Austin Family Adventures: Trash the Dress?

So on today's "clean out resolution" list...the guest bedroom closet. The wasn't a tough one at all today because we typically keep that bedroom off limits. When people aren't staying with us, to minimize heating bills and to keep up from making that a dumping ground, we keep the door closed. It follows that "out of sight, out of mind" mentality. So it didn't take me long to sort out the closet.

Due to this closet typically being off limits, there wasn't much in here to really sort out. We usually just keep old hangers and luggage in there. So this is where I started my process.

Yes, Noah and I have luggage. I say that because we have literally flown three times...total! I'm not entirely sure why we have it...and is such great quantity. For instance, I have one small suitcase. It can hold enough for a week (honeymoon and Jackson Hole, WY tested) and is technically a carry on. Noah, on the other hand, has the luggage with 4 pieces- big suitcase, smaller suitcase, carry on bag, and garment bag. At no point in time would we EVER need this much luggage and I'm not totally sure why we've held on to it for so long. I guess in the hopes of going somewhere...cold? In which we will need a lot of big bulky clothing. Naturally, I wanted to get rid of it. Maybe not all of it but certainly consolidate and purge some of the unnecessary pieces. However, I knew this would be a tough sell to the husband. And you know what they say... "happy husband, happy life." That is the saying, right? :-) So the suitcases were put inside each other like those little Matryoshka doll sets.

I proceeded to go through the closet and sort through the "keeps" and the "I didn't even know we had one of these". Here are some of the things I found in that closet:

Hangers- My dear mother in law bought Noah, Nev, and I hanger sets for Christmas one year. I'm not sure the boys were all that excited but I adore these hangers. They are the really sturdy, felt covered ones that hold on to your clothes. Due to having the "small" side of the closet, I have a lot of hangers left over. Those need to be moved to the laundry room for when we need to hang up wet clothes to dry...check!
Noah's fancy overcoat- This was a hard sell. I have no idea why Noah thinks he needs to keep this overcoat. I see no reason in it. Here are my reasons: 1. He last time he wore it was 2 years ago to a December funeral. 2. He doesn't dress up enough in the winter to warrant having such a fancy overcoat. And 3. If he ever did dress up (wedding or whatever), he never wears a coat due to having so many layers on as it is. However, my darling husband believes that he should keep the coat. Don't worry...I'm filing this one away. The kitchen clearing is coming up... ;-) (evil laugh)
Flat Screen Tv Stand- No it's not a tv stand like furniture...it's the actual tv stand that comes standard with the tv. We currently have our mounted on the wall and when we move, we'll need to leave the mount. So, we'll have to keep the stand.
Graduation Gear- Noah and I both graduated from Millersville- two black graduation gowns and caps. Noah and I both majored in Technology Education- two black and yellow with blue hoods. Noah and I both graduated in December of 2005- two black with gold '05 tassel. Noah and I both earned a master's in education (different concentrations)- two blue hoods. Needless to say, we needed to consolidate. I'm sure we will need another black gown and cap. So one was kept. All of the hoods were kept. Other than that, gone!
Infamous Preggo Pillow- NO! I will NOT get rid of this pillow. I know it sounds ridiculous to hold on to a pillow for the next pregnancy but I am. Noah and I want to expand our family and when the time comes, I will have that baby out and ready to go. In all honesty, if Noah (and Mac) wouldn't throw a fit, I'd have it on the bed right now. That thing is awesome!
Alto Saxophone- Ok, this one is tough. I have a hard time parting with this almost new saxophone. Maybe it's because I know how much it cost my parents back in the day. Or maybe it's because I know that I'll get rid of it and then Ayden will end up playing the alto sax. Either way, I can't let it go. I would love to get sax music and start playing again...anyone know where to get relatively easy alto sax music??
Old garment travel bag- Yeah that was easy...gone!
Bridesmaid dress- Let me rephrase that. A BEAUTIFUL bridesmaid dress from one of my best friend's weddings. I LOVE this dress. It's a beautiful cranberry silk dress... strapless... fitted trumpet cut... small and delicate train... GORGEOUS! I love everything about this dress. It was tailored to fit me perfectly and I had a blast wearing it. However, I tried it on the other day and, as always, things change post-baby. Although it fit well in the hip/belly area, apparently the rib/chest area is much larger than it was pre-baby. If I ever, in the slimmest of chances, wanted to wear it again, it would need to be altered to fit. With the fabric and color, it would never be right. So sadly, I have to part with this amazing dress. The good part is that I would like to donate it to my wonderful sorority sisters that do a prom fashion show for low income families and sell dresses cheap to girls that can't afford new prom dresses. Hopefully, a young lady can enjoy this gorgeous dress.

Lastly, my wedding dress was in this closet. If you thought I had a weird obsession with the bridesmaid dress- don't read the next part. I ADORE my wedding dress. Some may not have thought it to be flattering to my body type (as I've heard) however, I didn't buy it for them. I fell in love with a dress at J&B Bridals. (A Henry Roth pick up with Swarovski crystals) Needless to say, I couldn't afford such a detailed dress. So I did all kinds of research and found an amazing dress without the crystals at David's Bridals. It had the same cut, pickups, fabric, lacing in the back...everything. I loved this dress. It wasn't a contest. I tried it on and it was mine.

So now that I've been married 5 years, I have to face the idea of what to do with it. I never had it sealed in a box or anything. I never understood that. I bought the dress because I love the look of it. After wearing it once (in my case, twice- I'll explain), you seal it in a box so that you can't see it? That's madness. I'm also under no false pretenses that my (future-maybe) daughter would want to wear my dress. I don't expect that and honestly hope that she finds a dress that she can make memories in. So that isn't an issue. The issue is...what do I do with this dress?

Here is one idea, however, I think this may be a bit too pricey. Any suggestions on what you creative ladies have done with your dresses? I would love to hear suggestions!

PS. The second time I wore my dress was for a "trash the dress" shot I did. I always wanted a fall wedding, however, being a teacher doesn't lend itself to taking a week for a honeymoon in October. I was so happy to wear my dress in the fall leaves and have beautiful pictures taken. I highly recommend doing this. There is contact info below for the photographer that did mine. She's amazing! She even did my pregnancy shots.