Historically, bridesmaids were 'mini brides' whose purpose was to confuse evil spirits or potential kidnappers. Far from upstaging the bride, they protected the bride on her special day. Today, there's little chance of a Bride actually worrying about evil spirits pursuing her on the way the the Church or keeping her from her vows. This British tradition for bridesmaids or flower girls posing as mini brides (and often in white since the 1840's) has ebbed and flowed in popularity over the years but has never been absent.
This is such a lovely photo of Princess Diana on her wedding day, surrounded by her flower girls in white. A tradition that continued strongly in Kate Middleton's wedding (below) a few years ago.
The idea that a guest wearing white to a wedding might cause offense is a modern one. Many etiquette books will advise you not to, for fear of upstaging the bride (if that were possible) or possibly upsetting her. This mostly American idea has really held sway for many years here and I know from speaking to people at weddings that the idea of wearing white no longer rests easy with them. Over and over I ask why they feel that way and they tell me that they would never do it...but can't explain why. Somehow it's just floated into popular culture and has taken root, And obviously no one wants to offend a bride on her wedding day, so they avoid the whole thing. What a shame!
It seems to me that the only way we can recover this tradition and have guests in the future comfortable with wearing white to nuptial celebrations, is at the source of the worry: the bride herself. The more brides that are willing to incorporate white in the bridal party and the more they show how much this trend emphasises (rather than takes away) from their importance on the day, the more this idea will ripple out in other weddings. Hopefully in another ten years, wearing white to a wedding celebration will be as common and normal as it should be now. At the latest royal wedding, Pippa Middleton and the flower girls showed us how just how relevant and charming this trend still is, not to mention red carpet worthy...
So if you've been umm-ing or ahhh-ing over whether or not you could carry off a white bridal party - you can. History and tradition is on your side. What more could you ask for?
Let's embrace the beauty of white at weddings; be it as wedding guests, bridesmaids, flower girls or brides to be, it's such a lovely tradition. Naturally I have a Pinterest board dedicated to this pet project of mine, why not take a look and see what you think?
This is such a lovely photo of Princess Diana on her wedding day, surrounded by her flower girls in white. A tradition that continued strongly in Kate Middleton's wedding (below) a few years ago.
The idea that a guest wearing white to a wedding might cause offense is a modern one. Many etiquette books will advise you not to, for fear of upstaging the bride (if that were possible) or possibly upsetting her. This mostly American idea has really held sway for many years here and I know from speaking to people at weddings that the idea of wearing white no longer rests easy with them. Over and over I ask why they feel that way and they tell me that they would never do it...but can't explain why. Somehow it's just floated into popular culture and has taken root, And obviously no one wants to offend a bride on her wedding day, so they avoid the whole thing. What a shame! It seems to me that the only way we can recover this tradition and have guests in the future comfortable with wearing white to nuptial celebrations, is at the source of the worry: the bride herself. The more brides that are willing to incorporate white in the bridal party and the more they show how much this trend emphasises (rather than takes away) from their importance on the day, the more this idea will ripple out in other weddings. Hopefully in another ten years, wearing white to a wedding celebration will be as common and normal as it should be now. At the latest royal wedding, Pippa Middleton and the flower girls showed us how just how relevant and charming this trend still is, not to mention red carpet worthy...
White brings out the bloom in young girls like no other hue can and is always lovely to see. It especially comes into its own in the warmer months when the white glows out against lush summer lawns, green foliage and that quintessential wedding backdrop - the english country garden. In Britain, there's really no reason to avoid white. Far from detracting from the bride, white flower girls emphasis the importance of the bride and really mark out the day as hers by repeating her own style.
Our very own Fashion Icon Kate Moss had 13 white flower girls / bridesmaids at her wedding. Could you be any more bang on trend than that? White wedding dresses and bridesmaids and flower girls in white dresses is distinctly British and it would be such a loss to lose this custom.
Our very own Fashion Icon Kate Moss had 13 white flower girls / bridesmaids at her wedding. Could you be any more bang on trend than that? White wedding dresses and bridesmaids and flower girls in white dresses is distinctly British and it would be such a loss to lose this custom.
So if you've been umm-ing or ahhh-ing over whether or not you could carry off a white bridal party - you can. History and tradition is on your side. What more could you ask for?
Let's embrace the beauty of white at weddings; be it as wedding guests, bridesmaids, flower girls or brides to be, it's such a lovely tradition. Naturally I have a Pinterest board dedicated to this pet project of mine, why not take a look and see what you think?
