Browsing by Subject "hääpuku"

The purpose of this is to examine self-made wedding dresses in Finland in the 21st century. The aim is to study the meanings of wedding dresses and making for the brides who have made their wedding dresses themselves. In addition, the reasons for making and the self-made dresses are examined. The theoretical background of this study consisted of contemporary weddings, dress and bridal wear and the motivations for making crafts and DIY-projects. The study was conducted as a qualitative research. The data was collected as a web survey on craft and wedding themed Facebook groups, e-mailing lists and online forums. Along with answers to open questions, photos of self made wedding dresses were collected. 59 brides responded to the survey. In the final data there were 41 photos of 25 different wedding dresses. The data was analyzed using content analysis and Atlas.ti software. For most brides the wedding dress has specific worth which can be seen in the dreaming of a certain design, special effort put to the making and desire to keep the dress as a memory. Most of the brides chose a traditional white dress respecting the tradition but the colour white was also simply seen as the one and only colour of the wedding dress. Only a few of the brides considered white as a symbol of virginity even though the symbolism affected the choices of some brides. The reasons for making a wedding dress related to supply covered financial benefits, dissatisfaction to current fashion or quality, dress fit, availability and ecological and ethical values. The reasons related to one's identity link to a wish to be different from others and one's experience or profession as a craft maker. The meaning of making links to the meaning of the making process, for example, as mental preparation for the wedding and as an empowering experience. Self-made wedding dresses were also considered more valuable than ready made dresses which points out the value of crafts as well. In addition to financial choices, striving for individuality was emphasized in this study. The brides desired to express their personality in their wedding dresses but most of them did in the limits of tradition because they also wanted to conform to the norms. On the other hand, the clearly distinctive wedding dresses in this study point out the freedom of an individual not to follow the way of tradition.