That's why a Virginia Beach hairdresser decided to auction off an opportunity to be a bridesmaid in her April 19, 2009 wedding.

It turns out that 23-year-old Kelly Gray and fiance Karl Gau, who were looking to keep their wedding budget at or below $7,000, will now have a much more elaborate wedding than originally planned thanks to a major soft-drink company.

The idea sparked media attention across the country, as well as the attention of the Dr. Pepper Snapple Group, which placed the winning bid of $5,700, then upped the ante to $10,000.

Gray says she just wanted to have a nice wedding and needed to make up for the costs.

Kelly says she, "was contemplating doing a bake sale and my bridesmaid said: 'We need to auction something (on EBay). There's Dr. Pepper cans and Cheetos bags for sale, so let's just go ahead and do a bridesmaid'. And I did not think anything would happen out of it - nothing."

They decided that, not only would the winner get the chance to be in Kelly's wedding, they'd also receive a dress and shoes, as well as an invitation, plus one, to the reception. If a man happened to be the winner, they'd supply the tuxedo.

Little did she know her idea would get so much attention. She was interviewed by TV networks and newspapers.

When the bidding closed at 7:27 p.m. on Wednesday, the winning bid was $5,700. The winner: "drpeppersnapple".

Gray and her fiance had planned to keep the wedding budget under $7,000 by using an iPod, instead of a DJ and baking their own wedding cake. Now they can plan for something a bit bigger.

A representative for Dr. Pepper Snapple Group says they'll even provide drinks for the April 19, 2009 wedding.

They also plan to launch a Website to find Kelly a bridesmaid, or possibly even provide a surprise guest for the position.

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