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Wedding Gown From Goodwill A Delightful Surprise
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Published: June 27, 2008
TAMPA - I bought my wedding gown for $300 a year ago at Goodwill's annual bridal event.
Any friends I share this with offer either kudos on the bargain (even from those loath to shop at thrift stores) and consternation about what kind of dresses Goodwill sells that cost that much. Don't they usually run about $5?
I'm a thift-store fan of more than a decade, but wedding dresses there always gave me a twinge. Did they wind up there after a death or divorce, or were they just donated by an unsentimental soul? It seemed improper to buy someone else's jettisoned dress for the first day of a new life of your own.
Needless to say, the Goodwill bridal sale was a delightful surprise. I read about in The Tampa Tribune – hundreds of never-worn, designer gowns selling for a fraction of the original price at two stores, one in St. Petersburg and one on Hillsborough Avenue. I told my boss I wanted to check it out on my lunch break. He offered me a putter from a seldom-used bag of golf clubs at his desk to beat off any Bridezillas.
When I arrived, no line wrapped around the store. The staff had decorated the dressing-room area like a bridal salon, with white netting and flowers, toasting glasses and photo frames. There was even a full-length mirror set up in front of a white wooden platform.
Two women in blue Goodwill smocks helped unhook the three dresses I selected from racks hung high to keep the gowns from getting soiled. My mom had told me I'd know when I'd found the gown for me, and the third dress I tried on that day was it.
The gown was cream, strapless with pearls, crystals and beads sweeping diagonally across the bodice. A few cascaded down the A-line skirt, like stardust. It laced up the back, which took some creative finagling to fasten on my own, but as soon as I saw my reflection, I knew. All it needed was an adjustment on the length (I'm 5-foot-4).
The two women working there melted as I stepped in front of the full-length mirror. "You look so beautiful!" they said. "Is your mother here? Can we take a picture with your phone to send to your mother?"
My mom lives in Delaware, and my camera phone wouldn't have done the dress justice. I thanked them anyway. Talk about clinching the deal!
As I carried the gown in my arms to the register, other shoppers turned to smile. A man behind me in line began singing lowly, "Going to the chapel." I hummed it in my head all the way back to work.
We got married last month in St. Augustine. My fiancé knew where I had bought my dress, but of course, he'd never seen it. The beads and crystals sparkled in the sun. I glided to the altar, holding my dad's hand, and my future husband beamed. I felt glamorous, giddy, over the moon. Like a million bucks.
Reporter Valerie Kalfrin can be reached at (813) 259-7800 or vkalfrin@tampatrib.com.
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