More brides saying 'I don't' to keepsake gowns

Imagine, it's the most expensive outfit you'll ever buy -- and you wear it only once. Sound familiar, brides?

While generations of women have carefully preserved their wedding gowns, many of today's brides are taking a far less sentimental approach.

They're still saying "yes to the dress" but are just as happy to say "sold" once the wedding is over.

"I wanted to recoup some of the cost," explained Amy Holt, a newlywed from Cleveland Heights. She tied the knot last fall.

Like many brides, Amy had sticker shock when shopping for bridal gowns. When she finally settled on a gown she liked, Holt said it was not within her budget.

"It was triple the cost what I wanted to spend," she said.

So after the honeymoon, and once settled with her new husband, Holt started looking into selling it.

"Just carrying it around for 20 or 30 years? Who knows if (A) I'll have a daughter and (B) if she wants it. So I thought, definitely let someone else try it," Holt explained.

She tried eBay but wasn't pleased with the results. Then she finally found a website dedicated to the sale of pre-owned wedding gowns.

The site is called preownedweddingdresses.com

It is one of the better known sites for buying and selling 'almost new' bridal gowns. The site also carries brand new gowns, offered by brides who changed their minds about the dresses they purchased.

Heidi Baumgart is a day of wedding coordinator and consultant who runs Heidzillas.

She says many of her clients have no qualms about buying a pre-owned dress, or selling their own gown if it will save them money.

"This generation of brides isn't as traditional. With the economy, you are just trying to make things work, and if you can save several thousand dollars by buying a pre-owned dress, as opposed to something brand new. And no one is going to know," Baumgart explains.

Bridal resale sites have seen a huge jump in traffic in the last two years.

Preownedweddingdresses.com has seen a 200 percent increase in business since 2008.

"The woman I sold to was great," says Amy Holt, whose sale of her gown happened not long after she listed it.