Wedding Traditions and Custom Made Wedding Dresses
Up until the 1900's, brides hardly ever had custom made wedding dresses made up, opting for their best and finest regular outfit instead. However, the colour green was especially avoided, as it was thought to be unlucky. There was also a different connotation to avoiding the colour green. To say a girl had a 'green gown' implied the girl in question had loose morals, because her dress would be grass-stained from rolling around in the fields! It led to phrases such as 'married in green, ashamed to be seen!' White custom made wedding dresses were made popular by Queen Victoria, who broke the tradition of royalty always marrying in silver. Although green was definitely a colour to avoid, and silver was the hallmark of royalty, there were many other colour associations with wedding attire:
Married in white, you have chosen right
Married in grey, you will go far away,
Married in black, you will wish yourself back,
Married in red, you will wish yourself dead,
Married in green, ashamed to be seen,
Married in blue, you will always be true,
Married in pearl, you will live in a whirl,
Married in yellow, ashamed of your fellow,
Married in brown, you will live in the town,
Married in pink, your spirit will sink.
Married in white, you have chosen right
Married in grey, you will go far away,
Married in black, you will wish yourself back,
Married in red, you will wish yourself dead,
Married in green, ashamed to be seen,
Married in blue, you will always be true,
Married in pearl, you will live in a whirl,
Married in yellow, ashamed of your fellow,
Married in brown, you will live in the town,
Married in pink, your spirit will sink.
