Marriage & Wedding Information

The (American) Bride Wore Red


Increasing numbers of American brides are thinking about doing the formerly unthinkable -- getting married in a bold red gown.

Not that red is a stranger to marriage. Hardly. Red plays a major role in Chinese, Hindu, and some Muslim weddings, and was a popular choice in medieval times. But for modern Westerners? Yes -- we too are starting to marry in red. At least some of us.

It's been happening more and more in Europe over the past decade. Maybe that's because Europe recalls long stretches of time when wedding gowns weren't white. For eons, a woman simply wore her best dress -- one she could certainly use again -- although to keep luck on her side she might gravitate to certain colors and avoid others. With all the choices, it was harder to keep the good colors straight, so the folk world offered a poem with a few fortunate outcomes and many poor ones:

Married in White, you have chosen right ...

Married in Brown, you will live in the town ...

Married in Blue, you will always be true ...

Blue gowns were popular since early times, since blue represented purity and the Virgin Mary. This tradition continues in the "something blue" a bride wears today. White was less common, especially among anything other than the bluest bluebloods, because of its difficulty in coming clean in the wash.

But eventually, several big players popularized white, most notably the fashion hound Queen Victoria. Ever since -- especially in a world where clothes are mass-produced and a woman can afford many dresses, even one she'll only wear once -- white's been all the rage.

Yet even more recently, some have found this timeworn symbol of purity and affluence a little constricting. Some brides want a little less predictability and more choice. And not everyone looks good in white, as some brides point out.

While a percentage of European brides have snapped up dramatic red gowns for the past decade, Americans have been more cautious. It's only been about the past four years that tentative pastel washes and small colored accents have made the scene here.

That's beginning to change. A small but growing number of brides -- and designers -- are getting bolder. Formal, stunning, all-red gowns are making inroads into Christmas or holiday weddings, especially the cozy kind in front of a crackling hearth. You'll see more red at Valentine weddings, rose-themed weddings, and Las Vegas weddings -- not to mention second weddings where the bride's more apt to select exactly what she feels good in, and nothing less.

Thinking of red for yourself? Maybe your forebears did too. During the American Revolution, it wasn't uncommon for brides show their support for the rebellion by donning a red dress.

Fortunately, these days it's not a political statement. A bride wears red because she wants to. She's comfortable with herself and with the dress she finds most beautiful -- even if that choice still raises some eyebrows in the back of the chapel.

About the Author

Blake Kritzberg is owner and proprieter of FavorIdeas.com. Stop by http://www.favorideas.com for a huge selection of wedding favors, Bridezilla's weekly adventures, and free resources for brides: save-the-date eCards, screensaver, wallpaper and web site templates.

For today's red wedding gowns at a glance, please see: http://www.favorideas.com/red-wedding-dress.htm


MORE RESOURCES:

Going Out: The Secret Marriage: Wedding Daze
RedOrbit, TX - Oct 4, 2008
By Kenneth Walton DOMENICA CIMAROSA HAS suffered understandably from a mixed press. That was partly due to an accident of birth. Slightly older than Mozart, ...


Is my fiance using me for my money?
NEWS.com.au, Australia - 23 hours ago
Dear Bossy: My question relates to my fiancee. We have been going out for eight months and recently I asked her to marry me, to which she said “yes”. ...


Wedding superstitions and customs
Culpeper Star Exponent, VA - Oct 5, 2008
Well, it’s official! The date is set and the church is confirmed. Steve has been over here for the past week so as you can imagine it has been a bit of a ...


BBC News

What choice now for the Big Day?
BBC News, UK - Oct 1, 2008
By Victoria Bone Couples in England now have a greater choice about which church they can choose for their wedding. They can marry anywhere they have lived ...
Wedding Bells Ring In Legal Change Sky News
all 120 news articles


Readers recommend: songs about machines, robots and computers
guardian.co.uk, UK - Sep 25, 2008
Pocket calculators at the ready ... how many Kraftwerk nominations will get donded this week? Photograph: Reuters If I had listened to the recommendations ...


The facts of life: marriage
Independent, UK - Sep 15, 2008
The number of marriages in England and Wales that were the first marriage for both partners peaked in 1940 at 426100 when 91 per cent of all marriages were ...


Hallmark adds gay marriage cards
Los Angeles Times, CA - Sep 15, 2008
By Sarah Skidmore, AP The nation's largest greeting card company is rolling out same-sex wedding cards -- featuring two tuxedos, overlapping hearts or ...


PGI, GroomGroove.com host proposal contest
National Jeweler Network, NY - Sep 25, 2008
New York—Platinum Guild International (PGI) and engagement and wedding Web site GroomGroove.com have partnered to launch a marriage-proposal story contest. ...


Post Chronicle

Jimmy Smits Stabs Stuntman and Howard Stern Takes Second Stab At ...
Post Chronicle - Oct 4, 2008
Howard Stern finally took a stab at marriage, wedding longtime girlfriend Beth Ostrosky. Smits grabbed a real knife instead of a prop knife during shooting ...


Lindsay Lohan This Close To Marrying Samantha Ronson, Maybe
hecklerspray, Los Angeles - Sep 11, 2008
There used to be a time when Lindsay Lohan only loved booze, drugs, sex, partial nudity and films about winking Volkswagens, but not any more. ...

Marriage-Wedding - Google News

home | site map
© 2006