The focal point of any wedding ceremony is the bride and as she walks down the aisle, all eyes turn to her and her wedding gown. It is the dream of every bride to get the most beautiful and elegant wedding gown available in the market and this is why all brides take extra care while purchasing their wedding gowns.

Although given the market conditions prevailing nowadays, most brides hunt for affordable wedding gowns rather than splurging on something very expensive. Yet, the first thing that a bride selects in her bridal gown is the color and then the design. Color plays a very important role in buying a wedding gown for any bride, whether she is buying in a retail shop or in an online store.

In the western culture, popularity of white wedding gown is such that very few brides think of walking down the aisle in any other color. Even though the color white needs a lot of maintenance, the overall demand for white wedding gowns still surpasses that of other colored wedding gowns.

Basically there are three fundamental concepts upon which this beautiful tradition of wearing a white wedding dress is based.

Brides haven't always been getting married in white. It is believed that the tradition of the white wedding dress was started by the English Monarchy. It was the wedding of Queen Victoria to the Albert of Saxe in 1840 that actually popularized these white wedding dresses as we know them today.

The Queen wore a beautiful pure white wedding gown which was elegant and extravagant. During those days a white wedding dress was a way to show off your status in the society. Getting married in a white bridal gown was a symbol of superior class, extravagance, affluence and style.

Over the course of time, a white wedding gown began to signify purity rather than wealth as it used to earlier. White or a variation of white symbolizes virginity and it is believed that white brings happiness to the married couple. Moreover, it also guarantees the fertility of a bride.

When a bride takes the vows in a white bridal gown, it carries a strong symbolism that the bride is marrying with purity of mind and heart and is committed to her groom. In a broader sense, white refers to the purity of the marriage and the marriage vows.

In fact, marrying in other colors like black and green was considered inauspicious.

Without any doubt, a resplendent white wedding gown looks fabulous at any point of time. There is something stylish and classy about white that makes it a favorite color amongst brides. White is a very glamorous shade that looks good on anyone and also helps accentuate a slim figure.

For every bride, it is an experience in itself to shop for a wedding gown, either in the market or online. Nowadays, it is easier to buy affordable wedding gowns online in various shades although white is still predominantly the most sought after shade. You will find a wide selection on affordable bridal gowns in shades of white, cream, ivory, off white and other such chaste shades in reputed online bridal shops as well.