What is the difference between new, sample, and used?

What Is A New Wedding Dress?

A new wedding dress is a dress that a bride ordered in her desired size - she may have had alterations done, tried it on before bringing it home, or it may still be at the store where she ordered it from. Ask the seller if any alterations were done or if the dress is 100% NEW and unaltered.

What Is A Sample Wedding Dress?

A sample wedding dress is essentially a floor model. Bridal salons and boutiques keep at least one sample of each dress style they sell for brides to try on in-store. The boutique will order a new one in a bride's actual size after she chooses the one she loves.

It is not uncommon for sample dresses to have imperfections or blemishes from being tried on multiple times - some salons spot clean and repair them prior to selling, but not always. Be sure to ask the seller for current pictures of the actual sample dress itself so that you can verify it is in good condition.

What Is A Used or PreOwned Wedding Dress?

A dress is considered used, preowned, or preloved as soon as it is worn for an event or pictures. It may have had alterations done to it and it may or may not have been cleaned after being worn. 

When a wedding dress is cleaned and placed into a preservation box the seller does not typically get to see the dress before it is sealed up. This means there could possibly be blemishes or damaged areas that the seller does not know about.

As always, ask the seller for pictures of the dress in its current state to verify the exact condition it is in.