Trash The Dress {Yes or No?}

Would you do this to your wedding dress?

I have to admit I was a bit shocked the first time I saw photos of this unusual trend! If you’re not familiar with the “trash the dress” concept, here’s a great explanation from Wikipedia:

Trash the dress, also known as fearless bridal or rock the frock, is a style of wedding photography that contrasts elegant clothing with an environment in which it is out of place. It is generally shot in the style of fashion and glamour photography. “Trash the dress” is the art of destruction or deconstruction of a brides wedding dress to create a new artwork that the bride would be proud to display on their wall. The new masterpiece is formed in the creative destruction of the dress. Trash the dress is all about limitless expression.

Although it may appear that this trend is all about destroying the wedding dress, that is actually optional. Brides who simply want to capture a series of artistic images but still preserve their bridal gown, often purchase an inexpensive or used dress for the shoot, or stop before the dress is ruined. Professional dry cleaners should be able to restore the dress to its orginal state. Within reason of course.

If you are intrigued by this idea, Brenda’s Wedding Blog recently featured an article with great inspiration for an urban decay trash the dress session, along with several great tips to make your photo shoot a success.

The more I researched this idea, the more I came to realize that it’s all about artistic expression and freedom. I’m still not sure if it’s something I would do, but I admire the adventurous spirit of those who do. And the results are simply stunning! What do you think about this growing trend? Would you trash your wedding dress? We would love to know your opinions, so please leave a respectful comment on this post and tell us what you think!

As if Diwali weren’t colorful and fun enough, The Festival of Lights: A Lift-the-flap Diwali Celebration by Namita Moolani Mehra, illustrated by Darshika Varm, makes it even more fun to read about with flaps and things to lift and pull to see more information or details in the illustrations.

The book is a story about a family getting ready for Diwali and what happens on the different days of the five-day celebration. There’s cleaning, shopping, crafting, food preparation and getting the home altar ready for the big day.

It covers decorating the outside of the house with rangoli, diyas and lanterns, buying sweets to share with family and friends, the sights and scents of the mandir (home temple), getting dressed up in new fancy clothes, the story of Diwali and celebrations with relatives.

Flaps (there are more than 140 in all) give you vocabulary words for different foods and definitions, as well as fun things like what’s inside the shopping basket or where the cat is hanging out. They also help illuminate the story of Diwali, which is the triumph of good over evil as Lord Ram defeated the demon Ravana to save his wife, Sita.

This pretty and colorful book helps kids understand what Diwali is and how it is celebrated, regardless of whether they practice it at home. This would be a nice book to keep in a classroom (it’s rated for kids ages 3-7) or to have at home to teach kids about Diwali even if it’s not something you celebrate. Where I live there are a lot of people from India so we are probably exposed to Diwali more than some other regions of America, but it’s a nice holiday to know about wherever you live.

Combine with the book Diwali and check out some fun lantern crafts and printables for kids to round out your experience.

About the book: 24 pages, hardcover, published 2025 by Wide Eyed Editions. Suggested retail prices $22.99.

Have you read?