The first Turkish woman known to have been married in a white wedding dress is Naime Sultan, the daughter of sultan Abdülhamid the second, who married in 1898.
The traditional Turkish wedding dress was in bold colors, like purple or red, richly embroidered in gold thread. This dress varied from region to region, often from village to village, and very often the head covering of the bride was red. Therefore…poppy = little bride.
Now every girl that can afford a wedding dress marries in white, but the traditional wedding dresses with their enormous variety and richness of design are not forgotten. They are used the night before the wedding, during henna night, a beautiful ceremony to mark the separation of the girl from her father’s house and the entering of her new life as married woman.
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Beautiful post Star! When i was writing my dissertation on Middle Eastern fashion & influences i interviewed a specialist on this subject and she showed me hundreds of photos of these dresses: each pattern reffers to traditions and tribes and she could recognize which village it was from and for which occasion just by looking at the designs. Truly dresses with a (his)story!
ReplyDeleteHeh, I remember my henna night, ı was totally out! LOL
ReplyDeleteI didn't know what is going to happen and what should I do, or should I do something :)
(I heard that ı should have cried for leaving my home and my mom...well since ı had lived over 10 years on my own already it wasn't so easy);)
Great post stars :)
Beautiful story, I didn't know about that - thanks for sharing...
ReplyDeleteLove these insights into an other world. A colorfull dress will do for me anytime. I made my own with beautiful deep red velvet and multicolored silk. No white for me!
ReplyDeleteWonderful story. And the brides look so beautiful!
ReplyDeletepretty bridal costumes ! I am very much interested in folk costumes; my grandmother from Scheveningen was always in her costume; did not wear anything else. I inherited her costume and started a collection from there. If you are interested in seeing some old postcards with traditional Dutch costumes: http://www.klederdrachten.inoudeansichten.nl/
ReplyDeletethis is so interesting to read!
ReplyDeleteBeautiful pictures, I love the radiation of the strong and powerfull woman in the first picture. And i find the poppy red wedding outfit gorgious!
ReplyDeleteWhat a lovely story! That wedding dress is amazing :)
ReplyDeleteGreat post, and very interesting info.
ReplyDeleteI love turkish folk art - so rich!
This was an absolutely fantastic post! Such brilliant, vibrant colors.
ReplyDeleteGreat post!
ReplyDeleteWhat a great story - love hearing traditions from different cultures. I have lots of poppies in my garden - they are one of my favorite!
ReplyDeleteDoes any one know where I can buy or rent a traditional Turkish wedding outfit, including the headdress, in the U.S. or Istanbul? It is for a fashion photography session. Thank.
ReplyDeletephotos@jimzuckerman.com
Jim