Foochow Wedding Customs : Second Wedding Dress

In the olden days, the bride wore two important dresses, the formal white wedding dress (influenced by the Rev James Hoover and Mrs Hoover), and the second formal dress to give toasts to relatives and well wishers.

For those without the budget, the second wedding dress would be simple and home made. Those with better budget might even get the material from Singapore, or have one specially tailored or ordered from Singapore in those days.

The Ni Toh Yee (Second suit) could be a brilliant design which would show the beauty of the bride. However it would also cause a lot of tongue wagging - the level of the education of the bride or her social back ground. She could be so rustic that the dress was not even properly cut, or she would be so well turned out that the dress was very much talked about for quite a few years.

So much for gossipers to talk about. I pitied the bride who came from a simple background who could not afford a good second wedding dress.

Today Bridal Salons or Wedding Dress Galleries do rent out two dresses for the bride at a price.