Woman, 21, buys incredible $6,000 wedding dress for just $25 at thrift store despite not even being engaged

vt-author-image

By Kim Novak

Article saved!Article saved!

A 21-year-old woman hit the jackpot at her local thrift store after stumbling upon a Galia Lahav wedding dress worth over $6,000 for just $25.

Emmali Osterhoudt, who is a student from Birmingham, Alabama, had visited her local Goodwill with her roommate to buy picture frames for a gallery wall she was planning to put up.

However, she accidentally ended up also walking away with her future wedding dress - despite not even being engaged yet.

Emmali took to TikTok to share her unbelievable find, revealing that not only did she bag the bargain of the century but that it also fit her like a glove without needing any alterations.

She revealed that her friend spotted a rack they hadn't browsed after she'd already checked out with her picture frames, and the pair decided to take a look through it before leaving the store.

Emmali was stunned to find the gorgeous bejewelled gown on the rack, and even more surprised to see her future wedding dress was marked at just $25.

She told Insider: "I thought it was gonna be like the '80s, poofy sleeves dresses because we've always wanted to reenact that scene from Friends where Monica, Rachel, and Phoebe are sitting on their couch in '80s wedding dresses.

"So I go over there, and she shows me this dress and it was so pretty. It looked like it was my size, so we go and we try it on, and it fits like a glove."

Emmali immediately bought the gown and it was only when she got it home that she discovered the tag inside it saying that it was a Galia Lahav design from the Gala range.

Although she is not currently engaged, she revealed that she and her boyfriend are planning to tie the knot eventually and she is planning to wear the $25 gown on their big day.

wp-image-1263232825 size-full
The lucky student is planning to put her bargain gown away until she gets married in future. Credit: South_agency/Getty Images

Emmali shared her incredible find on TikTok where her video ended up racking up over 4.1 million views, and posted a follow-up answering some questions about it.

She revealed the location of the Goodwill where she found the dress, but admitted there wasn't anything else exciting that she'd seen in the store at that time, and confirmed that she didn't plan to sell the dress on despite the potential to make an enormous profit on it.

Emmali confirmed that even if she decided against wearing it for her wedding day or it no longer fit, she was still planning on keeping the beautiful dress nonetheless.

She also confirmed that she didn't believe in superstition about buying a second hand wedding dress and the potential for it to spell bad luck for her relationship and said she wouldn't be sageing it before wearing it one day.

And while the chances of scoring such an incredible purchase aren't usually high, Galia Lahav confirmed to the publication that it plans to donate some more dresses to Goodwill to allow others to experience the thrill of finding one for a fraction of the price.

Yael Friedman, the brand's global public relations manager told the publication: "Emmali is the definition of LUCKY GIRL — congratulations!

"We already got in touch with Goodwill to donate gowns for more Cinderella moments like this one."

They did not confirm when or where the dresses will be donated, so consider the hunt officially on.

Featured image credit: Cherdchanok Treevanchai/Getty Images

Woman, 21, buys incredible $6,000 wedding dress for just $25 at thrift store despite not even being engaged

vt-author-image

By Kim Novak

Article saved!Article saved!

A 21-year-old woman hit the jackpot at her local thrift store after stumbling upon a Galia Lahav wedding dress worth over $6,000 for just $25.

Emmali Osterhoudt, who is a student from Birmingham, Alabama, had visited her local Goodwill with her roommate to buy picture frames for a gallery wall she was planning to put up.

However, she accidentally ended up also walking away with her future wedding dress - despite not even being engaged yet.

Emmali took to TikTok to share her unbelievable find, revealing that not only did she bag the bargain of the century but that it also fit her like a glove without needing any alterations.

She revealed that her friend spotted a rack they hadn't browsed after she'd already checked out with her picture frames, and the pair decided to take a look through it before leaving the store.

Emmali was stunned to find the gorgeous bejewelled gown on the rack, and even more surprised to see her future wedding dress was marked at just $25.

She told Insider: "I thought it was gonna be like the '80s, poofy sleeves dresses because we've always wanted to reenact that scene from Friends where Monica, Rachel, and Phoebe are sitting on their couch in '80s wedding dresses.

"So I go over there, and she shows me this dress and it was so pretty. It looked like it was my size, so we go and we try it on, and it fits like a glove."

Emmali immediately bought the gown and it was only when she got it home that she discovered the tag inside it saying that it was a Galia Lahav design from the Gala range.

Although she is not currently engaged, she revealed that she and her boyfriend are planning to tie the knot eventually and she is planning to wear the $25 gown on their big day.

wp-image-1263232825 size-full
The lucky student is planning to put her bargain gown away until she gets married in future. Credit: South_agency/Getty Images

Emmali shared her incredible find on TikTok where her video ended up racking up over 4.1 million views, and posted a follow-up answering some questions about it.

She revealed the location of the Goodwill where she found the dress, but admitted there wasn't anything else exciting that she'd seen in the store at that time, and confirmed that she didn't plan to sell the dress on despite the potential to make an enormous profit on it.

Emmali confirmed that even if she decided against wearing it for her wedding day or it no longer fit, she was still planning on keeping the beautiful dress nonetheless.

She also confirmed that she didn't believe in superstition about buying a second hand wedding dress and the potential for it to spell bad luck for her relationship and said she wouldn't be sageing it before wearing it one day.

And while the chances of scoring such an incredible purchase aren't usually high, Galia Lahav confirmed to the publication that it plans to donate some more dresses to Goodwill to allow others to experience the thrill of finding one for a fraction of the price.

Yael Friedman, the brand's global public relations manager told the publication: "Emmali is the definition of LUCKY GIRL — congratulations!

"We already got in touch with Goodwill to donate gowns for more Cinderella moments like this one."

They did not confirm when or where the dresses will be donated, so consider the hunt officially on.

Featured image credit: Cherdchanok Treevanchai/Getty Images