Once your special day is over, what happens to the wedding gown?
You can keep it in the wardrobe to remember one of the most important days of your life or save it for a person close to you for her own special day, as was the custom in the past.
Maybe you won’t believe this, but a third alternative is to destroy the wedding dress.
Every bride wants to be at her best on the wedding day, that’s why she devotes months to the choice of her dream wedding gown. It will be one of the most expensive dresses she’s ever bought and, in most cases, will be worn only once. In the last few years, an unusual trend that allows the bride and groom to reuse their wedding outfits after the ceremony has spreading around the world. Better known as “trashing the dress”, we’re talking about a particular style of wedding photography where the bridal couple wears their outfits one last time in a fresh, creative and liberating context. This time the wedding dress will be worn in an unusual environment and in a much less careful manner, creating contrast with the elegance and tidiness on the wedding day. An important aspect is the laidback, playful and informal vibe where the bride and groom feel at ease and have fun together. The “trash the dress” trend comes from the USA and is becoming more and more popular. According to some sources, this practice was inaugurated by the Las Vegas wedding photographer John Michael Cooper in 2001. After becoming bored with too many traditional weddings photo shoots, he began asking brides to pose after their wedding day in unusual settings. Following this style, the bride and groom can be photographed while they are taking a walk through the wood, swimming in a pool or in a pond, rolling in the mud or on the seashore, running in the fields or in abandoned roads and playing with colored paints or sprays. Another popular and very evocative alternative is the underwater photo shoot. The motivation and the original meaning to make the wedding dress creased, wet, dirty and even torn is positive and symbolic. The bride destroys her white gown to ward off any possibility of wearing it again, so wishing for a marriage that will last for a lifetime. In some cases, this gesture can also represent a rebellion against the traditionally composed and clean image of the bride. For those unwilling to ruin their beautiful and expensive wedding gown, an option is to wear another dress which can be damaged without fear and remorse. Whether you’re frolicking in the glistening turquoise sea waves or tossing colored powder, trashing the dress creates a bonding experience with your partner captured in a unique, romantic and at the same time adventurous way. If this unusual and fun trend seems like the perfect way to end the wedding celebrations, let your creativity flow and start thinking of original places to set the shooting.
