This Bride Wore The Same Dress As Her Mom And Grandma On Her Wedding Day

    Everything old is new again.

    Terri Pous
    by Terri Pous

    BuzzFeed Staff

    Newlywed Julia Cain glowed on her wedding day — partially thanks to her dress, which both her mother and grandmother wore when they got married.

    Chameleon Imagery / Via chameleonimagery.com

    Cain's grandmother Phyllis Traver wore the dress for her wedding in 1953. Thirty years later, Cain's mother Susan chose the same gown for her own wedding to Cain's father.

    Julia Cain

    Cain decided to wear the heirloom dress years before she got engaged to her now-husband Lance. After Lance proposed in Jan. 2015, Cain had eight months of alterations ahead of her.

    Chameleon Imagery / Via chameleonimagery.com

    "I first tried on the dress as a teenager, but we never thought I would wear it for my wedding. We found it in my grandmother’s attic and I tried it on as a joke," Cain told BuzzFeed. "My mother and I used to talk about my future wedding, and sometime a few years ago she mentioned the idea of repurposing her dress. She never pressured me into wearing it, but I instantly loved the idea."

    Cain had a satin waistband and crinoline underskirt added to the tulle and lace gown, but the changes, which cost $800, didn't stop there.

    Julia Cain

    "My mother didn’t alter the dress much when she wore it," Cain, who chronicled her entire alteration journey on her blog, explained. "She had a lace panel added to the back of the jacket to make room for her shoulders, and she didn’t wear the hoop skirt my grandmother used. I turned the jacket into the straps and added a crinoline for extra volume. Was it cheap? No. Was it worth it for me? Every penny!"

    The result? A thoroughly beautiful, modern wedding dress that retains some of the classic charm of the original design.

    Julia Cain / Via chameleonimagery.com

    "It meant so much to me to wear a family heirloom!" Cain said. "I was able to partake in a fun family tradition and create my dream dress."

    Perhaps most meaningfully, Cain's grandfather Harold Traver walked her down the aisle at her Mar. 12 wedding, making her the third woman he'd seen wear the dress.

    Chameleon Imagery / Via chameleonimagery.com

    Here are her grandparents (center) on their wedding day 63 years ago.

    Julia Cain

    And here is Travers escorting his daughter and granddaughter down the aisle at their weddings, 32 years apart.

    Julia Cain

    Feels. Feels everywhere.

    Julia Cain

    Feels. Feels everywhere.

    Julia Cain

    Feels. Feels everywhere.

    Though her father and grandmother passed away before her wedding, Cain said her mother and grandfather were touched to see history repeat itself before their eyes.

    Julia Cain
    http://www.chameleonimagery.com/

    "[They] were over the moon seeing me in the dress. I think it was pretty surreal for everyone."

    With her wedding in the books, Cain is planning for her wedding dress' future.

    Chameleon Imagery / Via chameleonimagery.com

    "The dress is currently on our guest bed," she said. "Getting it preserved is on my to-do list! If I’m lucky enough to have a daughter, I’d be tickled if she wore it. However, I wouldn’t ever want to pressure her into it. She could just reuse the lace for a ring pillow or something, like I initially planned. It might be comically outdated by then anyway!"