Black Wedding Dresses

In the 1800s, brides often wore wedding dresses in everyday colors, such as green, pink, blue, burgundy, dark brown and black. The bride wore the best dress she had, whatever the color. Black wedding dresses sometimes held a special significance.

Dark and black wedding dresses were practical for brides to wear in the 1800s. A practical bride often chose black so she could wear the dress on many occasions---not just on her wedding day. It was easier to keep a black dress looking clean, especially along the bottom.

In the 1800s, some people believed that wearing a black wedding dress was bad luck.  An old saying from those days spoke of wishing you could go back if you got married in black.

By the 1870s, women were beginning to wear white wedding dresses. By the 1880s, most women wore white or ivory, but some women still wore black