"Trashy" letters to the editor!

Daniel with his new bride, Jessi, after their beautiful wedding at Jacksonville Beach.

I know "trashing the dress" isn't for everyone. If you are up for it, that's great! If not, I also offer Bridal Glamour sessions that still let you be a diva in hot photos without ruining the dress.

Heck, when my day comes, I'll probably get a cheap dress off eBay for my own trash session, and then donate my real dress to Brides Against Breast Cancer.

Unfortunately, for something that has become so special and meaningful to brides, it's so sad when others get defensive judging brides because they are unable to appreciate the art and creative photography behind trashing a wedding dress. In response to the article the Florida Times Union showcased about me, there has been a "Letters to the Editor" war of words about the whole concept the past few weeks. One lady wrote how a bride trashing her wedding dress was "wasteful and disgusting" and couldn't believe grooms would "approve" of this "disrespectful" honor of their marriage.

This really upset my bride in the article, Corinna, and her husband Bobby, who took it as a personal attack the way the lady so harshly judged Corinna's decision on what to do with her dress. But after cooling off, Corinna then rallied together with a few of my past "trash" brides to start a letter campaign to the Florida Times Union to defend their case and provide a balanced coverage.

Then today, the newspaper actually published one of my groom's letter! Woo hoo! It was written by Daniel, who also participated with his wife, Jessi, in her trash the dress session back in April.

Here's Daniel's awesome letter!

WEDDING DRESSES
Trashing is not an insult

In April, my wife trashed her wedding dress right after our reception.

And guess what? Not only did I support her decision, but I also participated. Scarlett Lillian is very talented and even got Photographer of the Week for our photos on TrashTheDress.com.

My wife and I had a great time capturing these moments.

As my wife would point out, we felt this was a symbolic expression of our love and eternal commitment we made to one another, not an insult to us or to the sanctity of our marriage.

You can trash your dress and still preserve the integrity of the gown.

My wife took her dress to the dry cleaners and made arrangements to donate it to the Brides Against Breast Cancer fundraiser.

Preserving your wedding dress in a box is not going to make a difference as to what kind of marriage you will have, nor does it reflect a low regard for the sacredness of marriage.

Grooms rent our tuxes. There are some brides who didn't have a wedding dress and are still married decades later.

Everyone is entitled to their opinions. However, instead of making insinuations, let brides be the better judge of what to do with their dresses.

DANIEL STEVENS, utility line locator/surveyor, Jacksonville