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One hit wonders

Runcarla

Veteran

Sometimes you just have to ante up and part with the funds to purchase an outfit that you KNOW you will NEVER wear again. Probably 'occaision wear' like a wedding dress or a bridesmaid outfit. Possibly a MOG or MOB outfit. Maybe a costume event? I don't think these garments are cause for lamentation or regret, and they may be cause for fond remembrance.

I loved my mother's wedding dress, but only from photos. She donated it to The Church because in those days nuns 'married' into the Catholic Church and wore wedding dresses! I bought my wedding dress on sale and the veil was included. When I closed up shop after two sons, I donated my dress. I still have the veil wrapped in tissue in a box somewhere.

I have a ball skirt I bought for a NYE formal wedding a couple of years ago. The top I got for it has been in rotation, but I have yet to wear the skirt again. Having it in my closet makes me happy - so it survives the purges. Most garments in my closet get lots of wears, but I do have some I wear less often, and a one hit wonder. What about you?

Do you have any 'one hit wonders'? Bonus points for pics!

General

25 replies

Latest reply was from

Cee

Veteran

Hmm... I once went dressed as Donald Duck to a party.

...and no, no photos !!

Jaime

(website)

Veteran

I rented my wedding dress. Everything else is reused, resold or recycled.

Suz

(website)

Veteran

I don't have a one-hit wonder, but I do have several items that are rarely worn but much loved. First is a cocktail dress I bought for an awards ceremony. I have worn it probably 8 or 10 times since, but it doesn't get too much play. It's a classic knee length sheath so I'm keeping it for now -- I expect I'll have a need for it again one of these days.

And my wool gilet similarly has only seen about 10 wears in its lifetime. I expect to wear it more this autumn.

Same for my thrifted fancy coat. It's early days for that, though.

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Joy

Veteran

My MOG dress would qualify. I still have it because DS1 may get married someday and, as much trouble as I had finding a dress, it may get used again. I donated my wedding dress and any bridesmaid dresses. They probably would not fit now anyway.

Julie

I have my wedding dress in a box... I made it myself and tried to think of ways to remake it into something more wearable, but never came up with a good idea that I thought I could pull off. Maybe it will work its way into a quilt someday!

Sal

Veteran

Things I have worn once:
- bridesmaid dress (green with roses, pretty but dated quickly)
- 1986 ball/prom dress (It was vintage and I ruined it)

Things worn twice
- wedding dress (wore to Royal wedding party plus wedding)
- 1987 ball/prom dress (1980s party as well)
- 1992 ball/prom dress (wore in 1992 and 1993)

My other evening options have all been worn three or more times (I think).

I can't find pictures right now sadly!!

Staysfit

Veteran

I have more one hit wonders than I care to admit. Maybe it’s time for another edit? I may be holding on to them for the wrong reasons.......
A dress worn to my nephews Bar Mitzvah
My wedding dress, now 31 years sealed in a box
A blue lace dress purchased for my FIL’s wedding
A dress purchased for my DD’s college graduation
A dress purchased for my SIL wedding

There are probably more. These are the ones I can think of without going to the closet and looking.

Style Fan

Veteran

Both of my wedding dresses are stored away. I plan on keeping them. My first wedding dress was made from cream silk with gold embroidery that Mr SF #1 brought me back from Thailand. I bought some cream lace to add to the dress. My sister in law (who is a brilliant seamstress) helped me design the dress and sewed it. It is gorgeous. I am keeping it. I wore lace booties with it but no veil.
My second wedding dress I found on a sales rack for a bargain. It is a deep rich warm red satin strapless gown. I wore black velvet long gloves, black velvet shoes and a black velvet shawl with it. No veil.

I have some special occasion wear that rarely gets worn but I keep just in case.
1/ Green Dress worn twice to weddings
2/ Blue Bubble Skirt worn three or four times to weddings and celebrations.
3/ Giraffe Print Skirt worn twice to weddings.

Bijou

Veteran

For me it was a dress that I bought to wear to my niece's wedding. I loved the fabric but the fit of the dress was off - it did me no favours and so I donated it not long after the event. At the time, I was working in a job that required me to dress casually and did not go to black tie events - so quite different to my current job. Since then I have invested in some formal wear so that I don't have to buy something / anything to wear to an event, I have a formal capsule and it is sorted.

anchie

Veteran

No one hit wonders for me. If I know i will not have another opportunity to wear something I rather rent or borrow.

Anonymous

I do. They would be my "wedding guest" ensembles. Unlike you, I do regret them.

I went overboard and spent a lot more than I should have for an outfit that I literally only wore once. The big problem is that I dressed according to societal norms and was terribly uncomfortable the entire time I was wearing it. I felt like a poser. I couldn't wait to get home and tear the dress off me and wipe that nasty hot icky makeup off my face.

Janet

(website)

Veteran

Things I wore once that are still in my house:

- My wedding dress — now in a storage box in our basement closet
- a gorgeous corseted top with a gauzy layer that I wore for my 40th birthday, and then haven’t returned to the same size I was back then, so it’s in a garment bag in the holding zone, mocking me. I don’t know how I got my boobs into that thing. I should sell it.
- the dress I wore to a ball for the 1993 Clinton inauguration (held by the Washington DC based media company I then worked for). The B52s played.

Things I thought I’d only wear once but got a second chance:

- the red gown I wore to an Obama inaugural ball in 2009, which got worn again last year for the Annapolis mayor inaugural ball.
- the navy lace dress I got last year for my niece’s London wedding, that I later got to wear to our fab MsMary’s birthday bash in NYC.

Cardiff girl

Veteran

My wedding dress is yet to be worn again!l have some formal dresses that don’t get worn that often and I have contemplated getting rid of them but then a formal occasion crops up and I m glad that I haven’t .l think that some formal wear is necessary in most wardrobes but it won’t always come out well on the CPW.

Janet

(website)

Veteran

Oh, I just remembered I have a beaded cocktail dress that I wore to a benefit gala when my husband’s business provided us opportunities to go to those events a couple of times a year. I always got a new outfit for those because we would see the same people, and many of them I would only see that one time a year. So it felt silly to have them see me in the same dress year after year.

I can still fit in that dress but not as nicely as I did a decade ago. If an occasion came up, I’d likely find another solution. But I keep it in case I lose a size.

kkards

Veteran

mostly really dressy things
years ago we just to have a formal Xmas party i have a black velvet (wore 1 time) and a black crepe dress (worn 2 times)...this was the days before Rent the Runway.....
the dress i wore to my sisters wedding 6 years ago...i should have used Rent the Runway, kicking myself because i didn't

Style Fan

Veteran

I would rent a dress now if I didn't have something in my wardrobe for a special event. There was a time when I would go to events that required me to dress up (more weddings, awards ceremonies, extravagant parties) but not anymore.

Anonymous

An outfit I bought and painstakingly styled for my daughter’s high-school graduation dinner and celebration . I HATED how I looked in pictures and was so devastated at what a misfire it was I gave away the top and pants shortly thereafter . I still have flashbacks .

nemosmom

Veteran

I have a couple of those: a navy Theory blazer- one of the first higher-end “adult” pieces that I bought for my first big job. It still fits, but it’s a slim fit and I can’t throw a hoodie under it... And a black Theory dress, bought on the same shopping trip.

The dress still fits, but I can’t come up with a reason to wear it, or the blazer. I tried to put my blazer with some tees recently and couldn’t come up with an outfit I liked. The last few special occasions I had specifically said “no black”, so the dress didn’t get worn. I still love both pieces and keep them in garment bags in the back of my closet.

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Angie

(website)

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Irina

Veteran

My MOG dress. I knew I will not wear the dress again, will not have any formal occasion for it. And I’m not a dress person. At first, I considered renting a dress. After trying a number of them, it became apparent that as a petite woman I will have only a few options. The store offered to tape a dress as they don’t do hemming on rentals. Feeling unsure of the result I declined. I bought a dress from Nordstorm and had it altered. I felt great at the wedding, liked my pictures and was complimented on the dress. Bonus - I met a great seamstress at Nordstrom who now does all my alterations. Money well spend, IMO.

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Liesbeth

Veteran

For me too: my wedding dress. I have thought about donating or reselling, but it’s a bit too sentimental and also, my mom bought it for me so not sure if it would be right to get rid of it.
Also a floor length periwinkle blue satin evening dress that my mom made me to wear to a wedding where the bride requested long gowns (but they didn’t put it on the invitation and so there were still way more cocktail dresses :-/). It’s gorgeous and I’d love to wear it again but no one since has requested such formal wear ... Probably doesn’t fit now either.

Becky

Veteran

These may not qualify as one-hit wonders, but I do have a "costume drawer." Being an elementary teacher who participates in spirit week with themed days twice a year, I keep a few stock items on hand: a poodle skirt, a red beret, a Little House on the Prairie style sunbonnet, etc.

Anonymous

Just my wedding dress! Worn nearly exactly 15 years ago Its champagne satin, so could be worn for a formal summer event.

cjh

(website)

Veteran

Luckily the few dresses I’ve had over the years for wedding guest wear have seen a few wears each, so the only ones I wore once were the two for my daughters’ weddings, and a black one. That’s too bad because I really liked the MOB dresses, but they didn’t seem quite right for other weddings. Maybe a bit too dressy? They were both chiffon cocktail dresses, not the long sparkly-jacket-type MOB outfits. One was dark pink, the other red. The black one is jersey, fairly body-con, not really me. i still have it because- black knit dress... one of those standards you should have.

I’m not sure what happened to my wedding dress. It was stored at my parents’ home, and they were involved in community theater, so I suspect it became part of the costume shop inventory and somebody got some wear out of it. I’m glad I’m not too sentimental, I guess.

Thanks for the interesting question, Carla.

Anonymous

Wedding dresses seem really in a special category as best case scenario, you only wear one once. I have an as yet No Hit Wonder in my closet, a beautiful, deep red, sport type raincoat that I haven't worn because I feel conspicuous in strong colors. It was also unusually expensive!

I love seeing it in my closet and soon I'll get used to the intensity of it and actually wear it