The search for an ecofriendly wedding dress (with a tight budget) was quite interesting. I considered renting, buying used or finding a new, ecofriendly dress.
Mr. Olive's brother got married a couple of years ago to a wonderful woman from Brazil. She wore a gorgeous dress that she rented in Brazil for less than $250! Apparently it is quite common for brides in Brazil to rent their dresses. I know the idea of renting a wedding dress might sound completely crazy but to me it made perfect sense. I didn't plan to keep my dress after the wedding (closet space in NYC is too valuable) and I figured I could rent a beautiful dress for much less than it would cost to buy! Men rent tuxes all the time so why can't I rent my wedding dress? I also figured that living in the largest city in the country I should be able to find plenty of rental options.
Boy was I wrong. I found two stores that claimed to rent wedding gowns. I tried calling the first store, MyrJan (Prospect Heights, Brooklyn) to schedule an appointment but they never answered the telephone.I did schedule an appointment with the second store, Fancy Wedding Center, also in Brooklyn. My FSIL and my bridesmaid went with me to search for the perfect dress. This store was tiny and they gave me a book of pictures to look through. I could choose three pictures from the book and try on those dresses (there was nobody else in the store so I have no idea why the appointment was so limited). I tried on the three dresses but they were a huge disappointment. They were all way too big and the material was scratchy. On top of this the dresses were still expensive (over $300), did not include alterations and the rental only covered three days which wouldn't work for my destination wedding. I left disappointed and discouraged. Apparently renting the wedding gown was not in my future.
Staying tuned for Plan B - buying a used dress...
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