by Shannon Morehouse

Created on: December 07, 2008

Open up any modern wedding magazine and you'll see pages splashed with gorgeous women modeling extravagant gowns almost always in various shades of white. The assortment of styles and shades can be enough to make any woman have a conniption over finding her "perfect" gown for her "perfect" day. After all, it is the bride and specifically, the wedding gown that is the focal point of the wedding. Just how did the gown become so central?

Let's take a step into history to find out!

THE ORIGINAL WHITE GOWN

Let's travel back to ancient Greece. White was considered to symbolize bliss; so many brides wore white as an emblem of joy at this time of celebration. In ancient Rome, brides wore white pleated robes as a tribute to Hymen, the god of marriage and fertility who is said to have been partial to the color white.

STEPPING AWAY FROM WHITE

Moving forward to the 1500s-1700s, white was no longer considered a common bridal gown color. Brides of all social classes looked to the royal princesses as the ultimate models for wedding dress styles. A royal princess wanted to look magnificent as a way to represent her country, to carry the prestige of her country to her new country. Her wedding gown would be made of many materials like velvet, satin, and silk and would be woven with silver and gold thread. The colors were vibrant, purples, reds, and "royal" blues. And of course, the more material, the better! Gowns were gathered with long trains. Before the era of sequins, real jewels adorned wedding gowns: emeralds, diamonds, and rubies, anything to have the bride glitter and shine.

Though the majority of the brides in this era couldn't afford as many expensive fabrics and jewels as women of royalty, they still made it a point for their wedding gowns to be as colorful and sparkly as possible. They would re-wear these gowns for occasions that called for "Sunday Best" attire.

WHITE MAKES A COMEBACK

In 1840, when Queen Victoria
married Prince Albert, she was all decked out in a flowing white gown. And because every woman wanted their weddings to compare to those of royal families, white gowns became the norm. Not only did Queen Victoria
begin the era of white gowns, but she was also responsible for the only-worn-once trend for wedding gowns.

WELCOME TO THE TWENTIETH CENTURY

With every decade in the 20th century, fashion and economic trends influenced wedding gown styles. With the 1920s, the decade of the flappers, came the introduction of the first knee-length wedding gown. In the 1930s, gowns were introduced that had slimming waistlines. Less fabric was used, which was quite appropriate during the decade of the Great Depression. With the post-war 1950s came a major shift in the wedding gown style. It was a decade of prosperity and the dresses became fuller and more elaborate than ever. This style continued through the 1970s. But after the Civil Rights Movement, some newly liberated women began wearing white suits for their weddings. Through the eighties and nineties, sensual wedding gowns that were slendering became in, and wide skirts remained popular as well.

Today, almost any style of wedding gown is acceptable. When you flip through the modern bridal magazines, look for gowns that will not only flatter your figure, but also will portray your personality. If you want to wear traditional white, that's perfectly fine, but so too is a bold red gown. If you want to step away from the white tradition, but do not want to make a major statement, go for a subtle change, such as this white gown with red trim.

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