Why non-conventional brides should wear a red wedding dress

by Karen Vander

Western brides have traditionally choose a white wedding dress as a symbol of their purity, virginity and innocence. This tradition is so wide spread in the whole Western world, that other colors were considered simply taboo. However, in the last decades, we could see that many brides are turning to different color. First, brides started to choose pastel wedding dresses and in the last years they have turn to the more vibrant red wedding dresses.

An amazing red wedding dress - Bridal Fair at Mid Valley Megamall - February 2009.

Red dresses are not only elegant, but have been traditional in many cultures. In both Hindy and Buddhist tradition, red is a symbol of good luck. In the Western world, the tradition of wearing a white wedding dress is relatively recent. It was made popular in the year 1840 by the marriage of Queen Victoria. Since it was a royal wedding, many people took it as a model in elegance. And this tradition survived until the present day. However, truth be told, there is no obligation of wearing a white dress. Christian tradition doesn’t prescribe any color.

A confident modern model- Bridal Fair at Mid Valley Megamall - February 2009.

Traditional, that is in the last centuries, woman wear the best dress that they had in their wedding. There were no special dress for weddings. The color here was of a lessen importance. Most brides didn’t wear white normally, so most wedding dresses weren’t white. White, however, was considered a symbol of higher social standing, since lower classes couldn’t afford to have a white dress that was, by its color, unsuitable for working or other daily activities.

So, since many modern woman generally disdain all old-fashions and repeated, and the symbolism of white has lost mostly its appeal, why do even unconventional woman, who dress unconventionally the most part of the year would choose a plain, white dress?

A beautiful purple dress. Other colors are beautiful also. Think outside the box. Bridal Fair at Mid Valley Megamall - February 2009.

The answer to this rhetoric question is simply that there is no reason for that. There are plenty of red wedding dresses that are a middle point between audacious and elegant. The dress projects the image of what we are and above everything of how we feel like. Nowadays, woman are not simply fulfilling a social imposition in their wedding, they are expressing their needs and fulfilling a dream.

Red, also in wedding dresses, is normally associated with passion in the whole Western world. Nowadays, there is no reason why an unconventional, modern woman could not express her feeling of passion wearing a red wedding dress.