Getting married is a significant moment in anyone’s life, and the dress you wear on your wedding day will be remembered for years to come. While the significance of the bride’s wedding dress has evolved over time, reflecting cultural, religious and societal norms, one thing remains constant: it is an important symbol of marriage (Roach-Higgins and Eicher 1992; Friese 2001).
As such, choosing your perfect wedding gown can be a big decision that often involves balancing multiple factors. The bridal designer who helps you select your wedding dress will take into account your personal style, body type and size, as well as your budget and other considerations.
The neckline and sleeves of your wedding dress play a crucial role in creating the overall look and feel of your wedding gown. There are countless different neckline options, from a classic V-neck to a plunging deep-v that showcases your décolletage. Sleeves can be barely-there and sexy, or they can be embellished with beads, crystals and lace. The waistline of your wedding dress is another key factor to consider. A drop waist creates a classic 1920s effect, while empire waists skim over the hips for a more contemporary fit. Other dress styles don’t have a waistline at all, such as column and sheath dresses that loosely skim over the body without a visible line.
A wedding dress can be both a statement piece and a classic silhouette, depending on how the designers incorporate color into your gown. Some gowns feature cascading tiers of delicate blush blossoms, while others are embellished with a range of multi-color floral prints. This season, designers like Amsale and Ines di Santo are also playing with the idea of combining color with texture. From pastel blue and blush tulle to embroidered ruffles and beaded flowers, a gown that combines texture with color gives a modern bride a unique wedding dress that’s truly her own.
Wedding dresses are high involvement purchases and a key aspect of the wedding ceremony that carries significant symbolic meaning. This makes the decision-making process around a wedding dress more complex and may include many actors (Choy and Loker 2004). For example, the bride’s parents may be more influential when it comes to paying for her wedding dress, especially if they have a history of providing financial support to their children in their formative years.
The choice of a wedding dress is also a liminal ritual that helps women reposition themselves as a woman in their new relationship. Cody (2012) argues that the wedding dress can be seen as an object that assists women through this transition by “bodily exploring” their identity as a wife-to-be and navigating through the various roles she will have in her new family. This can help her to integrate the values of her husband into her own and develop a new sense of self.