She turned something old into something new.
Brittany Dalena, a Fresno, California bride, repurposed a third-generation wedding dress from her grandmother into a two-piece set. The vintage ivory gown covered in paisley prints, originally worn by her grandmother and then passed down to her mother, was transformed into Dalena’s rehearsal dress.
“The dress is about 50 years old, and there are pieces of it where my grandmother and her mother-in-law stitched beading into it,” Dalena told The Post.
In a resurfaced clip online on her TikTok, with over 13.4 million views, the bride walks inside the church, revealing how she transformed the vintage heirloom.
“I knew she was going to be in total shock and I knew she was going to love it no matter what I did to it,” she said.
As she walks in, her grandma screams, “Oh my god!” amazed her granddaughter is wearing the garment.
“She felt honored to have it used for such a special occasion, and it meant more to her to have me use it than leave it in a box for many more years,” she confessed.
The duo embrace each other, and her grandma instantly breaks down in tears of joy, amazed by the revelation.
“I always had plans to use the dress and keep it as one piece. Since I wanted it for rehearsal, a shorter version seemed like the best option,” Dalena revealed.
The bride admits she is smaller than her mother and grandmother, so significant alterations would have to be made if she wanted the dress to fit like a glove.
“In order for the seamstress to adjust the bodice to my waist, she had to take it apart into two pieces,” she said. “When trying it on in two pieces I thought it was much more my style and I immediately fell in love with the redesign.”
Over generations, the dress has undergone alterations that suited each bride’s style.
Although her grandma purchased the wedding dress as a long-sleeve gown with a high neckline, Dalena’s mom tailored it to have a sweetheart neckline and poofy short sleeves with beaded embellishments.
So, when it came time for Dalena to add her flair, she kept the main elements of the dress but made it into a set.
Meanwhile, many people online were distraught at the redesign, calling it “Shein-ified,” but Dalena knew that her family would be elated regardless of the style—she was following tradition.
“You cut her wedding dress in half,” wrote a TikTok user. She was definitely mad.”
“I would cry if my granddaughter did that to my wedding dress,” commented one person.
“That was a priceless heirloom; I couldn’t do something like that,” confessed a watcher.
“But what about the next generation,” questioned another.
However, some people understood the bride’s spin on the vintage gown.
“I think this is beautiful! My mom would be happy to see her dress used again rather than never again, even if it meant cutting it up to fit my style,” commented a woman.
“I love that each generation had their own additions to it,” one person added.
“Most people leave old dresses to rot cause they look outdated. Good for her for finding a way to use it,” declared a TikToker.
Despite the naysayers, Dalena remains unbothered by the negative comments because her family admires what she did.
“My family is extremely sentimental, so it didn’t matter how I incorporated a family heirloom; they would appreciate it no matter what,” she gushed.
