The wedding is an important event in many people’s lives, probably overshadowed a little by the complicated task of choosing the wedding dress. Why do brides wear white?
Why do brides wear white? In many societies, the color white has long been associated with purity and virtue, which is why some brides choose to wear white, especially in the West. However, it is often said that brides wear white because “that’s the tradition”.
Historically speaking, however, white was not always the only color considered for wedding dresses. In fact, for many centuries in Western societies, wedding dresses were of various colors. This was a matter of practice as much as any other reason. Brides used to buy a wedding dress that they could wear again or simply wear the best dress they already owned.
Why do brides wear white?
On the other hand, white is not exactly practical: it is difficult to keep clean and is not ideal for many occasions or to be worn repeatedly. That’s why many brides chose dresses of other colors for the wedding day and for subsequent occasions. So why do many of today’s brides wear white? Largely due to a trend that began with Queen Victoria’s 1840 wedding to Prince Albert.
Like royal weddings today, royal weddings in the past received a lot of attention, though not in as many media outlets as we do now, and tended to set trends.
Queen Victoria’s wedding to Prince Albert was no exception. When Victoria chose to wear a white dress (said to highlight the fine Honiton lace produced by the struggling British lace industry at the time), her choice of clothing was widely reported in newspapers and magazines and soon began to influence wedding trends both domestically and internationally.
Initially adopted by wealthier brides, the white wedding dress trend gradually spread to all economic levels and became a well-entrenched “tradition” in the 20th century, notes Britannica.
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Source: www.descopera.ro
