Bridal Dress

A bridal dress is a big part of the magic of the big day, and getting a great dress is essential. Every young woman wants to look stunning on her wedding day, so the bridal dress has a lot to live up to.

Traditional bridal dresses are seen as long and flowing, but they can also be short, or even colours are very white.

The traditional bridal dress is a relatively new invention, in both East and West. Medieval European brides wore clothes fitting to their social standing: wealthy brides wore bold and colourful fabrics, poorer brides their best dress.

Rarely was the dress ‘white’. In the East, the traditional bridal dress was red; this is an auspicious colour in both Chinese and Indian marriage, as well as green in some parts of India. The white dress gained popularity in Europe through the royal family.

The wedding in 1840 of Queen Victoria and Albert of Coburg, where the bride wore white, was widely published, and the white bridal dress became very popular.

Myths such as the suggestion that white is symbolic of virginity are a much later explanation for the tradition.

A bridal dress does not need to be white, and any kind of coloured dress is perfectly acceptable, although most brides still prefer the idea of a white wedding.

The romance of the occasion means that most women still choose a white bridal dress, whether it is for a formal wedding, or a more simple arrangement.

Part of this reason is that they buy a special dress especially for the occasion, and a white dress is something that is more difficult to keep clean, therefore symbolising the newness and purity of the occasion.

They may keep their bridal dress in the closet for the rest of their lives, and it is not uncommon for a woman to be buried in the dress after death.