Donating your wedding dress can be a wonderful way to help someone else have the dream wedding of their dreams. Not only will you be helping a bride find the perfect gown to wear on her special day, but you can also earn a tax deduction when you donate your dress.
The best place to donate your dress is at a charitable organization that accepts dresses and gives them to brides who need them most. There are many different organizations that will accept your dress, so it’s important to do some research before you make a donation to ensure the organization is right for you and will put your dress to good use.
NICU Helping Hands Angel Gown Program
Available nationwide, the NICU Helping Hands Angel Gown program provides burial gowns to parents who have lost their babies due to miscarriage or stillbirth. These organizations accept donated gowns and then use seamstresses to create new, beautiful, and delicately embroidered gowns that the families can take home after their child has passed away.
Cherished Gowns
This UK-based charity makes funeral gowns for babies who have passed away, either stillborn or within a few weeks of birth. It works with grieving families and helps them get through some of the most difficult times of their lives.
Adorned in Grace
With stores in Portland, Tacoma, and Mesa, Oregon, Adorned in Grace sells new and gently used wedding and formal gowns. The company uses the sales proceeds to fund sex trafficking awareness initiatives and provides professional counseling for sex trafficking survivors.
Several of their boutiques in the Pacific Northwest are accepting donations from brides, as well. This is a great way to help sex trafficking victims and bring awareness to local communities.
St Ann’s Hospice
The St Ann’s Hospice in Stockport, England, hosts a bridal department that accepts both new and gently-used wedding attire. The store carries a wide selection of wedding attire to help those coping with terminal illness create a memorable wedding day.
Gift of a Wedding
The Gift of a Wedding is a nonprofit that helps those facing life-limiting illness create the wedding of their dreams. Founded by Patricia, this organization offers a variety of resources to help those in need.
They have a variety of ways to donate your dress, including an online application process and free pick up from your home. Once your item is accepted, they will ship it to a hospital in the United States or Europe where it can be delivered to the woman who needs it most.
You can also donate your dress to the Cancer Support Community of Greater Ann Arbor, Michigan. The Brides Project accepts donations from both commercial and individual wedding boutiques. This program generates about 30% of the Cancer Support Community’s funding, according to Bonnie Dockham, the organization’s executive director.
The COVID-19 pandemic has left a lot of people struggling to afford their dream weddings, which is why donating your wedding dress can be so important. This is especially true for those who are unable to pay for their dress at all. A tax deduction is one of the best reasons to donate your dress, but there are many other benefits as well.