If you’ve planned a wedding or are in the middle of planning one, you may have scratched your noggin’ a few times at some of the strange, but never-the-less important, traditions attached to your nuptials. I guess ‘important’ may be the wrong choice of word here, because to me, none of the standard rules are important (I’m the least traditional person I know) but to many women, it’s gospel. But what does it all mean?! Let me demystify a few well-known must-dos that you may or may not want to skip on with the help of Today’s Bride {Summer 09 edition}:
Something old, new, borrowed, blue: something old connects the bride to her past, something new is the hope for her future, something borrowed represents family and friends who are always ready to help, and the color blue symbolizes love, modesty, and fidelity. Originally the rhyme ends with “and a sixpence in her shoe” to represent wealth (heck ya!)…I like that last one.
Cake Toppers: originally made from sugar, now people have their likenesses sculpted using anything from ceramic to wood. I’ve seen some pretty funny cake toppers let-me-tell-you! The grooms are getting a little more say on this these days, too.
The Garter: throwing the garter is one of the oldest surviving wedding traditions, though I don’t know why! The story of its origin is more than a little icky (beware). In the olden days (I’m hoping wayyyyyy olden) people would hang around to witness the couple consummating their marriage; they’d then bring the couple the garter to show that they saw the…well the…you know…the consummating. An unconsummated marriage isn’t by definition a legal marriage. I guess people took that pretty seriously! Still strange.
White Dress: did you know that in biblical times the traditional bridal dress color was blue? I know, learn something new every day. It’s actually in Greek culture that white symbolizes purity, youth, and joy.
The Cake: my favorite part of the day! Originally the cake wasn’t eaten (a travesty!) but was instead thrown at the bride to represent fertility (huh?). It was a clever Frenchman who created the first iced, three-tiered wedding cake in the 1600’s…God bless him!
Almonds, Jordan Almonds: this is something I’ve never understood. Traditionally you give 5 almonds to each guest to represent the 5 wedding wishes: fertility, health, wealth, happiness, and longevity. I only saw these almonds at one or two weddings this year…bring on the cake!
Bridal Showers: back in the day, when the FOB (Father of the Bride) didn’t like her chosen husband, the town would get together to ’shower’ her in gifts so that she would have her dowry and be able to marry the man of her choosing. Ahhhhhhh…
The Guest Book: a bit of a no-brainer to remember everyone who attended, but you aren’t stuck with the same old boring book anymore! I just saw a wedding where the ‘guest book’ was a pair of old wooden skis all the guests signed with a Sharpie…so cool and said a lot about the couple. If that’s too nutty for you, try printing a book with images of you and your fiance…then have everyone sign the edges, on your faces, whatever you want really.
Seating Cards: this is one tradition I’m 100% behind! If you leave people to their own devices, no one will ever get dinner (P.S. don’t forget your photographer!).
Receiving Line: I’m on the fence about this one. On one hand, your family and friends are what makes the day so special and you don’t want to ignore them, but on the other hand, you’ll spend the entire evening at the reception with them! Many couples are finding ways to keep the receiving line short and sweet..everyone loves compromise!
Toasts: when they’re good; they’re great! But when they’re bad…let’s just leave it at that. Today’s Bride suggests having a toast at the end of each course instead of all lumped together. They also suggest doing the heart-warming toasts first and saving the funny ones (basically anything the groomsmen will say) for the end of dinner.
It’s pretty obvious that weddings are heavily infused with tradition. There’s nothing wrong with that! I’ve just always been the type to do the opposite of what people told me to do…maybe you’re like me or maybe you’re more classic. Whatever your style, remember it’s all about love, so have a good time!
