Welcome to Thrifty Threads, AKA Most Stylish Compact-y outfit, where readers model their favorite secondhand clothes.
A Compact-y outfit is used or recycled, from Goodwill, a thrift store, a consignment shop, a yard sale, ebay, Craigslist, a clothing swap, or anywhere else you find secondhand clothing.
Today’s model is Diana, wearing an absolutely gorgeous wedding dress that she found on Craigslist! Incredible. Diana says she’s been purchasing most of her clothing secondhand for the last several years, so when it came time to look for a wedding dress she did the same thing. She looks stunning. I love her natural gray hair.
This beautiful Lady Roi gown was listed on craigslist by a woman who had paid full price and then decided not to get married after all. When Diana bought it, it still had the original price tag attached, which was $1200. But she paid just $300 for the never-worn dress. To say it was a bargain is a huge understatement. Readers, feel free to suggest an appropriately emphatic phrase.
Diana says her mom rolled her eyes when she told her she’d found a dress on Craigslist. But on the wedding day her mom told her, “The dress is gorgeous. I was wrong to think otherwise.” Diana says she loves the dress even more because she was able to keep her commitment to buy secondhand.
The details on this dress are so amazing, I’m almost surprised that the retail price wasn’t more than $1200. I love the buttons all the way down the back, and the delicate beadwork.
Diana has this message for anyone in the market for a wedding dress: “There are a number of brides out there selling their used or never-worn bridal dresses. It’s important to know that a dress is a dress and it means what you decide it to mean. I never made it mean anything that the gal who sold me the dress had decided not to wear it. In fact, I was pleased to learn that the reason she was postponing her wedding was to attend veterinary school first. Even if she had worn it, I would have still bought it.” Diana says she had googled “preowned wedding dresses” and searched a number of websites, but she just happened to find someone in her area selling the perfect dress.
What an inspiration! Talk about thinking outside the box. I don’t know how many people would consider buying a used dress for what is supposed to be the happiest day of their life. But it’s obviously a very smart idea.
Great shopping, Diana! Thank you for the beautiful photographs and we applaud your determination to buy used. You really turned up gold with this transaction.
Readers, it’s your turn. Put on your favorite secondhand outfit, snap a photo, and send it to me at barton.angela@gmail.com. Isn’t it great to know you can find such fabulous used clothes, even for your wedding? Don’t be shy, keep those photos coming…
Please leave your secondhand shopping tips and compliments for Diana in the Comments section. And click here to check out previous installments of Thrifty Threads.
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