I Survived Wedding Season '09!

Okay, the title makes it sound like I don't enjoy weddings, but that could not be further from the truth. Weddings tend to come around in the spring and summer, thus the term 'wedding season' and sometimes they take over weekends for weeks in a row making it a challenge to keep the wardrobe fresh from one to the other. When wedding season ends and football season looms on the horizon, many of us take stock of what we have accumulated in our closets.

We all have something really cute we wore to a wedding or party or shower. Chances are, we won't wear it again, but we feel the need to get 'our money's worth' out of it so we are hanging on. So here is my proposal. Let's have a September Swap Meet! Go to The Green Hanger Shop and list your dress in the Wedding Guests category absolutely free! It will stay there for the whole month unless you sell it and let us know. Like Cinderella's gown, it will magically disappear on October 1st unless you make arrangements with the fairy godmother (that would be me) for it to remain.

There are just a few rules. You must register in order to submit the ad for your dress. I approve all listings before they are posted and a picture of it is required. The free offer is for the wedding guest category only.

I encourage you to read my tips for buyers and sellers at The Green Hanger Shop, too.

Happy sales to you!

Something Old is New Again!

As a child, I would tag along with Mom as she 'antiqued' the dealers on the South Carolina-Georgia state line. She had her favorite spots, of course, and so did I. I loved the one with the tire swing hanging from a big oak outside. I have yet to find a better piece of shade on earth! While I admit to being less than patient as I waited for her to strike a deal, I now appreciate what she taught me about the value of what was left behind by past generations.

Now I am using that experience to help brides with that age old tradition of 'something old' that was begun to bridge past with future. Just like Mom, I travel the back roads of South Carolina stopping at the antique shops and handpicking the vintage pins that inspire me. When choosing a Something Old garter, just remember what Mom would say, "You can't find this anywhere anymore!" These are truly one of a kind.

Guest Blog- How to Be Green with your Wedding Photos

How to Be Green with your Wedding Photos

The Green Hanger Shop was started after my husband and I hosted two beautiful weddings for our daughters. Through our experience, we realized that there were many opportunities for making weddings more eco-friendly, such as reusing all those gorgeous gowns and party dresses. Since our start-up in January, we have discovered other companies with the same mission. Featured in this blog is The Wedding Lens, an online digital photography website dedicated to weddings. I regret I did not know about them last year when my youngest daughter was married. I can not tell you how many friends and family were eagerly taking pictures. What I can tell you is how many pictures I actually saw that were taken by them. Exactly three! I begged for more, but to no avail. One uncle even flashed us as we walked down the church aisle. (Hear my Southern gasp!) Now I would love to see it from that angle, but it is trapped in his camera. If only we had arranged a website for everyone to upload their pictures beforehand. What a great concept! I know there are other photo websites and social networks, but here is the ONE website where everyone can meet, view, comment, and even print their favorite shots. It's a great website with too many features to include here, but some of my favorites are that it's free for standard membership, password protected, and has unlimited uploads. Couples also receive unlimited guests and invitations for a full year. While neither The Wedding Lens nor I would recommend this in place of a professional photographer, it is something I would definitely recommend that brides include in their plans. I thank Natasha Carroll-Ferrary for taking the time to share these tips on how to make your wedding photos more earth friendly.

'Many couples want to put disposable cameras on each table so that they can see the wedding from their guests’ perspective. It’s a great idea – but it’s not very green. It requires buying disposable cameras, printing hundreds of potentially blurry photos (that may get thrown out), and disposing of the cameras (most of which aren’t biodegradable).
So what can you do? Encourage your guests to bring their digital cameras – which should be easy to do because they were probably going to bring them anyway! Then, after the wedding, you can have your guests upload all their photos to an online wedding photo album site, like The Wedding Lens.
On a site like The Wedding Lens, guests are able to upload all their photos and videos. From there, everyone can download the photos and videos that they like the best, and they can order prints of their favorite photos. There’s no need to order prints of any of the blurry photos – so the couple saves money and the environment saves photo paper.
The best part is that at the end, the couple has a collection of all the photos of their wedding from their guests’ point of view – just like the disposable cameras, but without the waste.

The Wedding Lens is an online photo sharing website, designed for couples who want to collect all the photos from their wedding. The site was started by two college friends, Justin & John. Justin was getting married and looking for an online photo site, but couldn’t find anything that met all his needs. He and John got together and developed The Wedding Lens. They pride themselves on their 100% satisfaction guarantee and phenomenal customer service. For more tips, check out our wedding planning blog and our 50 Green Wedding Tips.'

Why Me?

When choosing to sell your dress or accessories, you have several choices. Let's look at the pros and cons to the most obvious avenues available to you.

• Consignment Stores The advantage to selling at a consignment store is that you can walk in with your dress and drop it off. This gets it out of your way. Potential buyers can try it on and that is very helpful to them when deciding whether to buy. The disadvantage is that you will not get to set your own price and you will only get half or less of what it sells for. While it is great that buyers can try it on, each time your dress picks up makeup stains, body oils, and dirt. Over time, it will show and diminish the look and value of the gown. A consignment shop will limit how long they will carry the dress and also reduce its price quickly.





• Free Online Posts There are plenty of websites that offer free postings for selling used items. These are great avenues and obviously, the best possible way to sell if you can. The disadvantage is that usually it is difficult to post a picture and the post will be lost in a long list of other postings. Usually, buyers shopping these websites are looking for "cheap" prices, so you may not be in the most desirable market. You basically get what you pay for.





• Paid Online Advertising An online service that lists your dresses and accessories for a small fee have several advantages. First, you can showcase your items with a full description along with pictures. You will be in a market where buyers are coming to the website for the precise purpose of buying a designer item that is barely worn and an excellent find. A buyer can find your specific dress in their search for size or design. You can maintain some anonymity until a serious buyer is ready to contact you. YOU earn the entire proceeds of the transaction. What do you get for the small fee you paid to list the item?





• At The Green Hanger Shop, we give you Main Street Service on the World Wide Web. We invest in online advertising that brings shoppers in for the express purpose of buying a preowned dress or accessory. We look for buyers who are looking for what you are selling and invest time and dollars in those markets. We hope you will give us the privilege of helping you sell your dress!
  

Garter Toss

If you have wondered about that garter tossing tradition, you will be happy to know that as wild as it may look today, it is mild in comparison to what it once was. Seems that wedding guests used to consider it good luck to possess a part of the bride's gown, so they would tear at it. Imagine the chaos that would ensue! To protect the poor bride, the tradition of a garter toss was begun and the groomsman who catches it is said to be the next one to marry.
The Green Hanger Shop is happy to introduce a new line of garters for the bride who is looking for something personal. These garters are custom made and contain an antique item, such as a pin or button, bridging something old to the future. The first of our garters, for example, features a mother of pearl baby christening pin that can used with the newlywed's firstborn christening gown, or simply worn on a sweater or tie. Each new garter will be unique and one of a kind and we are excited to make new discoveries as we develop new designs. A "tossing garter" is included for the reception. Custom orders are available as well if brides want to specify their color preferences.
Have fun with this wedding tradition and enjoy a keepsake for your happily ever after days!

Paloma Blanca, Elegance and Simplicity

I continue the series on designer gowns with Paloma Blanca. As discovered in earlier blogs, "designers" may be better termed "manufacturers", but that is okay when brides recognize the name with quality and elegance. Such is the case with Paloma Blanca. In business since 1937, Paloma Blanca is located in Toronto, Canada. Their gowns are the epitome of style, elegance, and simplicity. The fabrics and laces are distinctive and high quality. I believe they should patent the color "natural" because it is most beautiful color I have seen for a wedding dress. Not stark white, nor too dark, the color enhances all skin tones. Paloma Blanca gowns are a great value, starting at $1400, so expect to pay about half that if you are fortunate enough to find a preowned gown. Available new only at authorized retailers, let's hope brides are willing to sell their wedding dresses to make them more available to all brides. They are a favorite for shoppers at The Green Hanger Shop!

Beyond Words

You fell in love with your dress the moment you put it on and the feelings you have for it and associate with it are beyond description. Now you have decided to part with it and are met with the challenge of describing the details that drew you to it to another bride to be. Using your own experience will help you accomplish a fitting tribute while enhancing your chances of making a successful sale. When you were shopping for a dress, were you looking for a specific designer or did you find one that you came to love? Some designers' gowns are highly sought after and you will want to promote that if you have a popular line. On the other hand, if that wasn't your priority, don't emphasize it in your ad. Next, can you describe in detail the design of the dress? Include the exact color, neckline, dress line, fullness, embellishments, fabric content, and flow of the dress. If someone closed their eyes as you describe it, they should be able to see a mental picture of it. Use adjectives, but try to be exact. For example, "It is a wonderful natural color, not stark white or dark ivory" gives more information than "white". The next question on a buyer's mind will probably be, "Will it fit?" Your measurements as your wore your dress will tell her alot, though she will ultimately have to decide if her body type is a good match. The importance of pictures can not be over emphasized. No matter what your measurements, it is important to see your body type and how the dress looked on a real person in real light. Try to include lots of different angles to catch the bodice, skirt, front, back, train, and bustle. Pictures of a dress on a model or worse, a hanger, are not as helpful. When someone was interested in my dress, and she told me she was barely a size that was larger than my dress, I discouraged her from buying it because I knew how it fit and felt and I knew a larger person would not have been happy with it. If I had been a sales person in a salon, I would have done the same thing. Ultimately, you should desire a happy customer when they invest in your dress. Lastly, there are details that are probably left unsaid. If the wedding fell apart, or you had a tragic event, or became pregnant and couldn't wear it...those details really provide too much personal information and the buyer may be turned off by it. Just remember this is a happy event for the buyer and a financial transaction for you.Your goal is to sell your dress, once. Being descriptive, honest, and open will give you the best chance. Just remember to be patient. There's a dress for every girl and a girl for every dress.