Bride Ditches Original Wedding Dress, Surprises Mother-in-Law by Wearing Her 1995 Gown (Exclusive)

Ashlyn RobinetteTue, April 21, 2026 at 8:24 PM UTC

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Caroline Lovisa; Jane LovisaCredit: Avery Rae Photography / Avery Rae Nipper; Courtesy of Jane Lovisa -

Jane Lovisa surprised everyone at her wedding by wearing her mother-in-law Caroline Lovisa's 1995 wedding dress

"Everyone was shocked!" Jane tells PEOPLE

The bride secretly ditched her original wedding dress and worked with a designer to restore and modernize the vintage gown

A bride ditched her original wedding dress and walked down the aisle in her mother-in-law's gown instead.

Jane Lovisa, 30, married Nicholas Lovisa, 27, on Saturday, April 4, at Sarasota Sailing Squadron in Sarasota, Florida. To the 225 guests' surprise, the bride didn't step out in the gown she bought for the big day. Instead, she turned heads wearing her mother-in-law Caroline Lovisa's 1995 wedding dress.

"She was completely shocked when she saw me enter and everyone was very emotional and happy that I wore it," Jane tells PEOPLE. "I felt absolutely beautiful and bridal and it was everything I could have wanted in a dress!"

Shortly following Jane's engagement, she bought a wedding dress last summer after feeling pressure to quickly check that off her wedding to-do list. However, when her mother and mother-in-law suddenly offered their wedding dresses for her to use however she pleased, she had second thoughts about the dress she purchased.

At the time, Jane teased to the women that she may or may not use their dresses, but she didn't want to give too much away as to not spoil the surprise that she planned on somehow incorporating both gowns into her wedding weekend.

Caroline Lovisa on her wedding day in 1995Credit: Courtesy of Jane Lovisa

"The original plan was my mom's dress for rehearsal dinner and my mother-in-law's dress for the second look the night of the wedding, but I ended up wearing her dress as my actual wedding dress!" Jane says.

Jane was drawn toward Caroline's dress' "beautiful cap sleeves" and "handsewn silk detailing."

Jane Lovisa on her wedding day, April 4, 2026Credit: Avery Rae Photography / Avery Rae Nipper

"When I put it on, I just knew it was beautiful and I needed to wear it," she says.

Only Jane's grandmother and Nicholas were in on the surprise.

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The bride turned to Amarla Atelier at The Ivory SRQ in January for help with tailoring the dress and restoring its yellow fabric to ivory. The design of the top was untouched, while a custom, color-matched skirt with layers of "flowy, beautiful" chiffon was created to go with it.

"At the second to last fitting I had, I put on my original dress I bought and it just didn't feel like it was me anymore," Jane remembers. "This is when Gerta, the designer, stepped in and mentioned that she could create a long overskirt for my mother-in-law's dress she redid, to give it the bridal train effect, which I could then take off after the ceremony if I wanted to wear it for my actual dress."

Nicholas and Jane Lovisa on their wedding dayCredit: Avery Rae Photography / Avery Rae Nipper

She continues, "At my final fitting, when I put on the overskirt, I just knew this was the dress I wanted to get married in, so I ditched my original dress and never looked back!"

Jane brought her original wedding dress with her to her bridal suite as she was getting ready for her ceremony in order to throw off any suspicion.

"[I] used it as a decoy," she says. "Then, in the final moments, I revealed that I was actually going to wear my mother-in-law's dress all night and everyone was shocked!"

Nicholas and Jane Lovisa with family on their wedding dayCredit: Avery Rae Photography / Avery Rae Nipper

Caroline, 55, wasn't the only one wowed by the redone dress. When Jane posted about the gown on TikTok, many commenters praised her for the "special gesture."

"As a mom to all boys, I never thought maybe a daughter-in-law could want my dress. 🥹," one person commented, with another writing, "The modifications are perfect! Modern but still honored the original dress."

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The previous day at her rehearsal dinner, Jane honored and surprised her mother, Elizabeth Howe, 63, by wearing her 1989 wedding dress, which she had altered into a mini style.

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Source: “AOL Entertainment”