Yesterday's Bride is the ultimate wedding theme book for any bride who is planning a wedding, choosing or designing her gown, selecting flowers with special meanings, writing her own vows, and deciding on which wedding practices, customs, and traditions she may wish to include in her ceremony and reception; this book has it all. The 80 full-page photographs in Yesterday's Bride will give you a glimpse of bridal gowns from 1858 through the 1930's. Each photo is accompanied by detailed descriptions of the vintage wedding gowns worn by the bride as well as descriptions of bridesmaid's dresses including the wide variety of veils and trains from which to choose. Along with each photograph you will also find a discussion of wedding traditions, practices, and superstitions with their origins from the Pre-Dynastic Egyptian Period (3500 - 3050 BC), through the ancient Greeks and Romans, up to some relatively modern practices. You will discover the reasons and roots of Western wedding traditions from elaborate veils to the seemingly unimportant boutonniere on the groom's lapel. You will understand how social mores, economy, and even war have influenced fashion in general and bridal fashion specifically. Many of the traditions in Yesterday's Bride may be new to you and you may wish to include them when planning a ceremony and celebration that will be as unique for your guests as it will be for you. Flowers, which are so essential in the planning of a wedding, should not be chosen arbitrarily or by color and beauty alone. Each flower has special meanings, which are discussed in detail throughout the book. In addition to flowers there are many beautiful green or flowering herbs and even leaves with symbolism appropriate for a couple beginning a new life together. What flower indicates fidelity, passion, beauty or everlasting love? What leave symbolizes wealth or victory? What herb denotes remembrance, luck, or desire? Why not select flowers with meanings that are personally important or those that import a bright future? Incorporating these flowers, ferns, herbs, and leaves in your bouquets and center pieces will add a special meaning to your important day. Yesterday's Bride will supply you with wedding flower ideas and wedding photograph ideas. In Yesterday's Bride landmarks in the battle for the enfranchisement of women are correlated with photographs of brides during the corresponding time in history. It is interesting to note the parallels in the evolution of the women's suffrage movement and the style of clothing worn by women: from the binding, often deadly corsets of the oppressive 19th Century to the sheer, nude look of the liberating 1920s when women had their first taste of national political inclusion. It could be said that women's fashion recapitulates equality, or the contrary From bride by capture to bride by choice Yesterday's Bride traces the history of the wedding and its traditions throughout recorded time. The photos, text and quotes by the famous about brides, wives, and weddings will prove to be a valued source of reference for the bride-to-be in planning her wedding, writing her ceremony, selecting flowers, or choosing, even designing, her own gown.