Rhiannon Hendricks
Wedding dresses have evolved significantly over the years, with the colour and style often reflecting cultural traditions, societal values, and personal expression. In Western cultures, white wedding dresses have become the norm, symbolising purity and grace. However, this tradition is relatively recent, dating back to Queen Victoria's wedding in 1840. Before that, brides wore a variety of colours, including bold shades such as red, yellow, and saffron, or darker hues like navy, burgundy, and black. In Eastern cultures, colourful wedding dresses are still common, with red being a popular choice in China and India to symbolise good fortune and auspiciousness. The evolution of wedding dress colours showcases the dynamic nature of fashion and its ability to shape and be shaped by cultural and societal influences.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Color | White, red, pink, blue, brown, black, purple, orange, yellow, green, gold, silver, ivory, champagne |
| Fabric | Silk, lace, satin, velvet, fur |
| Style | Tunic, empire-waisted, voluminous, short, knee-length, full-skirted, floor-length, sleeveless, long-sleeved, high-necked, corseted, convertible, drop-waist, vintage |
| Details | Embellishments, beading, sequins, rhinestones, fringe, belt, boots, headpiece, bouquet, veil |
| Symbolism | Wealth, status, virginity, purity, unity, equality, joy, hope |
| Culture | Western, Eastern, Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Kurdish, Latter-day Saints, Greek, Roman, Scandinavian, French, Finnish |
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What You'll Learn
White wedding dresses became popular in the mid-19th century
Wedding dresses have come a long way, with colours and styles varying over the centuries. In Western cultures in the Americas and Europe, white is the customary colour for wedding dresses, though this tradition is relatively recent.
Before the mid-19th century, wedding dresses were typically fashioned from rich colours and elegant and/or rare fabrics. Velvet and silk were popular choices, with some designers incorporating fur. The extravagance of the gown was essential, as weddings were an opportunity for families to display their wealth. Brides often wore their best dress, regardless of the colour, and it was not uncommon for royalty to wear gold or blue.
The white wedding dress trend initiated by Queen Victoria spread across economic classes and became an established tradition of the 20th century. Today, white is the most widely-worn colour for wedding gowns in Western cultures, though other colours are gaining popularity.
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Colourful wedding dresses were common before Queen Victoria's wedding
Wedding dresses have evolved significantly, reflecting cultural trends, societal values, and shifts in aesthetic preferences. In Western cultures, white wedding dresses have come to symbolise purity and grace since the 19th century, when Queen Victoria popularised the colour. However, colourful wedding dresses were common before Queen Victoria's wedding in 1840, and they continue to be the norm in many non-Western cultures.
Before the 19th century, the colour of a wedding dress often depended on the bride's social status and the values of the time period. For instance, in ancient Greek and Roman times, wedding dresses were vibrant and bold, with popular colours including flame, saffron, purple, and yellow. These shades were associated with fertility, life, and happiness. Saffron dye was expensive, so it indicated wealth and high social status. In medieval times, blue was a popular choice as it symbolised purity. Royal brides during this period often wore gold or silver dresses to signify their status, while poorer brides wore their best dress, which tended to be darker in colour to hide stains.
Wealthy brides often wore rich colours and exclusive fabrics, such as bold colours and layers of furs, velvet, and silk. The colour and fabric of a bride's dress reflected her family's wealth and social standing. Brides from lower social classes wore their best church dress on their wedding day, which was often darker in colour and made from more affordable fabrics.
In non-Western cultures, colourful wedding dresses continue to be common and often carry symbolic meanings unique to each region. For example, in China, brides traditionally wear red to symbolise good fortune, while in India, red wedding dresses symbolise the post-coital bleeding experienced by the bride when she loses her virginity. In Korea and Japan, silk wedding robes are used in various colours and styles depending on the dynasty and season.
While white wedding dresses became popular in Western cultures after Queen Victoria's wedding, colourful dresses continued to be worn by brides who could not afford white gowns or who chose to follow contemporary fashion trends. Even today, some brides opt for coloured wedding dresses as a form of personal expression or to incorporate cultural traditions into their wedding attire.
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Red is a traditional wedding dress colour in some cultures
Wedding dresses have evolved over the years, with colours and styles changing according to cultural traditions, societal values, and personal expression. While white wedding dresses are now customary in Western cultures, they were not always the norm, and brides in other parts of the world continue to embrace different colours and styles. One such colour is red, which holds symbolic significance in several cultures.
In Chinese culture, red is a traditional and auspicious wedding dress colour, symbolizing joy, happiness, good luck, and celebration. The tradition of wearing red dates back over 650 years to the Ming Dynasty, and brides may wear various styles, from the traditional Qun Kwa or cheongsam to Western-style red gowns. The colour red is also paired with gold jewellery to bring good fortune to the marriage. This combination of red and gold is also considered lucky in Chinese culture.
In Vietnamese culture, red is also a significant colour for weddings. Brides may wear an áo dài, a traditional tunic-like garment with loose pants underneath, in red, white, or pastel colours. For the engagement ceremony, called Đám Hỏi, the bride typically wears a red áo dài to represent happiness, luck, and prosperity.
In Kurdish culture, a first-time bride traditionally wears a red dress to symbolize the postcoital bleeding associated with losing her virginity. This custom contrasts with the Western assumption that a white wedding dress symbolizes virginity.
While white wedding dresses have become prevalent in Western cultures since Queen Victoria's marriage in 1840, they were not always the norm. Before the 19th century, brides in Europe and European-dominant countries wore various colours, including red, pink, blue, brown, or even black. The choice of colour often depended on economic factors, with white being more expensive and challenging to maintain.
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White wedding dresses symbolise purity and virginity
Wedding dresses have evolved significantly over the years, with the colour and style of the dress depending on the religion and culture of the couple getting married. In Western cultures, white wedding dresses have been popular since the 19th century, with brides in Eastern cultures often opting for more colourful garments.
White wedding dresses first became popular in 1840, when Queen Victoria wore a white gown to her wedding with Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha. The dress was trimmed with Honiton lace, and illustrations of the wedding were widely published. After this, many brides opted for white dresses, in accordance with the Queen's choice. White dresses were already a status symbol at expensive weddings in the 1400s and 1500s, with only the wealthy able to indulge in pale colours that would quickly show dirt.
White wedding dresses are often thought to symbolise purity and virginity. However, this association is relatively recent, with blue originally being the colour that represented purity, piety, and fidelity, and was linked with the Virgin Mary. White wedding dresses were also a symbol of wealth, being more expensive and harder to keep clean. In the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, white is also used as a symbol of purity, innocence, and cleanliness, with all participants in the wedding ceremony wearing white to symbolise unity and equality before God.
In other cultures, wedding dresses are often colourful and imbued with symbolic meanings unique to the region. For example, in China, brides traditionally wear red, which is considered a symbol of good fortune. In ancient Greece and Rome, brides wore bold colours like flame, saffron, purple, and yellow, which were associated with fertility, life, and happiness.
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Wedding dresses reflect the bride's social status
The colour and style of a wedding dress can depend on the religion and culture of the bride. Wedding dresses hold a significant place in fashion, symbolizing personal expression, cultural traditions, and societal values.
In Western culture, the wedding dress is most commonly white, a fashion made popular by Queen Victoria when she married in 1840. White wedding dresses were already a status symbol for the wealthy in the 1400s and 1500s, as they were costly and hard to maintain, but it was Queen Victoria's wedding that turned white gowns into the norm. White was also associated with purity and virginity, though it is worth noting that historically, the colour blue represented purity.
Before Queen Victoria's wedding, brides wore colourful dresses. Ancient Greek and Roman brides wore bold colours like flame, saffron, purple, and yellow. These shades were associated with fertility, life, and happiness. Saffron dye was expensive, so it indicated wealth and high social status. Similarly, brides from wealthy families often wore rich colours and exclusive fabrics, such as bold colours and layers of furs, velvet, and silk. The attire of the bride was a testament to the wealth and social standing of her family. Brides from lower social strata wore their best church dress on their wedding day, which tended to be darker in colour to hide stains.
In Eastern cultures, brides often wear red to symbolise good fortune and auspiciousness. In China, for example, brides wear red gowns with a phoenix tail. In Korea and Japan, silk wedding robes were used in different styles based on the dynasty and season, but they were always full of bright colours.
Therefore, it is clear that wedding dresses have historically reflected the bride's social status, with the colour and fabric of the dress indicating the bride's wealth and social standing. In modern times, however, brides can choose from a variety of colours and styles, with white or ivory being the most popular choices.
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Frequently asked questions
Wedding dresses in the past were a variety of colours, including red, pink, blue, brown, black, green, yellow, and gold. The colour chosen often depended on the bride's social status, with wealthy brides wearing bold colours and expensive fabrics, and less wealthy brides wearing their best dress, regardless of the colour.
In Western cultures, wedding dresses are now usually white, a tradition that started with Queen Victoria's wedding in 1840. However, in Eastern cultures, brides often wear red, and colourful wedding dresses are common.
Queen Victoria wore white because she wanted a dress made with the finest lace, which at the time was only available in white.
In Western cultures, white wedding dresses symbolise purity and grace. In the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, white is also a symbol of purity, innocence, and cleanliness.
