Today’s fun topic: the white wedding dress. To wear white, or not to wear white? Allow me to quote an excerpt from Weddings and Things: Tales from a Midwest Wedding Planner…
Before we all gasp and wink about the reason a girl might not wear white to her wedding, consider this. The white wedding dress did not originally have anything to do with virginity! In fact according to Queen Victoria’s biographer Julia Baird in her book, Victoria the Queen: An Intimate Biography of the Woman Who Ruled an Empire, Queen Victoria chose to wear white for her wedding in 1840 during a time when most women chose dresses in colors that could be worn again. A white gown would get so soiled it could only be worn once, and so it was not practical. If you were wearing a gown only one time, it was because you could afford to do so. In sum, the white gown meant wealth.
Weddings and Things: Tales from a Midwest Wedding Planner (pg 39)
Nowadays, a bride may choose from any number of colors and styles. I coordinated a wedding where a gorgeous redhead donned a strapless ballgown in a bold floral print, and I have one this September where the petite bride has chosen black lace for her day.
Regardless of the reason, brides can confidently choose the gown in the color and style that celebrate their personality the most. After all, queens have been doing it since the 1800s.