Hire Or Buy A Wedding Dress?

by Johannah
(Cardiff)

We’re trying to have a cheap wedding and one of the ways I’m thinking of saving is by hiring a wedding dress. Is this a good way to stay on budget or should I buy a new dress?

Answer:
Hiring your wedding dress is a good solution to keep your budget low. It will give you access to dresses that you’d probably wouldn't be able to afford brand new. So it’s a good way to feel really special without the guilt!

The nice thing about hiring is that you can think of it like the Oscars – most celebrities hire their dresses or are loaned their dresses by designers so they can model them in front of the cameras. So you too can have a bit of celebrity style for your big day!

The only downside to hiring is finding a good selection of wedding dresses. Most of the dresses will be well looked after and cleaned after each use, but finding stores with a good range of dresses is often difficult. Some of the wedding boutiques do hire dresses, but they’re far keener to sell you a new one! If anyone knows of good suppliers in this area, then please add a comment!

If you’re not worried about wearing a once worn dress, then you may consider buying a second hand one. You could pick up a dress for a reasonable price if you look hard. Oxfam do an excellent range of bridal wear in their special bridal stores. In fact, many designers give their end of lines or samples to Oxfam - I suppose it's their little bit for charity!

There are plenty of second hand wedding dress shops, including several good online stores that specialise in finding homes for pre-loved wedding dresses. If you choose this route, you know the dress will probably be in a good condition as it really will have only been worn once, rather than repeatedly with hired gowns. Plus, you’ll be helping another bride who’s been on budget.

If your budget is low, then you could try buying overseas. There are several online stores that have cropped up offering tailoring services from Asia. You just select your dress and send in your measurements (they give detailed instructions on how to do this). A couple of weeks later your dress arrives. I’ve not had any feedback about these sites. They could be risky, but it might be a risk worth taking if you get a bargain dress. And if it all goes wrong, you can always sell it on eBay.

Talking of eBay, there are always cheap designer wedding dresses on eBay. There's a little bit of reassurance with eBay as the sellers all have ratings, but still there’s risk in buying something that you’ve not tried on, let alone had fitted. Find out more about the risks of buying wedding dresses on eBay and more importantly, what to look out for.

Personally, I don’t think you should spend too much. It’s for one day and although it’s one of the most special days in your life, it’s not worth getting into debt for. Hiring is a great idea and if you want to save there are loads of solutions for cheap wedding dresses around.

Best of luck