There are those who fantasize about their weddings from a young age … and then there’s Melania Trump. When they finally tied the knot in 2005, Donald Trump and Melania Knauss went all out for their lavish wedding. It was such a popular culture super event that crowds gathered outside, onlookers hoping to catch just a peek of Melania and her $100,000 Christian Dior wedding gown. Little did they know that in a few short years, any one of them with a couple extra thousand dollars could own the very same dress.

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In 2010, just five years after her all-out wedding ceremony to Donald, Melania quietly sold the Dior dress to a mutual friend who wanted to wear it for her own wedding. According to Liana Satenstein and her Substack “Neverworns,” Melania sold the dress for $70,000. It was worn once in 2011, and then shoved into a box (or perhaps its own closet, given just how giant the gown actually is) and was never seen again. Well, until the current owner listed it on eBay for the “Buy Now” price of $45,000.

While it’s clear that there are many strange things about Melania and Donald’s relationship, the lack of sentimentality over her wedding gown screams volumes about how Melania perceives her marriage. However, considering just how much effort went into making the dress, it’s strange that she would simply toss it aside so quickly.

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In the one and only cover of Vogue the First Lady ever graced — before Melania Trump started her ongoing feud with Vogue — she opened up about the gorgeous gown for her special day. Hand-sewn into the dress was crystal beading, totaling over 500 hours of painstaking manual labor to complete. There was a 13-foot long train, and her veil was even longer at 16 feet. But Melania was quick to depart with it, as she sold the dress and seemingly never looked back.

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Some alterations had been made to the dress before Melania discarded of it. For example, fabric around the top was removed to create the sweetheart tube top shape, and the girdle was taken in to show off Melania’s frame. Once it was in the hands of the person currently selling it on eBay, an extra layer of satin was added to the bottom, the back was opened up a bit with some extra fabric, and straps were added to better support the different bust dimensions of the new owner.

While reselling luxury brand pieces is a lucrative side hustle, it’s a bit odd this dress has passed through so many hands. Hopefully whoever currently has the dress in their cart has good luck, as this “something used” might carry a little bit more dramatics with it than most. Or maybe Melania can buy it back to see if Vogue will meet her cover demands once more.

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