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A New Dress Goes a Long Way
By Cornelia Powell | September 21, 2008
On an early morning walk recently, with the first glimpse of goldenrod in bloom and the smell of autumn in the wind, I was transported to the childhood ritual of “going back to school” — even accompanied by a knot in my stomach. The twinge came from recalling a sense of regret that the seemingly endless days of freedom, bicycling along country roads and wearing Bermuda shorts, were over.
In fact, shopping for new clothes may have been the only thing that made going back to school tolerable for me as a little girl. Needless to say, getting to wear a new dress went a long way with me!
But is it reason enough for a woman to get married? Read on.
Wedding gowns are certainly one of those telling costumes that highlight remembrances of things past, as Marcel Proust declares. My costume scholar colleague, Dr. Joanne Eicher, writes that our apparel “serves as one of the most important markers of cultural identity” and that the most visible and significant are wedding garments.
As I was putting together the just launched Autumn issue of Weddings of Grace Online Magazine — featuring “Wedding Gowns Tell Their Story” – I found many delightful stories to share of past and modern wedding dress lore. The stories reveal how these bridal costume decisions tap into a deep part of a woman’s consciousness as well as her sense of being feminine.
How we associate the memory of a wedding gown to our inner self makes a strong connection and puts us in this rather Proustian mood. See if you find yourself in these experiences:
- One of the brides I quote in the new issue of Weddings of Grace ponders whether or not getting to wear a beautiful new gown was the reason she decided to marry her boyfriend!
- Other women had regrets years later that they allowed pressure from society or peers to influence their decision.
- Another former bride-to-be learned so much about herself in how she went about selecting her wedding gown — and how she looked in it — that it became a life changing experience for her.
And then there is this aspect: Some of us just get a great deal of mileage out of wearing a new dress at any time, yes?
Love. Listen. Let go.
….with love from Cornelia
Topics: Costume, For Brides, Inspiration, Remembrances, Women's Notes |