No way, no how and absolutely not are not usually in Daddy’s vocabulary for most girls, especially those planning for the single most important day of their lives.

But Kristen Ogletree’s dad put his foot down when his newlywed daughter popped this question: “Dad, I want to trash my wedding dress.”

“I told her she couldn’t do it,” Dale Green said. “She had told me what was going on, how the others girls had been doing’ it and some of the things they had in mind, and I told her no.
This “trashy” trend Ogletree eventually got permission to participate in (surprise, surprise) is the latest must-have for Columbus brides. Simply put, a Trash the Dress photo session is really an opportunity for the bride and groom to showcase their hobbies and personalities all while the bride is wearing her coveted wedding dress. 

“Brides want the traditional pictures to give as gifts, but they also want the fun stuff built in,” said Julie Hedges, wedding and portrait photographer and owner of JE Hedges Photography.

“You totally get your dress dirty, you almost basically ruin it,” Ogletree said she proposed to Dad.
“I didn’t agree (with the concept),” Green said. “I felt like (the dress) is something special that isn’t meant to be torn up and made fun of. I guess I’m old school.”

After the initial rejection, Ogletree went back to her dad with some “what- ifs” until dad and daughter came to an agreement of sorts.

“So (Kristen) sat down and talked with the photographer and they came up with an alternative, something of the lesser evil,” Green said.

“I was going to get in the lake. I was going to get down and dirty with it, but (Dad) said no,” Ogletree said. “I felt like, ‘What else am I going to do with the dress?’ And all these women that save their dress for their daughters to wear, do they ever wear it? No.”

And although it’s called Trash the Dress, Ogletree found her dad pulling the reins on the photo session didn’t ruin the fun a bit. After the negotiations between dad and daughter and after dad’s chaperoning the photo shoot, Ogletree and her husband, Garrett, have once-in-a-lifetime photos…

Now that we’ve reeled you in, catch the rest of this and many other intriguing local stories and columns in the current issue of Columbus and the Valley Magazine. Click here to find a retail outlet near you, or subscribe online so you’ll never miss a word.

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