Days Of Our Lives' Emily O'Brien Donned A Gorgeous '50s Wedding Dress For Her Nuptials

When it comes to celebrity weddings, it wouldn't be irrational to assume that the bride would wear a trendy designer wedding dress. And it's been done before, as seen in our list of the most extravagant celeb wedding dresses of all time. But Emily O'Brien of "Days of Our Lives" fame decided to go against the grain when she tied the knot with boyfriend Ken Barnett, selecting a dress with a weighty emotional history behind it, as she revealed in a celebratory Instagram post. 

"I married my best friend this weekend ... Wearing your grandmother's heirloom wedding dress from 1956 was just the cherry," O'Brien wrote cheerily in the captions. And as seen above, the dress is still as beautiful as ever; a silky, gorgeous masterpiece that features a translucent, lacy top, and a sweet bow around the midriff. O'Brien wore her dark brown curly hair down with a pair of pearl drop earrings and a net-like headpiece. The gown is certainly among the many stunning celebrity dresses that were outside the box, showing that sometimes you don't need to shell out so much for a beautiful wedding gown. 

Emily O'Brien's wedding dress appeared to be in good condition despite it being 70 years old. However, O'Brien herself appears to have hinted that the dress required some work to make it to look as good as new. In another Instagram carousel that displayed various shots of O'Brien's wedding, the five-time Daytime Emmy nominee credited several people for helping bring her wedding to life in the captions, but she reserved a very special thank you for someone in the comments.

"Thank you for restoring and bringing the dress back to life..." O'Brien wrote happily, tagging someone named Sara Auhagen in the comment. Although O'Brien never publicly told anyone about the prior state of the historical wedding dress, we can reasonably assume that she secretly had the garment refurbished and modernized for her special day. And it was definitely worth the effort, as the vintage dress fit O'Brien like a glove.

O'Brien's choice to wear a vintage gown echoes a rising trend among modern brides. As several bridal shop owners told WhoWhatWear, people are increasingly turning to heirloom dresses or vintage shops to ensure the look for their special day is as unique as possible. Even more, Zola's First Look Report for 2025 projected the number of brides who will thrift their dress will increase. Although it's unclear who the original designer for O'Brien's 1950s dress was, one thing is certain: it's likely to be remembered for years to come.