The Blushing Bride

I grew up looking at photos of one of the most beautiful wedding dresses I have ever seen. The early 1960s stark white dress has short sleeves to accommodate any summer bride, a high elegant collar, fitted through the waist with a princess skirt that ends in a short train. This wedding dress belongs to my maternal grandmother who wore it in 1961 when she married my grandfather.

My grandmother was lucky to have a wedding dress, let alone one so fashionable. My grandparents married in communist Cuba where the luxury of a wedding dress was not very common. She explained that when you were set to marry you had to register with the government and only the lucky were given fabric to have a dress made. She describes the fabric as matte sateen.

Hiring a seamstress to make the dress for her, she drew inspiration from the trends of the time. She remembers the high collar being very popular and told me how after school was out she and her friends would turn up their collars to be fashionable.

After marrying on July 8, 1961 she lent out her dress to countless girls who weren’t as lucky as she was to win the lottery of wedding fabric. My grandmother kept a record of all the girls who borrowed her dress so that she could get it back because there was always another girl who couldn’t wait to wear it next on their own wedding day.

Unfortunately it was one of the many family heirlooms left behind when my grandparents sought refuge in the US. She isn’t sure what became of her dress but does know that the dress was loved and cherished by many happy and fashionable brides.

Vintage Wedding Dresses for the Modern Bride

Pearl Jelly Shoes by Vintage Renude; 1960s Cream Gloves by Jaanas Vintage; 1950s Henry Rosenfeld Silk Dress by Merletto Vintage

1950s Adele Martin Dress by Anatomy Vintage; Pink Ladie's Gloves by Bold as Lions; Pink Cluster Earrings by Vintage Envy

1960s Wedding Dress by Victoria Westbury; Rhinestone Earrings by Borrowed Times; Silk Wedding Pumps by Rolling Hills Vintage