More on colored gowns
By Never teh Bride
After a few of you cleverly pointed out that red is an auspicious gown color in Chinese weddings and that the white wedding gown is a fairly recent invention, I decided to dig more deeply into the history and significance of colored gowns. I discovered these fun facts:
- Wearing white at one’s wedding first became popular in the 18th century. It became less a fashion and more a rule when the young Queen Victoria chose a white wedding dress to marry Albert.
- Before the introduction of the white wedding gown in America a woman just wore her Sunday best or her most treasured dress.
- In ancient times, blue, not white, was considered to represent purity and fidelity and so brides who could afford it often wore blue. Jewish brides may choose a blue gown because it embodies mystical powers.
- In Moracco, brides sometimes wear bright yellow, because it’s said to scare away the evil eye; or green, because it is the color of plants and brings good luck.
- However, some cultures saw green as unlucky. According to Wedding Thoughts, “to say a girl “had a green gown” implied she was of loose morals, because her dress would be grass-stained due to rolling around in the fields!”
- In Spain, Spanish Roman Catholic brides may wear black gowns and lacy mantillas to show their devotion until death.
- The veil’s history is mysterious. It is thought by some to have been an important part of arranged marriages, where it prevented the groom from getting an eyeful of his bride’s face before he was committed. It may have also originated as a way to protect the bride from evil spirits, to show she was spoken for, or as a figurative representation of traditional bride theft!
- During the Revolutionary War, some brides wore red to symbolize the independence the Colonists desired. During the Civil War, some brides wore purple, which represents honor and courage as a tribute to the dead.
If you’re considering a colored wedding gown, feel free to ignore this old nursery rhyme:
Married in white
You have chosen alrightMarried in green,
Ashamed to be seen.Married in grey,
You’ll go far away.Married in red,
You’ll wish yourself dead.Married in blue,
Love ever trueMarried in yellow,
Ashamed of your fellow.Married in black
You’ll wish yourself backMarried in pink,
Your spirits will sink.
December 19th, 2005 at 5:09 pm
Even though I am not a fan of strapless dresses in general, THAT is a very pretty dress.
I like the idea of a gold (not lamé!) dress myself, especially for the more mature bride. It seems very regal.
December 19th, 2005 at 5:14 pm
While I do like the gown, I also think that the fabric constituting the bodice would make a VERY fabulous spring jacket. Yum.
December 19th, 2005 at 6:32 pm
“brides who could afford it often wore blue.”
Likewise, a blue house, a hundred or so years ago, was a status symbol, since blue paint was more expensive than other colors.
The reference to the green dress reminds me of the term “crumpled skirt” referring to an, um, amorous woman.
December 20th, 2005 at 3:46 am
hee! I guess violet’s alright since nothing rhymes with purple!
December 20th, 2005 at 11:55 am
Married in purple…
Oh, to hell with it…
December 20th, 2005 at 2:05 pm
NtB, a Tuesday giftie for you! Since you’ve been in a researching mood, I am attaching a website of historic bridal gowns for your edification and that of your lovely readers.
http://members.aol.com/waltztyme/brides.html
December 21st, 2005 at 6:19 pm
Wow! Thanks, La BellaDonna! Those are BEAUTIFUL!
(the mannequin scares the heck out of me, though)
December 21st, 2005 at 8:50 pm
Nice link; but yeah, the mannequin is a bit freaky. The bodice of the featured dress is lovely, as well.
December 22nd, 2005 at 11:49 am
The mannequin looks like it has a buffalo head.
December 22nd, 2005 at 5:49 pm
The mannequin has a buffalo head in order to signify the bull-headedness that can afflict the bride-to-be.
No, really - I went back into the link and checked. The display mannequin is featureless to avoid distracting the onlooker, and the hair is dressed (albeit in a stylized way) in the historic fashion suitable to each dress. This has been successfully done by both the Kyoto Museum and the Met. Unfortunately, because the folks who did the display chose to use BLACK rather than WHITE (per Kyoto and the Met) for the mannequins, all the detail is lost, lost, lost, and the mannequins look as if they do indeed have buffalo head. Go back, and you can see dim outlines of the hair dressed low and back for the 1860’s, the curls of the 80’s, the 90’s pompadour, etc.
December 24th, 2005 at 12:23 pm
“Married in…”
Oh, wait, you’ll never get married.
July 5th, 2007 at 1:00 pm
Where can I find the brand of the colored dress you pictured?