99 Dollars.
As A Plus Sized Bride, I Never Thought I'd Find A Dress I Could Feel Pretty In. Took A Chance On This Beauty For $250. Floral Print!
An Asos Wedding Dress For £300... I Love It!
Brides, Don't Rule Out Second Hand Dresses - I Saved 1k On This Dress, And Saved £50 For Each Bridesmaid Dress So Far!
Found My Beautiful Dreas For Only $25. Couldn't Be Happier
Bought A Dress For $94 On Amazon... Comparable To David's
Lovely and actually fits you in the bust! The bosom-falling-out look is really not a good one.
$200, Thrifted/Vintage, And Fits Perfectly! Couldn’t Have Designed A More “Me” Dress!
Dress From Amazon $100, Veil Also From Amazon $10, Earrings From Walmart $2, Flowers From Albertsons $25. I Think I Pulled It Off Well!!
My 300€ Asos Wedding Dress! Better Than Any Designer Dress I Have Tried On
If You’re Looking For A Really Inexpensive Dress, Mine Turned Out Great!
The resembleance between her and her brother is uncanny...I've heard of genes copying and pasting but this is another level
So I’m Having A Courthouse Wedding And I Wasn’t Gonna Go For Anything Big But You Know What. You Only Get One Wedding! So I Went To Local Stores To Look For Something Nice But Affordable And I Found This Gem For $53 It’s So Beautiful And I’m So Happy About It!!
Can't Help But Share My Excitement Over My Dress. It Is A New Martina Liana (#942) In Champagne And Ivory That I Found Via Poshmark For $500 Total (3k Retail). Could Not Have Asked For More. I Am In Love With It!
$90 Dress, $7 Veil, And Dollar Store Bouquet. I Don't Want To Take Them Off!
Got Married Yesterday. Waiting For The Professional Pics To Come In But In The Meantime Here Is My $92 Dress From Amazon And My Homemade Bouquet At Our Free Venue In Austin Texas
People!!! She looks fab and she loved her dress and that's all that matters!!
Yayayayayay! (My Dress Just Came In And I Got It $100 Off On Poshmark!)
I Think I Found The One For Only $500! It Fit Me Like A Glove, I Just Have To Show It To My Mom And Sister In Person For The Final Approval. Perfect For My Beach Wedding!
Beautiful Dress but it is your wedding. Why are you needing your mother and sisters approval??? Who cares what anyone else has to say about your Dress?? It is your day, no one else's. You look great girl!! Rock that dress and congratulations
Found My Dream Dress For Only $285! Need Some Ideas For Jewelry And Shoes.
$100 Asos Dress, $20 Alterations, $40 Veil From Another Reddit User. First Full Try On!
Bought My Wedding Dress For $12!!
Found The Dress Of My Dreams! $150 At Brides For A Cause, When I’m Done With It I’ll Donate It Back To The Boutique For Another Lucky Bride To Fall In Love With.
Final Dress Update- Found The One On Poshmark For $260! I Live In A Super Rural Area, Aside From 1 Trip To David's Bridal The Search Was Done Entirely Online. So Happy To Finally Have A Dress!(Sorry For The Mirror Pic- No One But My Fiance Here To Take A Photo Of Me In It).
My Wife's Dress Was $250 At David's Bridal, She Then Sewed On The Tulle Which She Got From Wish For 10 Dollars.
Prom Dress On Clearance For Wedding Dress - $26 Included Tax!
I Said Yes To The Dress... And To 87% Off! Bought In A Sample Sale - So Happy!
I Chose My Wedding Dress Today! Paid Under 500 Dollars With Custom Sizing And In Champagne And Ivory!!
Updated My Mom's Wedding Dress From The 80's For $300! I Wasn't Sure If I Would Like It Based On How It Looked On Me Before The Adjustments But It Really Worked Out And Was Super Special! Most Of The Time It Is Way Cheaper To Remake A Dress Than It Is To Buy A New One!
Returned My $80 Lulus Dress For A $48 Amazon One And It Feels So Right!
My Dress Arrived This Morning And I Love It. $549.00
Our Wedding Was Yesterday! Dress:$250 Veil:$40 Felt Bouquet I Made: $10 Sunglasses:$10
Just Got My Dress For $250! If You’re In Oregon Or Washington, Definitely Check Out Brides For A Cause!
This Is From Lulus! “In Dreams White Long Sleeve Lace Maxi Dress”. It Was $82!!!!
Just Got My Wedding Dress At An Op-Shop For $20
Found “The Dress” And It Was Only $100!
Found My Dream Dress At The White Room For $300 During A Sample Sale!
The First And Only Dress I Tried On $250
Bought A Bridesmaids Dress In Ivory And Covered It With A Cape, Total Under $400
Poshmark Bhldn Dress Under $250 😍 Moving Forward With A 9/5 Wedding That’ll Either Happen Or We’ll Elope In Our Backyard. Covid-19 Be Damned!
Got My Wedding Dress At A Pop Up Shop For Discounted Dresses! A Steal At $319 (Originally $1400)
Had The First Fitting For My $600 Wedding Dress This Weekend! Fits Almost Perfectly And I'm So Excited About My Dress. Trying To Hold Onto That Feeling When Think About My November 2020 Texas Wedding That Will Probably Have To Be Postponed 💙
Found My Dress!! $150 On Poshmark! Fits Like A Glove No Alterations Needed!
I Found My Dress! $70 On Sale From Modcloth And I’m In Love - Just Needs A Little Steaming And Tailoring.
I Found My Wedding Dress At A Resale Shop For $500!
I Found My Dress Today For $230! It Still Needs Minor Alterations, But I'm Just So Excited I Wanted To Share Now.
It's lovely. The only downside to very structured dresses around the bust is that they can stay still when you turn your shoulders. Seen it happen. Hopefully that won't be the case here though.
Found My Dress Today For $399 And I Couldn’t Be Happier!!
I Found The One For $29, I've Never Felt So Pretty Or Feminine
My $590 Wedding Dress From Etsy. In Love
I love this. My friend is getting married next year and she fretted about finding a dress in her budget because the dress shops we looked at were a minimum of $1500 per dress. One shop didn't have a dress for under $3K (USD). Just by chance, we stopped at the dry cleaner clearance (Dry cleaners selling the clothes that have been left) and she found a dress for $95. She fell in love with it and paid for it, when we got it back to her house we discovered that it was a Vera W**g that had retailed for $8,000 brand new.
Excellent suggestion - people forget about dry cleaners.
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it's really weird to compare with my country, people usually just rent their wedding dresses.
That is so sensible. The groom rents a tuxedo, why shouldn't the bride rent a dress?
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Well...apparently my expectations of how much a "regular" wedding gown costs and therefore what constitutes "a bargain" are way off from the general population. I bought an old wedding dress a couple of years ago (didn't realize it's a wedding dress, thought I was going to wear it with a jean jacket) for roughly 35 USD. And I plan to wear it at my wedding day. But you know - to each their own - I'm definitely not trying to bash any of the brides. :)
The average cost of a wedding dress is approx $2,500 AUD in Aus, US and the UK.
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So many gorgeous dresses at amazing prices. My dress was super expensive and that is not because I have expensive taste it's just that I planned my wedding in 3 months. I needed to find a dress early in the planning due to any alterations and also making sure that everything else like the bridesmaids dresses, my hubbys clothes and groomsmen's clothes go well together. My wedding cost between $5000-$6000 and my dress took $1665 of that budget (the average cost in Aus spent on wedding dresses is around $2500). Went to sell it recently only to discover my dress had mould all over it coz the last house we lived in had a lot of moisture inside. So disappointed but I ended up cutting up parts of the dress without mould to use in a wedding inspired craft project.
After a while all thy white dresses just look the same. I don't understand why an entire culture wants to dress the bride in white . It's her day . Shouldnt u play with colours .In my country traditionally all white are worn by widows. There just nothing exceptional in white dresses . All the types have been tried and done. It's done guys. It's just not pretty anymore
For us white used to be a colour of mourning as well, before Christians came and messed up our traditions. I would love to wear a dark dress for my wedding.
Load More Replies... I loved my dress, it was $35 dollars on sale 2yrs ago, a plus sized black with silver and metallic cherry blossoms with a 50s feel. Felt beautiful and loved as I married my sailor. This post reminded me of all the hope and love of that day! Hope you the brides a happy day and a wonderful marriage!
I got mine for $26 at a Rainbow shop. Pretty white vintage summer knee length dress from that store. Saved it almost a year. We hitched at town hall an I said I had something to wear! So after 9 years together and about 5 of those engaged we finally did it. And sept 1 is 5 yr anniversary and I might wear it again for that. I do have photos but I can't post them here
Back in the late 90s we had Ebay. My best friend bought her dress, my maid of honor dress, and her sister's flower girl dress for around $60 total.
Lol. eBay still exists and is very much active.
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Yeah when I get married I think I'd just want a dress with bright colors on it from wherever. I kinda liked the ones with flowers embroidered on them too. Or maybe I will wear a suit, I never really liked wearing dresses anyways....
My dress was shades of mauves and encrusted with diamantés, ankle length at the back and slightly higher at the front so my shoes could be seen. Fitted to the knees and then kicked out at the bottom Floaty short sleeves... felt so special in it. I think white dresses are a tad over rated and not everyone looks good in it.
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My wife's dress cost was $52. She bought it from a fashion show warehouse
I love this, I'm making my wedding dress and heartily approve of wedding dress bargains. The whole wedding industry is just ridiculous.
Hm, in my country, wedding dresses go from $360/€300 and up to approx. $1200/€1000, I don't know anyone who paid more, if there are, those are the ultimate few examples. Anyway, I had mine sewn for me, I bought the material and all, and it cost me $36/€30 total. It was a simple satin dress with lace on shoulders and chest, although if I could turn back time, I'd only replace the satin with muslin, for the flow and less shine.
Make sure to read the returns info before buying a dress online....It's great these are the best case scenarios but there are probably more horror stories. Alterations for a wedding dress can cost around $700 in the United States, so if you spend $200 on a wedding dress and it doesn't fit and you can't return it, it's actually cheaper to buy a new dress. Terrifying I know. Usually dresses for weddings cost thousands.
Are some of the women's faces hidden because they're trying on wedding dresses but they're boyfriends don't know or they don't have a fiancée? :-)
Some of the dresses are very nice, and many are....not. Some show far too much that shouldn't be seen except by the "new" husband/partner. But good prices on all of them, certainly. IF....huge IF....I ever decide to get married again, I'll just buy a nice dress that would serve as a Sabbath dress afterward. I wouldn't waste money on another "wedding" specific dress when it's only a once-and-done event (supposedly), but the Sabbath is forever.
Some of these women don't deserve these dresses. They deserve angels, cause they are freaking stunning women. Don't let anyone tell you, beautiful people, any different 😊😊 I hope the people who had their wedding, I hope that it went well and I wish you luck if your going to have a quarantine wedding. Stay safe people, just remember that (if you think you aren't) I love you and wish you the best in life and your next life!
A round of applause for these brides who had the wisdom to realize that the wedding is not just about a dress. And not one of them looks any the less lovely for the money she saved.
Fabulous article and great inspiration to couples struggling to decide what to do with all the setbacks going on now. As an officiant it doesn't have to be either all in or nothing at all. It just means doing things more intimately. Large ceremonies are being changed to Micro Weddings and Elopements but it doesn't mean you have to settle. You'll find your blessings when you least expect it
Hah :D my big dress was 34 USD, with a nice peti and a hommade underskirt. Brought some other small stuff from Ebay... Then I made my own roses from ribbon. It was just so purrfect me <3 Creativity and timing! My dress was on sale when I finally pay for it.
I found a dress at David's bridal for $199. Then I lost 45 lbs and had to get another. Found another great dress at David's for $250. I donated the 1st one to the Malala Foundation and will probably do the same with the one I actually wore. I hope some bride got a good deal on the one I donated.
I've been married 14 years. Got married in Reno and wasn't really wearing anything wedding like. In fact I don't even have pictures. I had no family on my side show. So wasn't a big deal. It was cheap, fast and got the job done. We have no kids and enjoy saving money.
Found my perfect red wedding dress for €140. :-) It's crazy to think there are people who spend thousands of dollars on a dress they'll wear once... In the end, it's not the dress that makes it a special day.
75 toffee silk Mae West cut off sales rack at Macy's. Entire wedding 2.5 k
I was a wedding photographer NONE of us who worked I. The industry had a large wedding
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I bought my dress second hand off of eBay for $70. It fit perfectly and when I looked up the style it was still being sold for $900 new. We got married in the woods down by a lake so I didn't feel bad as I tracked through the brush in it!
I love this. My friend is getting married next year and she fretted about finding a dress in her budget because the dress shops we looked at were a minimum of $1500 per dress. One shop didn't have a dress for under $3K (USD). Just by chance, we stopped at the dry cleaner clearance (Dry cleaners selling the clothes that have been left) and she found a dress for $95. She fell in love with it and paid for it, when we got it back to her house we discovered that it was a Vera W**g that had retailed for $8,000 brand new.
Excellent suggestion - people forget about dry cleaners.
Load More Replies... it's really weird to compare with my country, people usually just rent their wedding dresses.
That is so sensible. The groom rents a tuxedo, why shouldn't the bride rent a dress?
Load More Replies... Well...apparently my expectations of how much a "regular" wedding gown costs and therefore what constitutes "a bargain" are way off from the general population. I bought an old wedding dress a couple of years ago (didn't realize it's a wedding dress, thought I was going to wear it with a jean jacket) for roughly 35 USD. And I plan to wear it at my wedding day. But you know - to each their own - I'm definitely not trying to bash any of the brides. :)
The average cost of a wedding dress is approx $2,500 AUD in Aus, US and the UK.
Load More Replies... So many gorgeous dresses at amazing prices. My dress was super expensive and that is not because I have expensive taste it's just that I planned my wedding in 3 months. I needed to find a dress early in the planning due to any alterations and also making sure that everything else like the bridesmaids dresses, my hubbys clothes and groomsmen's clothes go well together. My wedding cost between $5000-$6000 and my dress took $1665 of that budget (the average cost in Aus spent on wedding dresses is around $2500). Went to sell it recently only to discover my dress had mould all over it coz the last house we lived in had a lot of moisture inside. So disappointed but I ended up cutting up parts of the dress without mould to use in a wedding inspired craft project.
After a while all thy white dresses just look the same. I don't understand why an entire culture wants to dress the bride in white . It's her day . Shouldnt u play with colours .In my country traditionally all white are worn by widows. There just nothing exceptional in white dresses . All the types have been tried and done. It's done guys. It's just not pretty anymore
For us white used to be a colour of mourning as well, before Christians came and messed up our traditions. I would love to wear a dark dress for my wedding.
Load More Replies... I loved my dress, it was $35 dollars on sale 2yrs ago, a plus sized black with silver and metallic cherry blossoms with a 50s feel. Felt beautiful and loved as I married my sailor. This post reminded me of all the hope and love of that day! Hope you the brides a happy day and a wonderful marriage!
I got mine for $26 at a Rainbow shop. Pretty white vintage summer knee length dress from that store. Saved it almost a year. We hitched at town hall an I said I had something to wear! So after 9 years together and about 5 of those engaged we finally did it. And sept 1 is 5 yr anniversary and I might wear it again for that. I do have photos but I can't post them here
Back in the late 90s we had Ebay. My best friend bought her dress, my maid of honor dress, and her sister's flower girl dress for around $60 total.
Lol. eBay still exists and is very much active.
Load More Replies... Yeah when I get married I think I'd just want a dress with bright colors on it from wherever. I kinda liked the ones with flowers embroidered on them too. Or maybe I will wear a suit, I never really liked wearing dresses anyways....
My dress was shades of mauves and encrusted with diamantés, ankle length at the back and slightly higher at the front so my shoes could be seen. Fitted to the knees and then kicked out at the bottom Floaty short sleeves... felt so special in it. I think white dresses are a tad over rated and not everyone looks good in it.
Load More Replies... My wife's dress cost was $52. She bought it from a fashion show warehouse
I love this, I'm making my wedding dress and heartily approve of wedding dress bargains. The whole wedding industry is just ridiculous.
Hm, in my country, wedding dresses go from $360/€300 and up to approx. $1200/€1000, I don't know anyone who paid more, if there are, those are the ultimate few examples. Anyway, I had mine sewn for me, I bought the material and all, and it cost me $36/€30 total. It was a simple satin dress with lace on shoulders and chest, although if I could turn back time, I'd only replace the satin with muslin, for the flow and less shine.
Make sure to read the returns info before buying a dress online....It's great these are the best case scenarios but there are probably more horror stories. Alterations for a wedding dress can cost around $700 in the United States, so if you spend $200 on a wedding dress and it doesn't fit and you can't return it, it's actually cheaper to buy a new dress. Terrifying I know. Usually dresses for weddings cost thousands.
Are some of the women's faces hidden because they're trying on wedding dresses but they're boyfriends don't know or they don't have a fiancée? :-)
Some of the dresses are very nice, and many are....not. Some show far too much that shouldn't be seen except by the "new" husband/partner. But good prices on all of them, certainly. IF....huge IF....I ever decide to get married again, I'll just buy a nice dress that would serve as a Sabbath dress afterward. I wouldn't waste money on another "wedding" specific dress when it's only a once-and-done event (supposedly), but the Sabbath is forever.
Some of these women don't deserve these dresses. They deserve angels, cause they are freaking stunning women. Don't let anyone tell you, beautiful people, any different 😊😊 I hope the people who had their wedding, I hope that it went well and I wish you luck if your going to have a quarantine wedding. Stay safe people, just remember that (if you think you aren't) I love you and wish you the best in life and your next life!
A round of applause for these brides who had the wisdom to realize that the wedding is not just about a dress. And not one of them looks any the less lovely for the money she saved.
Fabulous article and great inspiration to couples struggling to decide what to do with all the setbacks going on now. As an officiant it doesn't have to be either all in or nothing at all. It just means doing things more intimately. Large ceremonies are being changed to Micro Weddings and Elopements but it doesn't mean you have to settle. You'll find your blessings when you least expect it
Hah :D my big dress was 34 USD, with a nice peti and a hommade underskirt. Brought some other small stuff from Ebay... Then I made my own roses from ribbon. It was just so purrfect me <3 Creativity and timing! My dress was on sale when I finally pay for it.
I found a dress at David's bridal for $199. Then I lost 45 lbs and had to get another. Found another great dress at David's for $250. I donated the 1st one to the Malala Foundation and will probably do the same with the one I actually wore. I hope some bride got a good deal on the one I donated.
I've been married 14 years. Got married in Reno and wasn't really wearing anything wedding like. In fact I don't even have pictures. I had no family on my side show. So wasn't a big deal. It was cheap, fast and got the job done. We have no kids and enjoy saving money.
Found my perfect red wedding dress for €140. :-) It's crazy to think there are people who spend thousands of dollars on a dress they'll wear once... In the end, it's not the dress that makes it a special day.
75 toffee silk Mae West cut off sales rack at Macy's. Entire wedding 2.5 k
I was a wedding photographer NONE of us who worked I. The industry had a large wedding
Load More Replies... I bought my dress second hand off of eBay for $70. It fit perfectly and when I looked up the style it was still being sold for $900 new. We got married in the woods down by a lake so I didn't feel bad as I tracked through the brush in it!
