Wedding Gown

“Married in white, you will have chosen all right. Married in grey, you will go far away. Married in black, you will wish yourself back. Married in red, you’ll wish yourself dead. Married in blue, you will always be true. Married in pearl, you’ll live in a whirl. Married in green, ashamed to be seen, Married in yellow, ashamed of the fellow. Married in brown, you’ll live out of town. Married in pink, your spirits will sink" - Anonymous (from Kelsey McIntyre's The History of the White Wedding Dress)

During the time when superstitions were held deeply, white was believed as a symbol of innocence of childhood and purity of heart, hence white pearl was highly popular at the time especially for royals and rich brides who could afford it. Blue was associated with Virgin Mary and symbolize eternal love. Brides who wore blue believed that their husband would be true to her. Red was associated with prostitutes hence it also reduces the popularity of pink as lighter shade of red. Black was associated with death and mourning, which is now still popular for funeral wear. Since fairies were mostly described having green shades, it was considered unlucky for brides to wear this colour. Also brown and beige were considered rusty during this time of traditional homespun garment.

White wedding gowns colors consist of either pure white or white with shades of either eggshell, ecru or ivory. Queen Victoria made this color popular by wearing white gown on her wedding to Albert of Saxe-Coburg, a completely different choice from royal brides before her who wore dark colored gowns such as black and red. Another royal wedding where the bride wore white was Grace Kelly's to Prince of Monaco in 1956, the bride looked dazzling in white silk and lace gown.

After the depression, large and elaborate weddings became more affordable for regular people. Wedding gowns became more popular and as the term said, it was only worn on the wedding day. Previously, royals and common brides would wear the best dress they could afford that could later be worn as evening gown. These days many brides choose to wear different gown on their evening reception unless the reception is held immediately after the ceremony, hence they would buy two different gowns : the wedding gown and the evening gown.

Nowadays the era of modern technology, superstitions around wedding gown colors are fading. White with ivory, ecru and eggshell shades is still popular, but nowadays brides are more flexible to wear light pink and light blue also. In Asia, wedding gowns are either red (symbol of auspisciousness) or green (symbol of fertility) but now Asian brides are also more receptive to western culture hence white wedding gown is also a popular choice.

My gown was cream with pink and ivory flowers. I did not wear white, not because I despised western culture. I just thought white wasn't practical, easier to get dirty and looked plain on me. My bridesmaid however, wore white which was OK for her. One of the bloggers I linked my blog to, wore black on her wedding. Let's see if I can get her post her wedding picture here.

What about you? Would you like to share your story and pic? Leave a comment or let me know your blog URL, I'll see if we can exchange blog link !