Happy ending for jilted 'trash the dress' bride

A jilted bride who became the global poster girl for surviving messy break-ups by publicly trashing her wedding dress says she's glad she was dumped after finding new love with an old school friend.

Images of a paint-splattered Shelby Swink in her bridal gown laughing alongside her parents and bridesmaids on November 1 last year, what was to be her wedding day, were shared by millions on social media in December when her story went viral.

Now the 24-year-old from Tennessee has found a new love and says she is glad her former partner decided to break it off when he did.

“Everything happens for a reason,” Ms Swink told 9Stories.

“I have actually been seeing someone else for a while now.

“We met each other in high school through mutual friends and we’ve kind of reconnected.”

Ms Swink says she no longer speaks to her former college sweetheart, Brian Hill, who sat her down six days before their wedding and told her that he did not love her anymore.

“Honestly after it happened I realised it was a blessing in disguise,” she said.

“Because after you break up with someone you can step away and literally see the relationship for what it was.

“I’m at the point now where I’m glad it happened because it helped me grow, it helped me realise that I was about to make a mistake.”

Ms Swink says she is still shocked by how many people her 'trash the dress' photos inspired.

“Just the other day a lady came up to me and said, ‘Hey you don’t know me but I followed your story and it happened at the exact same time as my divorce and it really helped me get through everything,” she said.

“That really touched me.”

Aside from the messages of support, Ms Swink has also become adept at fielding the odd marriage proposal.

“I received a lot of messages. A lot of them were like, ‘You’re beautiful, if you still want to get married I’ll marry you,” she said.

She admits the offers are flattering, but not ones she is tempted to take up.