Victorian Wedding Dresses

If the thought of a big, puffball bridal gown gives you nightmares or visions of your big day representing an episode of My Big Fat Gypsy Wedding, you may well wish to consider an alternative or more unconventional style of dress. One such option is the Victorian wedding dress.

Victorian gowns take their inspiration from the period when Queen Victoria ruled (1837-1901,) and her gown that she wore for her marriage to Price Albert is the very one that started the trend. The somewhat matronly monarch might seem an unlikely fashion icon, yet her choice of outfit inspired women in the second half of the 1800s and beyond. The trend at the time was for colourful dresses, yet her choice of simple and demure white satin trimmed with lace, set a revolution in place in the world of bridal gowns, and the majority of western dresses are now ordered in white, cream or ivory fabrics. Victoria was also responsible for establishing the wear-it-once-only wedding dress.

This style of gown is soft and romantic, and heavily features silk, satin, and lace. They also tend to include the use of bows, frills, or pearls. The bodice is high-necked, and shaped like a corset – giving an appearance of a very small waist. While dress designers continue to manufacture Victorian-inspired outfits, you will also find antique wedding dresses of this style around if you would prefer to purchase an original.

Many celebrities have chosen Victorian style wedding dresses for their nuptials, including other members of the Royal Family. Who could forget Princess Diana’s legendary gown that was designed by Elizabeth Emmanuel? Made from hundreds of yards of tulle, lace, ivory silk and taffeta, her epic Victorian-style dress is the stuff of bridal legends.

Victorian wedding dresses represent hope, grace, beauty, and purity, and are the epitome of the fairytale “white wedding.”