Would you rent a wedding or bridesmaid dress/gown?

September 30, 2009
Admit it, no one likes being forced to buy a dress, especially a bridesmaid dress. Especially if it looks like this. Would be great for an ’80s party though…


As seen here.

There are definitely nice ones out there now (remember my love for Monique‘s new line). But whether the bridesmaids pay (which mostly happens though there are now more instances where the bride pays because well, she is the one that is telling you to wear it) or the bride pays, in many cases it’s $100+ per dress. Though I’ve kicked myself for not shopping at H&M or Forever 21 earlier – they actually have decent cocktail dresses once in a while for <$100! Ouch X no. of girls in the party. Unless of course you or the parents are rich. Then, awesome, Vera Wang dresses and champagne all night long!

Ok now the wedding gown thing – most ladies like wearing the ballgown or sexy trumpet in fabrics and gorgeous cuts we don’t wear every day (hello alencon lace, I love you). But again, the average cost of a wedding gown is about 10% of the total budget according to the Knot and based on anecdotal research is somewhere from $1000 -$3000 (Italian friend expects to pay at least that in Euros, ouch).

That’s a lot more than the typical Topshop dress.

We pay up because that’s just the way it is in North America and Europe. But it’s interesting because in Asia, wedding gown and bridesmaid dress rentals are actually the norm. They may even combine this with your photography and groom’s rental too. There are actually Chinese and Korean places in NY (I’m guessing Toronto, California have similar places) that do the same thing. My Singaporean friend is being quoted S$3000 for 2 dress rentals and a tux (to keep). Yep you get a traditional light wedding gown and an evening gown. Or if they got together, something like this.


From here. Nice boots!


I love my dresses and the quality is such that I can pass it down or maybe resell some day. Would I have rented the dresses if they were available? Tempting and very possible! Wear it once right? Why hasn’t the idea caught on otherwise? The sentimental factor makes me want to keep the dress though cost and space speak a different story.


But rent a bridesmaid dress? Far more tempting and interesting. It’s always a challenge remembering which dress you wore around a certain group of people so you don’t rewear the same dress. Rent it and forget it. Why not? Renting clothing in general? Intriguing indeed…

Stay tuned for a giveaway related to this rental dress idea soon!

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  • Westside Wedding September 30, 2009 at 23:57

    I would for sure rent a BM dress! There are places in L.A that rent wedding gowns but they tend to be expensive, renting them for $800-$2k, I think they charge so much because the dresses they have are over 5K.

  • The Professional Bridesmaid October 1, 2009 at 02:42

    I would rent a BM dress for schizzle! Especially if the bride wants matchy matchy. This way, you don’t have to shell out a lot while the bride can stay true to her colour palette. Brilliant.

  • FriendzCentury October 2, 2009 at 05:25

    Yep, it certainly is the norm to either buy “off the rack” or to rent bridal/bm dresses in Asia. But I’ve herd alot of people are designing their own and getting them tailor made, which works out pretty cost effective too if you’re in Asia.

  • very married October 2, 2009 at 15:58

    i would totally rent a bridesmaid dress. i even wrote in my blog about how excited i was to find a dress that was less than $100 (even though $72 is still a lot in the real world…)

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