Nursing student who spent $25 for wedding dress worth $6,000 is now engaged

An Alabama woman who bought a $25 dress at Goodwill worth over $6,000 is now engaged and she knows just what to wear at her wedding.

Emmali Osterhoudt, a nursing student at the University of Alabama at Birmingham, visited a Goodwill store in Green Springs, Alabama on Labor Day hoping to find picture frames for her apartment. At the half-off section she found a stunning wedding gown just her size and made a once in a lifetime deal.

While doing some research later, she learned the dress was from designer Galia Lahav and valued at $6,200. Lahav is a beloved brand worn by Beyoncé, Simone Biles, Paris Hilton and Ronda Rousey. She shared her excitement on TikTok in a video detailing the the shocking discovery.

Proposed at Buckingham Palace after three years

Nicholas Gould, Osterhoudt's boyfriend of three years, proposed to her Monday during a trip at Buckingham Palace and she said yes.

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She plans to wear the Lahav dress to her wedding, something she planned to since she made the $25 purchase.

"I've always really been interested in weddings and wedding dresses in fashion. And one thing that I was worried about is whenever the time came (that) I got engaged, I was scared that I wasn't going to find a dress that I loved. because my wedding budget wouldn't be huge," she told USA TODAY on Friday. "When I went to Goodwill and I found that one and I absolutely adored it, it was pretty easy for me to make that decision."

Osterhoudt said she plans to keep the dress forever due to its sentimental value.

Wedding set for summer 2025

A date has been set for the wedding: June 6, 2025, Osterhoudt said.

Osterhoudt, who will complete her nursing degree next summer, said she wanted to guarantee enough time to space out her wedding and graduation. She also wanted to have enough time to plan out the rest of her look.

"I'm hoping that my hair will get a little bit longer before then but that's pretty much all I know," Osterhoudt said.

She added that things have calmed down since the viral attention of her TikTok video, which has since garnered over 5 million views.

"I've been so grateful for the love shown by people in the comment section," Osterhoudt told USA TODAY in September. "Usually, when videos go viral, you get some nasty comments, but I have mostly received love."

Contributing: Doc Louallen

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