THIS is what's wrong with the bridal industry
"Lisa Levy waited for years, her girlish hopes and dreams ever deferred, the shining prize just out of reach. 'I always, always wanted that KitchenAid mixer,' said Ms. Levy, a pharmaceutical marketer who married in March and registered for and received a black five-and-a-half-quart model from Williams-Sonoma. 'I was afraid to buy it because on some level I believed I'd never get married if I did.'" (From the New York Times, June 7, 2006)
Okay, I know that she was kidding, but there must've been a part of her who believed it, because she thought of it enough to say it to the NYT. Christ. If I waited to get married before I got kitchen implements, I'd still be eating with a spork.
I don't blame her - well, not totally. Women have been raised to fetishize a big, blow-out, princessy wedding where you can ream your guests/parents/credit cards to the limit in order to live the fantasy.
I'm having a hard time with all this. I'm in my early 30s, so I've had a loooong time to get my very fixed ideas as to what I'd like in a wedding; then again, I've seen too many examples of people freaking out over what truly are non-important things. Then again, I'm starting to see how bridezillas arise: you're spending a LOT of money on what, let's be honest, for most of us will be the biggest party of your life, and by god you want to get every penny's worth.
SA has a big bridal expo at some point this month. I'm of mixed emotions about it. On one hand, that much frou-frou in one setting could send me off the deep end (we went to go look at one place already and I sulked for four hours about it); on the other hand, I hear they have free cake samples. My sister told me in all seriousness that one bridal expo they went to was the happiest day of her life. Hee. In her defense, she went with her then-fiance, they won some prizes and apparently were washed away with all the champagne. So I'm leaning towards maybe going. It just feels...strange. A lot of the bridal stuff is geared towards 22-year-olds (I'm guessing - who else wants to wear a strapless gown?). But free cake and champagne can do a lot to rectify that.
Okay, I know that she was kidding, but there must've been a part of her who believed it, because she thought of it enough to say it to the NYT. Christ. If I waited to get married before I got kitchen implements, I'd still be eating with a spork.
I don't blame her - well, not totally. Women have been raised to fetishize a big, blow-out, princessy wedding where you can ream your guests/parents/credit cards to the limit in order to live the fantasy.
I'm having a hard time with all this. I'm in my early 30s, so I've had a loooong time to get my very fixed ideas as to what I'd like in a wedding; then again, I've seen too many examples of people freaking out over what truly are non-important things. Then again, I'm starting to see how bridezillas arise: you're spending a LOT of money on what, let's be honest, for most of us will be the biggest party of your life, and by god you want to get every penny's worth.
SA has a big bridal expo at some point this month. I'm of mixed emotions about it. On one hand, that much frou-frou in one setting could send me off the deep end (we went to go look at one place already and I sulked for four hours about it); on the other hand, I hear they have free cake samples. My sister told me in all seriousness that one bridal expo they went to was the happiest day of her life. Hee. In her defense, she went with her then-fiance, they won some prizes and apparently were washed away with all the champagne. So I'm leaning towards maybe going. It just feels...strange. A lot of the bridal stuff is geared towards 22-year-olds (I'm guessing - who else wants to wear a strapless gown?). But free cake and champagne can do a lot to rectify that.
posted by Her Ladyship @ 10:26 AM
1 Comments:
At 2:28 PM,
Minerva Jane said…
Yeah, I have to say I think the whole wedding thing is a frightening experiment enacted on american women. when someone told me that my wedding day was supposed to be the happiest day of my life, I thought--my god I hope I'm not that pathetic. (What about your own personal accomplishments, or even the day you have your first child.) All just a ploy to get you to pay lots of $$$. If a wedding was really just about you and your sweetie making a committment to eachother it wouldn't matter if you were at the justice of the peace in jeans or in front of 300 of your closest friends in a tiered fluffy gown...
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