In the tradition of beloved anthologies of women's essay writing, this collection offers twenty-six true stories from well-known writers and fresh new literary voices writing about a touchstone garment in a women's lives-the wedding dress. These are intimate stories about relationships; not just those between men and women, but between women and their mothers, friends and children. And, of course, with their wedding attire — a relationship that is sometimes simple, sometimes complex, but always fascinating in what it tells us about individual lives and aspirations.
Some of the tales are humorous — the bride whose skin turns fuchsia on her wedding night or the woman whose shopping-savvy aunt takes her to New York's garment district. Some are romantic — the woman who puts on her dress eight years after her wedding only to be caught by her husband when he comes home early from work or the quickie immigration wedding that turned into the real thing. Some are devastating — the bride who loses her mother to illness only days before her wedding or the woman whose mother tells of being kidnapped by her future husband. And some are revealing — the woman who wears her first wedding dress for her initiation ceremony into a convent and her second to marry her beloved; the dress that waited patiently in a shop window and then hidden in a box on a closet shelf; the same-sex wedding at age eighty; the thrift shop wedding dress that gets used for everything but a wedding. All are honest, personal and profoundly moving.
"Something Old" looks at how traditions like honouring one's ancestors affected wedding dress choices, from a grandmother's gift to a father's old leather jacket, but also at how such traditions can play a role in ways you least expect. The pieces in "Something New" focus on dreams for the future, whether that means breaking away from the expectations of one's family or choosing/creating a wedding dress (and a future) on your own. In "Something Borrowed," writers tell of all the reasons behind borrowing (or trying to borrow!) dresses, for whatever reason, and "Something Blue ... Or Peach ... Or Striped ... Or Floral ..." looks at exactly that—the non-traditional choices women have made, and why.
These stories run the gamut of experiences connected to the iconic dress and day. If we work away at the seams, even the simplest of wedding outfits reveals all manner of memories and meanings. And whether you've ever worn a wedding dress or not, the stories in this collection will have you looking with new eyes on your own life, and exploring what the words "wedding dress" mean to you.
Contributors:
Joanne Arnott
Anita Rau Badami
Adwoa Badoe
Amy Cameron
Stevie Cameron
Sandra Campbell
Anne Laurel Carter
Lorna Crozier
Rebecca Cunningham
Laurie Elmquist
Alisa Gordaneer
Jessica Ruth Harris
Kathleen Boyle Hatcher
Rosemary Hood
Michele Landsberg
Mary T. Malone
Jenny Manzer
Ami McKay
Jane Munro
Margaret Goudie Parsons
Gianna Patriarca
Elyse Pomeranz
Edeet Ravel
Kerri Sakamoto
Ilana Stanger-Ross
Darla Tenold
Susan Whelehan
Jamie Zeppa Foreword — Stevie Cameron
Introduction — Susan Whelehan and Anne Laurel Carter
Part One: SOMETHING OLD
Bridal Pink — Anita Rau Badami
Green Silk and Black Leather: The Official Story — Alisa Gordaneer
Wedding Clothes and Marriage Blanket — Joanne Arnott
Knitted Together — Elyse Pomeranz
The Art Project — Jessica Ruth Harris
Part Two: SOMETHING NEW
Sunday Dinner and Wedding Dresses — Anne Laurel Carter
My Mother, My Wedding Dress — Ilana Stanger-Ross
A Simple Dress — Jane Munro
Until at Last — Kerri Sakamoto
With Patience She Stands Waiting —Rebecca Cunningham
The Past, the Pearls, the Politics — Susan Whelehan
