The New Bridal Norm Is No Norm

SSENSE’s Bridal 3.0 capsule rewrites the dress code for a generation that doesn’t believe in dress codes at all

"Photography by Zoë Snooks (@zoesnooksphotography). Image used with credit. For more, visit zoesnooksphotography.ca."

SSENSE’s Bridal 3.0 collection isn’t bridal in any traditional sense. There is no central gown, no corseted climax, and certainly no single idea of who the bride is or what she’s meant to wear. Instead, this is a capsule of over 100 pieces, some white, some black, some sheer, some structured, each reflecting how millennials and Gen Z are approaching marriage today: not as a singular performance, but as a set of personal moments shaped by style, context, and intent.

The Canadian luxury platform, more often associated with dystopian streetwear than nuptial symbolism, has released its third wedding-focused collection, and once again, it resists convention. This isn’t a lookbook filled with gowns and tiarasm but instead, it offers veils from Molly Goddard, puff-sleeved pieces by Simone Rocha, a revival of Anna Sui’s 1994 babydoll silhouette, and upcycled gloves by Conner Ives. These sit alongside sharply cut halters, tailored suits, and separates that can slip in or out of a bridal context depending on how they’re styled. Crucially, many of the key pieces aren’t dresses, and this choice isn’t an oversight, but rather, a pivot: bridalwear, as a category, is dissolving into a broader wardrobe that better reflects how people now marry: across multiple days, locations, and styles of celebration.

"Bridal, edited. Molly Goddard’s veils reappear in SSENSE’s capsule, styled across looks that feel more like personality than pageantry. Credit: (left) @wynston.shannon / Charlotte in the Jupiter Veil, styled by @alicegoddard (centre + right) via SSENSE"

The average marrying age in the UK is now 35.1 for women and 37.4 for men. Church weddings have steadily declined, civil partnerships are rising, and fewer people are taking their partner’s surname. These aren’t revolutionary changes on their own, but together they signal a cultural recalibration. Marriage is no longer a singular ritual to be performed, but rather, a set of choices negotiated over time, and the clothes mirror this.

According to a 2024 Statista report, over 40% of couples in Western Europe now purchase at least one item of wedding attire from general fashion retailers rather than bridal boutiques. Among under-35s, resale and rental platforms like By Rotation and The Loop have become mainstays, particularly in the summer when ivory, bone, and blush listings spike in tandem with wedding season. The once idealistic ritual of using Pinterest as a wedding planner has evolved from a moodboard of uniform inspiration to a scrollable wishlist of resale finds, rental links, and personal aesthetics.

"Anna Sui’s 1994 babydoll revival enters the bridal conversation via SSENSE, reimagined through archival softness and Gen Z irreverence. Credit: SSENSE / Anna Sui Archive"

The edit SSENSE has curated plays directly into this. Instead of building a singular 'hero moment,' it offers plausible options across multiple events: registry lunch, airport exit, city hall photos, rooftop afters. One piece might work for the ceremony and then appear again, restyled, on a honeymoon dinner. Gloves might carry more emotional resonance than a veil. The collection feels modular, designed to move between moments, not define them. This logic matters for a generation that documents their weddings across Stories, Dropbox folders, and camera rolls rather than waiting for a single, framed photo.

This same sensibility runs through the designer curation. Vivienne Westwood corsets sit alongside Sandy Liang’s bubble silhouettes and Issey Miyake’s pleats. The price range is broad, with most pieces sitting between €400 and €2,000, and a handful reaching up to €9,500. But unlike the heirloom gowns of earlier generations, these garments aren’t made to be preserved in plastic; they’re made to be worn, shot, shared, and, in some cases, re-circulated.

"Rental-ready bridal. Platforms like By Rotation are reshaping the wedding wardrobe into something circular, shoppable, and sustainably stylish. Credit: By Rotation / @byrotationofficial"

Where the traditional bridal silhouette once symbolised purity and femininity, today’s alternatives lean into personal meaning. Black dresses, previously dismissed as gimmicks, are now staples, especially in non-traditional or queer weddings, and white no longer holds the same historical moral weight. Eggshell, bone, dove grey, blush, black; the palette is personal, not prescribed.

This departure from white isn’t simply a matter of taste, but rather, it reflects a broader distancing from the values white once stood for. The white wedding dress, popularised after Queen Victoria’s 1840 ceremony, became a shorthand for modesty and class aspiration, whereas today, that symbolism has long started to fade. For many younger couples, especially those in queer or second-time marriages, choosing an alternative colour palette isn’t radical, but rational.

"Weddings as theatre. From sculptural gowns to post-party chaos, the look no longer needs to match the moment; it just needs to reflect it. Credit: @scalperscompany via @casildasecasa"

The brands included in SSENSE’s capsule haven’t necessarily positioned themselves as bridalwear designers, with labels like Simone Rocha and Conner Ives who aren't necessarily creating wedding dresses in the traditional sense. Instead, their pieces have been adopted by consumers for the role: not because they conform to wedding conventions, but because they reflect emotional intent, taste, and personality. In many cases, it’s not that a puff sleeve or corset was designed for marriage: it’s that the wearer decided it was meaningful enough to carry the moment.

This recontextualising aligns with how weddings are now being structured, with Millennials and Gen Z more likely to live together before marriage, more likely to marry later, and less likely to see the ceremony as the beginning of something entirely new. For many, the wedding is not an origin story but a curated milestone and that logic extends to the wardrobe as less about timelessness, and more about truthfulness.

"Alt-aisle aesthetics. Fashion Brand Company’s bridal shoots capture the taper toward surreal sincerity, irony, and intimacy in equal parts. Credit: @fashionbrandcompany"

SSENSE’s approach doesn’t aim to reinvent bridal fashion, but it does acknowledge the changes already underway. By assembling designers whose aesthetics lean towards personal expression, it makes space for people who want their wedding clothes to look like their actual clothes, only heightened.

The result is a capsule that reflects how weddings are increasingly styled: not with tradition in mind, but with intention, economy, and identity at the centre. What you wear is no longer dictated by a category, but rather shaped by your own logic of location, guest list, mood, and grounded in the idea that meaning is made, not assigned.

It’s not that weddings have lost their meaning, it’s that the meaning got personal, and the dress code just followed suit.