Sepia Satuday's October theme is "Special Occasions" which this week focuses on Weddings, with the prompt photograph showing a bride arriving at the church with her father.
Where
do I start on this topic, as I have no shortage of images! So I am focusing on
fashion.Takea look at styles down decades from 1879 to 1971
- and read the stories surrounding the events.
One of my favourite photographs as it is so typical of its period - 1929, According
to her daughter, Jennie Danson (my great aunt) by her late
twenties decided she had had enough of fulfilling a domestic role for
her four brothers, following the death of their parents. The brothers showed no inclination to marry and set up their
own homes.So 1929 saw Jennie marrying Beadnell (Bill) Stemp at St. Chad's
Church, Poulton le Fylde, Lancashire. This move prompted her brothers all to get married in
the following few years!
A local newspaper report gave an account of Jennie's dress. Written in an effusive, over the top journalistic style, it makes entertaining reading:
"A
wedding of much local interest took place in the Poulton Parish Church
on Saturday afternoon the bride being Miss Jennie Danson daughter of the
late Mr and Mrs James Danson, Bull Street and the bridegroom Mr
Beadnell Stemp, son of Mr and Mrs B. Stemp, Jubilee Lane, Marton.
The
bride, who was given away by her brother Mr R. Danson, was stylishly
gowned in French grey georgette, veiling silk to tone. The
bodice which was shaped to the figure was quite plain, with a spray of
orange blossoms at the shoulder, while the skirt, which was ankle
length, was composed entirely of five picot edged scalloped circular
frills, and the long tight sleeves had circular picot edged frilled
cuffs in harmony. Her hat was of georgette to tone with uneven pointed dropping brim, having an eye veil of silver lace and floral mount. She carried a bouquet of pink carnations with silver ribbon and horsehoe attached."
Here is the
1931 wedding of Albert Leslie Williams and Hilda Florence Coombs in London,
the parents of my cousin's Stuart's wife. It is two year's after my
great aunt's wedding above and in another part of the country, but Dutch
style hats for the little bridesmaids were still in fashion.
My mother's cousin Annie
Danson married on 4 October 1928 and the local press report again provided a
fascinating picture of the fashion of the day. Do take time to read
it as it gives such a colourful and evocative description of the
dresses, with the headline "Gowned in Delphinium Blue".
“A member of an old Poulton family Miss Annie M Danson, daughter of the late Mr and Mrs J Danson was married in the Parish Church, Poulton.
The
bride, who was given away by her uncle Mr R. Danson, was gowned in
delphinium blue georgette, the sleeveless bodice being plain, while the
circular skirt was side slashed and bordered all round with deep silver
lace. Her hat was ruched georgette to tone and she wore silver shoes and hose to tone. Her bouquet was of pale pink chrysanthemums.
The bridesmaids were Miss Jennie Danson (aunt) and Miss J Ditchfield (sister of the bridegroom). Miss Danson wore pale shell pink georgette over silk, the picot edged skirt having shaded crystal motifs at intervals. Her hat was of fine black felt with alternate shades of pink chiffon velvet on the drooping brim to tone with the gown.
Miss J. Ditchfield was in mauve taffeta, veiled with fine Brussels lace, with a hat of fine grey felt. Both bridesmaids carried bouquets of russet chrysanthemums.
The
reception was held at the home of the bride’s uncle, after which Mr and
Mrs Ditchfield went to New Brighton for the honeymoon, the bride
travelling in a dress of rose-rust silk, with ecru lace en relief, over
which she wore a cost of dove grey, with fox fur trimming and hat of grey felt”.
Isn't this hat magnificent? This was the wedding photograph of George Butler and Sarah Alice Oldham who married in Blackpool, Lancashire in 1910. Sarah's
husband George worked for the Oldham family's coal merchant business.
Below is a charming photograph of the marriage of Sarah's sister Beatrice Oldham and Jack Clark on 26th December 1919.
I feel the
significance of the date after the First World War is reflected in the fashion, where there is a certain air of informality (shorter skirt,
trilby hat etc.) It
contrasts with the very formal opulent dress of
Sarah's wedding above nine years earlier in 1910.
Back some 40 years to more opulence depicted in a copy of "The Illustrated London News", issue no. 2074 , March 15th
1879. Many years ago when in London I discovered a pile of the
magazines in a shop by the Victoria and Albert Museum and bought several
editions, as I love the old engravings.
The occasion featured here was the marriage in 1879 of Queen
Victoria's third son Prince Arthur William Patrick Albert, Duke of
Connaught to Louise Margaret Alexandra Victoria, third daughter
of Prince Frederick Charles of Prussia.
The wedding report was very lengthy and extremely fulsome in style. A short extract is given here: The princess's dress was described as:
"made of thick white satin, the waist trimmed with lace 4" wide, the
skirt also trimmed with lace 12" deep with bunches of myrtle. The train
was 13 feet long, with a rich lace flounce 3 feet wide, upon which was
laid a branch of myrtle......
The pearl
necklace worn by her Royal Highness was a wedding gift from her
most illustrious and venerable uncle King William I, emperor of
Germany.........
The bridal veil
was richly decorated with real point-de-gaze lace, ornamented with
flowers, crown and the royal coat of arms of Prussia, in relief, all
worked with real white lace. The order was given at the beginning of
July last and the work has been done by the hands of 300 peasant girls
in the mountains of Silesia".
Onto a century later - and my own wedding in 1971,
Here with my father arriving at the church - my nearest image to the prompt photograph below. I was wearing a simple empire line dress, with a headdress in the style of Ann Boleyn, the wife of Henry VIII. Tudor styles were all the rage at the time, with dramas on TV and in Hollywood films.
To be honest it not a good omen, given that Ann Boleyn suffered the fate of being executed by the monarch. But my husband and I survived and have recently marked our 53rd anniversary!
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Sepia Saturday gives bloggers an opportunity to share
their family history and memories through photographs
-l
Click HERE to see how other Sepia Saturday bloggers
are marking SPECIAL OCCASIONS.
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