Wedding dress worn across three family generations

Julia Cain's wedding dress was first worn May 9, 1953.

Cain's grandmother, Phyllis Jo Raymond, first bought the dress at a department store in Denver.

Cain’s mother, Susan Kay Traver, wore the dress in her April 23, 1983, wedding.

By the time Cain wore the dress, the heirloom changed shape and form just as it did when her mother walked down the aisle.

Each time the dress was worn, alterations were made.

Raymond wore the dress with a hoop skirt to give it more volume.

Traver wore the dress with additional fabric and removed the skirt for her height

When Cain got married on March 12, in St. Louis, Missouri, she made modern adjustments to 63-year-old dress.

"When I first tried on the dress as a teenager, we never thought I would wear it for my wedding," Cain told ABC News. "After the initial shock of, 'Look how dated and wrinkled this is' wore off, we thought I'd perhaps re-purpose some of the lace."

Cain said after she and her family created a different neckline, straps and a jacket, she came up with the perfect touch.

"We tied a sash around the waist, and the entire dress changed," Cain said. "By visually raising the waistline up a little bit, the gown transformed into my dream dress."

Cain's grandfather, Harold, walked her down the aisle, just as he did with his daughter and first wife.

"Since my father passed in the 1990s, my grandfather Harold walked me down the aisle,” Cain said. "I was so happy he made the trip from Colorado to be there. I’m the first of the grandchildren to get married, so it was an emotional day for everyone."