Wedding Attire for an Outdoor Wedding
Irene Conlan
At an outdoor wedding site you generally have two things to walk
on - grass or concrete. There is the occasional gravel path or
stones of some kind, perhaps even good old-fashioned dirt. (in a
church or other indoor venue, you have a clean, hard surface
that can be easily covered with a satin runner to keep the train
clean). This presents some interesting challenges when choosing
wedding attire.
Many wedding gowns come with trains - those yards of material on
the back of the dress that are supposed to flow behind the bride
as she walks up and down the aisle. Beautiful? Yes. Many are
beaded and bejeweled on a gown that ranges in price from
hundreds to thousands of dollars.
She also has selected beautiful satin shoes with four inch
heels. Her attendants have the same style shoes in the colors
that match their gowns. Gorgeous and stylish!
And the processional begins. The officiant is several hundred
feet away standing with the groom across an expanse of freshly
cut grass that probably has been recently watered. The goal is
for everyone to maneuver through the grass in those spiked heels
and arrive safely beside the officiant.
The bride's maids, followed by the maid or matron of honor come
in and with each step the spiked heels go down into the grass.
(As the waiting officiant I often think the gardeners should pay
the wedding party for aerating the lawn). It is not only
difficult for the women to walk in the grass with spiked heels
but also leaves the shoes with green and brown stains from the
grass and dirt.
When the wedding party is arranged appropriately on each side of
the officiant, the runner, generally made of paper, is rolled
down the grassy aisle and the bride comes in, beautiful in her
stunning gown with the long train. Her spiked heals sink down
catching in the runner and she hangs on to dad to keep from
falling. Sometimes the heels sink down through the runner almost
tripping the bride and, like her attendants, leaving stains on
her shoes. The train, full behind her, is wider than the runner
and the outer sides of the train glide across the grass.
If no one removes the runner prior to the processional, the
entire wedding party has to navigate the runner on their way
out. It is not safe but it does lend some comic relief.
Now come pictures. The train is probably dragged over more lawn,
more gravel and more dirt. By the time she is ready for the
reception or dinner, the underside of the train is probably
quite dirty and grass stained.
This is not made up. As an officiant I see this over and over.
The solution? The solution is three fold and very, very simple:
1. Purchase a beautiful gown that has no train.
2. Wear shoes that don't sink down into the ground. (At one
wedding the bride and her attendants wore white flip-flops and
the groom and his attendants wore black ones. They were dressed
elegantly. The flip-flops did not detract from the elegance and
everyone walked safely up and down the aisle).
3. Never use a paper runner. (In my opinion these are unsafe
both inside and outside).
It seems like safety should outrank high heels and trains but
this is just one officiant's opinion. The choice is always the
bride's.
Irene Conlan has a masters degree in nursing, a doctoral degree
in metaphysics, is a certified hypnotherapist and an ordained
minister. She practices holistic hypnotherapy and officiates at
weddings in Scottsdale, Az and the Phoenix metropolitan area.
She can be found at: http://www.thepowerzone.com (Hypnotherapy
Downloads) http://www.yourscottsdalewedding.com (Scottsdale
Weddings) http://your-scottsdale-wedding.com (Wedding Blog)
About the author:
Irene Conlan has a masters degree in nursing, a doctoral degree
in metaphysics and is a clinical hypnotherapist as well as an
ordained non-denominational minister. She practices hypnotherapy
and officiates at weddings in Scottsdale, AZ. She can be found
at: http://www.thepowerzone.com and
http://www.yourscottsdalewedding.com. Her wedding blog is
http://your-scottsdale-wedding.com
At an outdoor wedding site you generally have two things to walk
on - grass or concrete. There is the occasional gravel path or
stones of some kind, perhaps even good old-fashioned dirt. (in a
church or other indoor venue, you have a clean, hard surface
that can be easily covered with a satin runner to keep the train
clean). This presents some interesting challenges when choosing
wedding attire.
Many wedding gowns come with trains - those yards of material on
the back of the dress that are supposed to flow behind the bride
as she walks up and down the aisle. Beautiful? Yes. Many are
beaded and bejeweled on a gown that ranges in price from
hundreds to thousands of dollars.
She also has selected beautiful satin shoes with four inch
heels. Her attendants have the same style shoes in the colors
that match their gowns. Gorgeous and stylish!
And the processional begins. The officiant is several hundred
feet away standing with the groom across an expanse of freshly
cut grass that probably has been recently watered. The goal is
for everyone to maneuver through the grass in those spiked heels
and arrive safely beside the officiant.
The bride's maids, followed by the maid or matron of honor come
in and with each step the spiked heels go down into the grass.
(As the waiting officiant I often think the gardeners should pay
the wedding party for aerating the lawn). It is not only
difficult for the women to walk in the grass with spiked heels
but also leaves the shoes with green and brown stains from the
grass and dirt.
When the wedding party is arranged appropriately on each side of
the officiant, the runner, generally made of paper, is rolled
down the grassy aisle and the bride comes in, beautiful in her
stunning gown with the long train. Her spiked heals sink down
catching in the runner and she hangs on to dad to keep from
falling. Sometimes the heels sink down through the runner almost
tripping the bride and, like her attendants, leaving stains on
her shoes. The train, full behind her, is wider than the runner
and the outer sides of the train glide across the grass.
If no one removes the runner prior to the processional, the
entire wedding party has to navigate the runner on their way
out. It is not safe but it does lend some comic relief.
Now come pictures. The train is probably dragged over more lawn,
more gravel and more dirt. By the time she is ready for the
reception or dinner, the underside of the train is probably
quite dirty and grass stained.
This is not made up. As an officiant I see this over and over.
The solution? The solution is three fold and very, very simple:
1. Purchase a beautiful gown that has no train.
2. Wear shoes that don't sink down into the ground. (At one
wedding the bride and her attendants wore white flip-flops and
the groom and his attendants wore black ones. They were dressed
elegantly. The flip-flops did not detract from the elegance and
everyone walked safely up and down the aisle).
3. Never use a paper runner. (In my opinion these are unsafe
both inside and outside).
It seems like safety should outrank high heels and trains but
this is just one officiant's opinion. The choice is always the
bride's.
Irene Conlan has a masters degree in nursing, a doctoral degree
in metaphysics, is a certified hypnotherapist and an ordained
minister. She practices holistic hypnotherapy and officiates at
weddings in Scottsdale, Az and the Phoenix metropolitan area.
She can be found at: http://www.thepowerzone.com (Hypnotherapy
Downloads) http://www.yourscottsdalewedding.com (Scottsdale
Weddings) http://your-scottsdale-wedding.com (Wedding Blog)
About the author:
Irene Conlan has a masters degree in nursing, a doctoral degree
in metaphysics and is a clinical hypnotherapist as well as an
ordained non-denominational minister. She practices hypnotherapy
and officiates at weddings in Scottsdale, AZ. She can be found
at: http://www.thepowerzone.com and
http://www.yourscottsdalewedding.com. Her wedding blog is
http://your-scottsdale-wedding.com
posted by The Editor at
5:28 AM
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