A bride is a woman who is getting married. In Western countries, the bride typically wears a white wedding dress, a tradition started by Queen Victoria in 1840. The bride may be accompanied by her maid of honor, matron of honour or man of honour, who usually assumes some responsibilities such as helping plan the bridal shower and bachelorette party. A bridesmaid is a female friend who will stand by the bride’s side on her big day. The role is traditionally taken by the bride’s best friends, but it can be a sibling or sister-in-law as well.
A bridal shower is a celebration for the bride before her marriage. It is a chance for her close female friends to give her gifts that will help her prepare for her new life as Mrs. She may also receive a letter from her bridesmaids expressing their love and support for her. A common game is “guess what the bride will be wearing,” in which guests are given a picture of the bride’s dress (or another dress or even a sketch if her dress is a secret!) and try to guess what she will look like on her special day.
When writing a bridal letter, it’s important to express your true feelings about the bride. Try to avoid cliché phrases such as “she’s the most amazing person I know” and instead focus on how she has impacted your life. Share your favourite memories together and let her know how much she means to you.
If you’re unsure what to write in a bridal letter, it can be helpful to brainstorm some ideas beforehand. Think about the ways she has influenced your life and how you have a deep connection with her. Then, use these stories and experiences to help you shape your letter.
The word bridal comes from Old English brydealo, meaning “wedding ale; wedding feast.” It was originally used as an attributive adjective, but in the 18th century it began to be regarded as a descriptive noun, as in the phrase bride-cake, which refers to a celebratory cake eaten by the newlyweds. It is also used as an adjective to describe the ceremonial dress worn by a bride during her wedding.
In a recent qualitative study, brides were asked about their power experiences when selecting the wedding dress. Their responses were analyzed using a combination of analytical coding and thematic interpretation. The two main themes that emerged from the analysis were how the brides felt about different types of power in the dress-selection process and their perception of the level of influence each type of power exerted on their decision-making processes. These power bases included coercive, reward, legitimacy, expert and referent power. The findings indicated that each of these forms of power were present at various points in the dress selection process. Ultimately, many of the brides experienced role stress and conflict when making their choice. This was due to a lack of control over the dress-selection process and to the responsibilities that come with their chosen roles.