WHAT FASHIONABLE WEDDINGS COST.

Otago Witness, Issue 2728, 27 June 1906, Page 80

WHAT FASHIONABLE WEDDINGS COST.

D&ESS- BILLS OE A SOCIETY BRIDE.

The months of May and June usually see a large crop of fashionable weddings, and to these months dressmakers, miiliners, "florists-, caterers*, and a whole host

of other- tradespeople look for the rich harvest which the. weddings of a London season bring. Unfortunately for the parents of the modern fashionable bride, ! weddings have of" late years shown a distinct tendency to- become more and more costly.. Presents,- too, are generally agreed to have reached the high-water mark of costliness. What a fashionable' wedding fiist and last costs,; few- people, save the parentsof the bride-, and- possibly the bridegroom, have much idea. To commence with that mysterious and always delightful item, the.- trousseau. "One can spend almost anything upon- • trousseau;-" exclaimed w well-known-modiste-the^other day. ir W* have now a wedding, dress- in- hand 1 - for a r society' bride which iB one- ot the most exquisite creations -vfe' have ever designed "and carried out. . - Peopie are- just recoveringf rom the financial straits brought about by the late war", and" now once' more the parental pursesfcrings ate loosened a trifle more than is* perhaps absolutely- necessary j to keep- up. fchfe- family _«eptttation>. The j dress I have * in- mind'" is of the conventional, white satin (the most- oostly and , the 'richest' ordinary procurable), and is trimmed-, with- lace and* the new ap- I plique, and embroidered' with pearls 4 . | "It is really cheap," continued the' speaker, with, we thought, a. glimmer of a smile, "at. £120," and is by no means the most costly robe we expect to makethis side of the end of the Londoni season. It is- for just a plain miss whose: father is wealthy, as- we nowadays, teke the term*. 'But a- wedding dress always appears to me to be an. economical soft of ' garment; because;' you see, the bridb wears Jfc ; for some little time scarcely altered- as an evening, dress. And, if the material and trimmings are really good . .(which,, of course, they- are when* the xobe costs anything, approaching filTO) and the owner is- economical,, they may be converged- to? several- usafal purposes be- - fore beiftg ca3<r aside as'-out of fashion or - useless." - "But' the wedding dress, after ail, is but a small item in-tihe cost of the trousseau VI . we suggested. "Of- course} it- is only one garment, though; a. most, important onej of many. There are iraveHing, morning, afternoon, dinner; and ball costumes, and a wealthof petticoats, stockings, boots, shoe*, and lingerie: . - "\Ve-h"ave in hand at the present _timp • trousseau which, will ,cost about £1200, and several which- will' woisk out at about £500 to £600. A hundred: guineas (which 20 years ago used to' be looked upon as a good amount to. spend 1 on the trousseau of an upper middle-class- girl) is nowadays often -very greatly exceeded. ** In the .costliest trousseau we now have in. hand a 'small fortune' is being spent upon the lingerie alone:. What do yoii' say jto a dosen- chemises atr 3£gs apiece for ordinary-wean a-Kke number of 'knickers' at Zg&'i 'nighties' — as the smart girl now calls them— at 4ig»; stockings at a guinea a. pair ; several pairs of garters or suspenders (whichever ace fancied) at 2gs doim to half »• guinea; tea gowns* at lOgs, and dressing" jackets at sgs to 6gs ; handkerchiefs at anything, from. 2gs apiece for best down to '84s a dozen for ordinary use? Then these amounts are Bometimes immensely increased when specially-designed lingerie is>.parb-of tjhe-scheme of the trotis•eau, pv where real, la.cc is used for the trimming, of the most important garments. " Only, at the end of last year we prepared a* trousseau in conjunction, with a. well-kmmn French- house- of' the Kue de la Paix. The set- of bridal under- garmentscost tuv follows: Chemise, of finest lawn, trimmed with real Valenciennes; 13gs.;nightgown, 18£gs; camisole, 7gs ; corsets (of special satin brocade), Bgs. These exquisite garments were made for an Ameri1 can girl-bride, and were sent to Baltimore in specially-lined cases." When we (says a London paper) hinted that such' an expenditure seemed almost wicked, in the face of the want and distress which existed, our informant smiled, i " I cannot take that view, of course, from ! • business point of view. But iv addition j I wouW' .point- out the- large amount of money which goes in-payment for labour on .<uch garments. Epr example, the- lace on tho garments. I. have mentioned was costly, but the cost of :th© lawn: ftras a mere bagatelle. I suppose for making, the set of. three articles* the needlewoman employed would veoeive at least- four or five -pounds, as only quite the best work could- be' employed; We -get a good deal of our highclass stock lingerie for trousseaux made in convents of at convent needlework classes. But we have just a few specially skilful workers, who we are able to keep in con- - stant employ at wages that I venture to think would surprise the good people who are always agitating that such work is grossly underpaid." Regarding tlie division of the cost of a really -un-to-date trousseau; our informant ■poke as- follows: "I think £1000 (and, of course, the scale should be in proportion for less or greater amounts) spent on a trousseau, might be laid, out as follows : Wedding^ gown*, £80 to £100 ; under linen, etc., £200'; costumes-, including one special ball and dinner dress, £300 to £400; gloves, veils, etc., £50; boots and, shoes, £25; hat* of all kinds, £50; underskirts, £45 ; stockings and handkerchiefs, £25 ; siding habits (two), £30; or motoring ontftt the same. This Trill Imhw a aargm for incidentals, and the various stum can, of course,- be modified if desired." But, after all. the trousseau is only •ne of many things which have to be •onsidered in the expense of a "smart" .Wedding. & There are the bridesmaids' (presses; which, we were told, may cist *• fl|ything from 15gs ap to 50fis. They

do not often cost moss, unless real lice forms part of the trimming, and' this frequently belongs to the wearer. If there are six or eight costumes to be provided, this forms a fairly heavy item of expense.

Flowers are much more profusely ured than formerly, and a florist who makes a specialty of "wedding decorations" dees not forget to charge for the blossoms supplied. The bride's bouquet will often cost lOgs : quite twice as much- lies been known, to be spent. The* bridesmaids' flowers- will cost from 3gs to sgs a head. Then the church decorations and those at the house will swallow up a small fortune on occasion.

"Very little show can be made in a church," said a florist, "for less than £50. I have frequently had a- bill to send in which went well over four tinges that amount. And the floral decoracions at one of the smartest weddings of 1905 cost between £300 and £400:"

These expenses- almost universally fall upon the- parents or otfrer relatives of the bride. But in* France the groom frequently bears a part by 1 presenting his fiancee with fur ,. cloaks. foES,- lace handkerchiefs, and wraps; In some instances, indeed, where the bridegroom has bt>en wealthy and» the- bride" poor, he has gallantly paid for the lingerie as 'vHI.

•Fortunately, perhaps, the 'sit down" wedding-breakfast (most dismal of Functions) has gone out of fasHion, But il having been replaced by a reception where refreshments a-re provided has not materially decreased^ the exoense3 in some cases.

If the old-fashioned- breakfast f<>r a "big" wedding cost frequently f roni i-200 to £500: probably several of '.he pjpuiar West-end caterers produce bills tor 'receptions" which' would not full sar short of- those amounts. But v>e -were informed by a firm who devote a large amount of attention to this branch of tht r^ierer's business - that a very good ' 'irecepiion" could be had I—waiters-,1 — waiters-, cioak-Toora attendants, and all — for about £100.

In estimatingthe expenses of a ia.'hionabie wedding, the fees payable to the clergy and' others- connected with the religious part of the- ceremony must no* be overlooked*. * Very frequently the fwiner are relatives or friamu- oi the' conUaet-ing-partiesv^ and~a souvenir" takes the place of a money payment. But in other cases the fee may vary from* hZ 3s to £20. whilst on one occasion the jrunfc fees of officiating clergymen, at a fashionable wedding in a Westr-end church ait.oimted to. £4fc Then there .it ,the/ fee far the organist's services, from £2 2s to 325 ss; and" a "douceur" for the' choir a»?tl ether officers which, may be put at from So to £15. Another heavy item is that tor carriages. A- well-lcnown livery s^ablema-n says on this subject :—"I: — "I supplied as many as 25 carriages- for a fashionable wedding, where the people, though resident in the -country, have been I'.arried in town, and have thus* been without the uee of their own- carriages. My hill on that occasion was £65, & very mod ei ate one when it is considered that I f -lrnished favours, rosettes, etc. Of course, I only do the best sort of- trade. I unie say a-like number of conveyances (he did not call these carriages) might have bue.n hired for £30 to £40, perhaps even less. ' It will be easily realised from the foregoing details, which we have gathered together from those vest calculated to afford reliable information, that a fashionable wedding is no cheap affair, and that many a father may t>e excused, when he comes to pay the bills, for ejaculating, "Thank Heaven, one does not have a daughter married every day of the week !"