Oakville Museum exhibit lets the ladies show off their not so haute couture gowns
Marriages may not last a lifetime, but bad bridesmaid dresses do.Ask Nancy Welsford. She had to wear a “hideous rag” that made her look like a saloon girl from Gunsmoke. “The venom of revenge still drips,” she says.
Since attending the wedding of a former colleague about 20 years ago, she has sought vengeance. The oversized rustling taffeta dress in garish green, complete with plunging sequined neckline, is indeed a Halloween costume.
“It’s a bridesmaid dress from hell,” says Welsford, who lends it to friends — female and male — who want a fun frock guaranteed to generate laughs.
“I really got my money’s worth in that arena because a lot of people have used it,” she says with a chuckle about the $379 dress. “It has taken on a life of its own and it brings joy wherever it goes.”
That’s why she plans to lend the dress to the Oakville Museum, which is accepting gowns for the May 2012 exhibit Bridesmaids Revisited! It’s the bridesmaid’s chance for revenge.
“Let’s be honest. Some dresses were only meant to be worn once, despite what a well-meaning bride may have told you,” says Carolyn Cross, curator of collections at the Oakville Museum.
The collection aims to show dresses from every era and include gowns from civil and religious ceremonies.
“This exhibit, although superficially fun, will have a significant research component which will investigate the traditions and customs of bridesmaids as well as the rationale behind the need for them and their changing roles.”
Welsford is still trying to understand the rationale for her dress: “a huge flapping green bag” with a train that was close to a metre in length. “It was a real hazard,” recalls the Montreal resident, formerly of Oakville.
Beneath the dress were mounds of black crinoline, so much so, she say, “I looked like a one-person float in a parade.”
Contrary to what one may think while looking at photos taken that day, Welsford is quick to point out that she wasn’t nine months’ pregnant, nor was she 400 pounds.
And if the garb’s gargantuan size wasn’t sufficiently eye-catching, there were green sequins adorning the collar, waist and wrist.
On the wedding day, the bride gave the bridal party black stockings, garter belts and “hideous green shoes,” which she had purchased in just two sizes: 6.5 and 10. You either crammed your feet into the smaller shoes or wore the larger ones stuffed with cottonballs.
“They had to be made of papier-mâché,” recalls Welsford with a laugh. “None of us had the right size for our feet and they felt like they were made out of wood.
To add insult to injury, the bride gave them a special gift, despite promises that there’d be no head gear. The reaction was “stunned silence.”
“We were presented with little combs with plastic baby’s breath woven into them. In the photos, they looked like bird droppings.”
“On the wedding day, I realized that we were dressed as saloon girls from the Wild West . . . I think she wanted us to look laughable so that she would look great.”
It’s the perfect gown for Bridesmaids Revisited!, says Cross, who’s looking for more cruelties unleashed on unsuspecting bridesmaids.
If you have a shiny satin, bright taffeta or oddly shaped gown gathering dust in your closet, Cross wants to see it. On Oct. 22, she’ll be at Oakville Place, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., and is asking former bridesmaids to bring dresses they either loved or loathed. If selected, the gown will be used during the year-long exhibit.
The only stipulation is there needs to be some connection between the gown and Oakville. For instance, it must have been purchased or designed in Oakville, worn by a current or former resident, or used in a local wedding.
One woman who wishes she could donate her hive-inducing dress is Michelle, who asked that her full identity not be revealed, so as not to hurt the bride’s feelings. But unfortunately, she has no connection Oakville, so the dress will remain in a closet.
“(The bride) had this horrible idea that we should all wear white along with her. Her rationale was some of the girls were slightly overweight and white would look better in pictures.”
The bride selected the style and colour and forbid alterations on the ankle-length strapless gown, which was made of polyester, despite being for a summer wedding.
The bridal party bit their tongues, except Michelle. She made one sarcastic comment that got her barred from the rehearsal dinner.
Little could have prepared her for the wedding day.
The polyester made it near-impossible to stay dry, she recalls.
“I was literally soaking wet the entire evening and couldn’t wait to get the dress off by the end of the early night. When I took it off I had hives all over my body. I had to get into a saltwater bath and use calamine lotion.”
Michelle, who plans to marry in the next year, learned one important lesson: “If I want my bridal party to have a really good time sharing in my beautiful celebration, I’ll take their opinions into consideration and allow for some creativity.”source
0 Comments
Posts
