A bride. A groom. Something old. Something borrowed, something green. That’s not how the ditty goes, but that is what it takes to put on the average wedding these days. Say, $22 thousand worth of green, and most of it borrowed.
Blame it all on Queen Victoria, and the bright white gown and twenty foot train she wore in her 1840 wedding to Prince Albert. Now it seems all the brides want to outdo old Vicky, and a $50 billion industry of high-end wedding planners, cake designers, bridal malls, and discount chains have sprung up to serve a couple’s every whim. The next day there’s the wedding hangover; thank you cards to write, and a big stack of bills leaving a couple wondering if it was worth all the fuss.
Guests:
Stephanie Coontz, national co-chair of Council on Contemporary Families
William Harley, psychologist, marriage counselor and founder of Marriage Builders
Millie Martini Bratten, editor in chief of Bride’s Magazine.