"Oh hey, I'm Kate Middleton! I look sexy and yet so elegant the frickin' Queen lent me her tiara!!"
Whenever anybody starts talking to me about weddings, I’m always game to hear about the visual aspects of the event so I can fantasize. The venue, the colour story and the dress (of course!) are all very fine and dandy but the juiciest tidbit of information for me to devour is the theme. And I have no idea why. Maybe I like the way I can shamelessly praise (or critique) their creativity (or lack thereof) without repercussions, maybe I enjoy the challenge of creating my own better version of their wedding in my head, or maybe I just need a good laugh in the way that only ‘27 Dresses’ can give me. Regardless of whatever bitter and spiteful motives I subconsciously have, it really got me thinking like a bride. A very fashionable bride. Not for long, I promise. But enough time for me to have a seriously scrumptious question pop into my head: Does the style of your wedding dress have to match the style of your wedding?
Now for anyone who knows me or feels like they know me from reading all my posts, you would be familiar with the fact that I like flow, balance, cohesiveness and harmony in all visual aspects, not just fashion- long story short, I don’t like things that don’t make sense. Ok, I lied, I like abstract art. Everything else that doesn’t make sense. That being said, you would think that I’d be driving the ‘yes’ side bandwagon, cracking the whip and screaming like a banshee “Contemporary wedding? Contemporary dress! Gone with the Wind wedding? Gone with the Wind dress!”
However, I like to keep people guessing (it’s not ladylike to give it all away on the first date) and therefore my official answer to this wedding-bell wondering is no. Why? Let me elaborate.
A wedding (in my definition) is a celebration of love that should be remembered. Mind you, I’ll take a marriage over a wedding any day but think about it- at what other time can you indulge in looking gorgeous, seeing all of your family and friends and enjoying a great party- all in the name of love? Unless you host some really weird parties… But seriously, this is an event that you want to remember positively for the rest of your life, especially during difficult moments like when they leave the toilet seat up for the millionth time. And since you want to remember this day, you need to feel and look your best, which in turn will help you to remain at your happiest and frankly if that involves you wearing a traditional-style dress at your contemporary and modern wedding then so be it! In my opinion, what’s most important as a bride (and in general) is to wear garments that flatter your body shape and you are doing yourself a huge favour by sticking to that rule during an event that will be intensely documented in only one take. I’ve seen and worked with so many brides-to-be that get caught up in wedding semantics and sometimes it takes a good friend (or me) to encourage focusing more energy towards what makes you happy and what makes you feel good than producing a circus.
Unfortunately, fashion is like the English language in the sense that there are many exceptions to the rule, and in this case, there are two. Firstly, I can’t stress enough that there is a major difference between a wedding theme and a wedding style. A wedding style involves current and relative décor and venue choices while taking inspiration from a certain source, such as “The Notebook”, the 1950s or a favourite vacation spot. A wedding theme however is a little more intense, and involves not just taking inspiration from but actually recreating a certain source- so at a Great Gatsby-themed wedding, bridesmaids would wear flapper dresses, gin and whisky-based drinks would be the beverage of choice and the reception would be held in the yard of a swanky and historical mansion. Although theme weddings can be done to a certain degree and can be anywhere from fun and tasteful to crazy and awkward, the difference between the two terms is the difference between whether you wear a dress that goes with the wedding or not. Bottom line: if you feel that you are only inspired by something with regards to your wedding, wear the dress that’s best for you. Re-enacting the Civil War? Put on that bonnet, tighten those bodice strings, load up your shotgun and hit the road for glorious matrimony. Nobody wants to look like they showed up at the wrong wedding.
Furthermore, you want to make sure that you remain appropriate. Assuming that your friends and family whose opinions you value are slated for attendance, you want to make sure that what you choose to wear doesn’t offend anyone, so save the three T’s (ta-tas, tummy and tush) for the bachelorette. This second rule also includes the location and venue at which your big day is taking place. Would you show up to church in a cocktail dress? A fancy hotel in a cotton sundress? A beach on a hot day in long sleeves? A backyard BBQ in tulle and sequins? Common sense comes in handy in situations like these, so don’t forget you’ve got it, because sure as shootin’ you’ll need it for everything else now that you’ve got this issue sorted.
Need help picking out the perfect dress? Have you ever been to a crazy theme wedding? Do you actually own a bonnet? I want to know it all, so drop me a line at l.twentiesproject@gmail.com!
The Twenties Project 