{"id":355,"date":"2009-07-19T11:00:39","date_gmt":"2009-07-19T11:00:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.top-queens.com\/?p=355"},"modified":"2024-07-23T20:28:54","modified_gmt":"2024-07-23T20:28:54","slug":"the-evolution-of-the-wedding-dress","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.top-queens.com\/es\/archives\/355","title":{"rendered":"The Evolution of the Wedding Dress"},"content":{"rendered":"

It\u2019s the default setting for brides in Western culture, but what does the ubiquitous white wedding dress actually represent? Not quite what we have always assumed, it turns out. The tradition of brides wearing white has never symbolised virginity or purity, according to a new exhibition that explores the garment\u2019s history \u2013 the white bridal gown\u2019s primary function was ostentatiousness.
\n\u201cThe connotation of purity was not important,\u201d Edwina Ehrman, curator at London’s Victoria & Albert Museum, tells BBC Culture. \u201cIt was about wealth. Throughout the 18th and 19th Century, women who could afford it got married in white.\u201d In the days when washing was done painstakingly by hand with a washboard, a white dress was almost impossible to clean thoroughly. \u201cIt was a garment you just wore once, so it was only for the very wealthy.\u201d Ehrman has studied how wedding dresses have changed in tune with fashion and society over the centuries \u2013 and also upends some of our long-held assumptions along the way.
\nThe white (or ivory) wedding dress \u2013 popularised by Queen Victoria, who wore one at her wedding to Prince Albert in 1840 \u2013 has certainly endured. There\u2019s no denying its totemic power. For many brides it encapsulates a hopeful, romantic nostalgia, and many designers. \u201cIt can have a transformative effect,\u201d says Ehrman. \u201cAnd if you\u2019ve already been living with your partner or even if you\u2019ve had children you may want to wear white at your wedding because you feel it marks a new phase in your relationship.\u201d
\nWhite is the warmest colour<\/strong>
\nSo quintessentially bridal has the white dress become that now when a bride chooses to tie the knot wearing another colour, it\u2019s considered daring and rebellious: think burlesque dancer Dita Von Teese in her purple, corsetted dress by Vivienne Westwood, for instance; singer Gwen Stefani in a dramatic dip-dyed number by John Galliano; or actresses Anne Hathaway, Jessica Biel and Reese Witherspoon all of whom recently wed in unconventional pink. And when designers Oscar de la Renta and Vera Wang recently debuted non-white wedding-dress collections, it was viewed as a radical move in the conservative bridal-wear industry.
\nYet getting married in pink, purple, yellow, red (the typical bridal gown colour in China) or any other colour for that matter is nothing new in Western culture, nor particularly irreverent, says Ehrman. \u201cOver the centuries, brides who were interested in fashion have often got married in different colours. And they would wear them many times afterwards, altering them over the years to fit in with fashion, or to fit a changing figure.\u201d And it was common for women not to buy a new dress for the occasion, but to simply get married in their best existing outfit.
\nBridal fashion adapted to wartime as best it could. \u201cPeople did what they could during World War II,\u201d explains Ehrman. \u201cThey would borrow a dress or wear their service uniform. Women in the armed forces could also hire a dress, and some brides made dresses out of curtain fabric. We have an example in the show of a buttercup-print dress made of lightweight upholstery fabric.\u201d
\nPost-war, the mid-calf ballerina-length design became popular, favoured by women who had careers. There were some spectacular one-off gowns, too. Margaret Whigam, one of the first It girls, wore a big, showy gown by Norman Hartnell. \u201cShe was beautiful, rich and she loved the camera \u2013 she was the perfect client for Hartnell,\u201d says Ehrman. \u201cThat was not a garment that could be altered for another occasion.\u201d
\nIn the swinging 1960s, singer Lulu sported a white hooded, fur-trimmed maxi coat over a mini dress and high boots. The Thea Porter-designed empire-line dress displayed in a previous V&A wedding-dress exhibition \u2013 \u201cdemure but flirty\u201d as Ehrman puts it \u2013 in devore velvet, is quintessentially 1970s. \u201cThe reason the white wedding dress has survived is because it can evolve and remain fashionable \u2013it persists because it can be reinvented.\u201d
\nDesigner Jenny Packham agrees. \u201cThe most memorable wedding outfits for me are those that define an era from a fashion perspective,\u201d she says. \u201cBianca Jagger in that white suit, Audrey Hepburn in a mini dress and head scarf.\u201d Packham designs bridal wear as well as eveningwear (and is a favourite with many high-profile women, including the Duchess of Cambridge).
\nSo what era influences Packham\u2019s bridal wear the most? \u201cThe 1930s are always a great source of inspiration \u2013 a wonderfully decadent and glamorous era between the wars, it was a design explosion of divine proportions.\u201d
\nAnd how does she predict the wedding dress will evolve? \u201cThe bridal dress must stand out as a piece of clothing\u2026 At the moment there is a comfortable stand-off between the red carpet and the aisle. Neither wants to look like the other.\u201d
\nAlice Temperley is influenced by the silhouettes and spirit of the 1920s. Why has the romantic, ultra-feminine gown endured for so long in her view? \u201cThe wedding dress is traditional, timeless and defies trends,\u201d she says, recalling her own wedding dress, made with \u201cantique lace and 1920s sequins that I had collected since childhood\u201d.
\n\"\"
\nMaking a statement<\/strong>
\nIt\u2019s all in the detail, agrees Gareth Pugh, who has created stage outfits for the likes of Lady Gaga and Kylie Minogue \u2013 and whose dramatic-but-romantic bridal dress for stylist Katie Shillingford is part of the V&A collection. \u201cA costume for the stage and a wedding dress both have very specific roles to fulfil,\u201d Pugh tells BBC Culture. \u201cHowever, the approach and process are very different. Usually with stage costume, comfort and the ability to move around easily are top of the list, along with being visually striking.
\n\u201cWith a wedding dress there are layers of subtlety that you can achieve that you just can\u2019t replicate on stage \u2013 usually because a wedding dress is viewed in much closer quarters. And a bride is more willing to forego comfort.\u201d And how does Pugh think the wedding dress will evolve in the future? \u201cI think the idea of dressing up and presenting a side of oneself that is a fantasy will always appeal,\u201d he says. \u201cFor most, a wedding is perhaps the one day where they are allowed free rein to really go to town. There will always be a niche market for the traditional white meringue, but I like the idea of the dress being a little more personal \u2013 something that is made with love and care, something that takes time and patience – a lot like the marriage itself.\u201d
\nAnd like marriage itself, wedding attire continues to evolve. As Edwina Ehrman puts it, \u201cGay weddings and cross-cultural weddings are both examples of how new traditions are being established.\u201d All of which feeds into the multi-billion-dollar global wedding-attire industry. \u201cThere is definitely a spirit of competitiveness around weddings now \u2013 the bridezilla or groomzilla phenomenon is real,\u201d says Ehrman. And the alternative-wedding bridezilla who wishes to make a conscious statement through her wedding can be just as competitive \u2013 in fact, some are ditching the white wedding dress to make a point about gender politics.
\nThat\u2019s nonsensical, says Ehrman. \u201cIf you want to wear a coloured dress on your wedding day, or trousers, or go barefoot, go ahead. But the idea that wearing a white wedding dress is going to somehow enslave you is absurd \u2013 equality and respect are what matter in a marriage, not what you wear at your wedding. When it comes to modern bridal wear we are just incredibly lucky to have such a diversity of choice.\u201d<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

It\u2019s the default setting for brides in Western culture, but what does the ubiquitous white wedding dress actually represent? Not quite what we have always assumed, it turns out. The tradition of brides wearing white has never symbolised virginity or purity, according to a new exhibition that explores the garment\u2019s history \u2013 the white bridal […]<\/p>","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":356,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-355","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-blog"],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.top-queens.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/202407191100092.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.top-queens.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/355","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.top-queens.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.top-queens.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.top-queens.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.top-queens.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=355"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.top-queens.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/355\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1199,"href":"https:\/\/www.top-queens.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/355\/revisions\/1199"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.top-queens.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/356"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.top-queens.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=355"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.top-queens.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=355"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.top-queens.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=355"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}