Wedding Traditions [ Submit a Tradition | Traditions Index ]    Did you know that it is good luck to get married when the second hand of the clock is going upward? Did you know that it is bad luck to see the bride in all her glory before she walks down the aisle? The following is a list of "wedding superstitions" compiled from brides around the nation.

Engagement Rings Submitted by: Bliss!™ Long time ago, engagement rings served as partial payment for the right to court a bride (sort of like a down payment).

Something Old, Something New, Something Borrowed, Something Blue Submitted by: Bliss!™ "Something Old" comes from the garter of a married woman. "Something New" is your wedding dress. "Something Borrowed" is a gold coin that represents the sun. "Something Blue" symbolizes the moon (In ancient times, the goddess of the moon, Diana, served as the protector of women).

The Wedding Veil Submitted by: Bliss!™ The wedding veil is used to restrain a jealous old-boyfriend from seeing you and possibly ruining your wedding day.

The Wedding Ring Submitted by: Bliss!™ You wear your wedding ring on the fourth finger of your left hand because it was said that "...from this finger a nerve went direct to the heart."

Garter Submitted by: Bliss!™ Hundreds of years ago, it was common practice for the guests to follow the wedding couple to their bed. As the years past, the tradition started getting out of hand with some of the guests trying to disrobe the bride. To ward off the guests, the groom would throw the garter.

Bouquet Toss Submitted by: Bliss!™ Whoever catches the bouquet is the next one to wed.

Rice Submitted by: Bliss!™ A symbol of fertility.

Top-tier of your Wedding Cake Submitted by: Bliss!™ You and your spouse are to wrap and preserve the top layer of your wedding cake. On your first wedding anniversary, each of you are to eat a slice of it. (Needless to say, we opted to forego this tradition.)

Wearing White Submitted by: Krysahn of San Diego, California The tradition of wearing a white wedding dress gained popularity in the Victorian Age. Queen Victoria wore a beautiful white dress to marry her beloved Alfred, and it started a world-wide trend. Prior to that most women wore their best dress--even if that dress was black.

Something Old, New, Borrowed & Blue Submitted by: B. H. of Boynton Beach, FL I wasn't sure about this until it was asked of me by the bridal shop owner, Gerri. The owner suggested to help out. She recommended that for "something old" I ask my mother or grandmother for an old piece of blue ribbon or lace about 12 inches long or longer. Gerri got a piece of one of the appliques from my dress for "something new" and a brand new copper penny for "something borrowed." I was able to get an old satin sky-blue ribbon from my grandmother that wrapped around a straw hat I once played with as a little girl. Gerry gathered my items and asked me to remind her to show me when I came in for my next fitting. When I came back for my fitting I was all decked out in my gown when I remembered to ask Gerri about the items she had requested from me. She came back with a little box with hand made garter and inside the box were the items. On the inside she showed me where the penny was and said that "..this is borrowed. To get the full good luck you must return this." I was happy for I knew nothing of this tradition and now I had a special little something for myself that I can pass on. I am going to a bridal shower in a month and plan to do this for my friend as a gift.

Confetti at Italian Weddings Submitted by: Heather of North Plainfield, NJ Italian weddings always have "confetti" which are sugared almonds. This signifies the bitter-sweetness of marriage (the almond being bitter and the sugar sweet). There is always an odd number given for luck.

Welsh Love Spoons Submitted by: Heather of North Plainfield, NJ Welsh men spent a great deal of time at sea. Traditionally they would carve a "love spoon" from a single piece of wood. The images he carved into the spoon meant different things and the spoons were sometimes created with incredible skill (for instance carving a ball that could rock back and forth in it's chamber). When the young man came home from sea, he would present the spoon to the woman he wanted to marry, the images showing what he promised: love, wealth, devotion, etc. Today love spoons are still a symbol of love, although they are now given for births, anniversaries and other occasions.

Wearing Old Shoes Submitted by: Dawn "soon-to-be" Watkins of Cincinnati, Ohio In medieval times, happy was the bride who wore old shoes. I wish I could tell you how this tradition began, but I'd imagine it had a little something to do with comfort! Works for me!

Bridal Party Submitted by: Jessie of Adealide, Australia Traditionally, bridesmaids and groomsmen were dressed like the bride and groom so former, jealous suitors would be tricked and not be able to ruin the wedding day. It was also said to be done to trick evil spirit so that they could not curse the couple.

Cherokee Wedding Ceremony Submitted by: Ramona N. of Union Grove, Alabama, USA Since no known record of an actual Cherokee wedding exist predating the Trail Of Tears they have been improvised from stories passed through the generations. A 'tear dress' must be worn by the bride. This dress is taken from cloth, torn into strips and then stitched back together. The reasoning is because back in our forefathers day there were no scissors. The mans shirt is a 'ribbon shirt'. They enter under blue blankets to represent their old ways of weakness, sorrow, failures and spiritual depression. A Holy Man from the tribe (an elder) must bless the union. The couple have baskets and in the brides are bread and corn, representing her promise to nurture and support him, this she feeds to him. His contains meat and skins, representing his vow to feed and clothe her. They then shed the blue blankets and are wrapped by the relatives in one single white blanket representing the new life they are making together and also for fulfillment and peace. 'Stomp Dancers' are there to ring in the ceremony and a Continuance prayer is said to end the services. The bride and groom must bestow gifts onto the Holy Man, the elder of the tribe who acts as "best man" and the "bridesmaid" which can be either male or female in either case. These gifts have to be gifts from the heart, a handmade blanket, a pipe, something of importance to the tribal member. The witness' must be from the tribal council. No type of modern appliances are allowed inside the Holy Temple nor are P.A. systems. The ceremony is to be held in a traditional hut or 'teepee'.

Horseshoe Submitted by: Patricia of Boron Legend has it that Saint Dunstan gave the horseshoe a special power against evil. Approached by Satan to make horseshoes for his cloven feet, Dunstan knew he was the devil. He shackled him to the wall to attach the horseshoes. The devil was freed after promising never to enter a house with a horseshoe. Today the horseshoe is a symbol of good fortune and fertility. In Britain, and many other countries, a Bride carries a replica of a horseshoe on her wedding day for good luck. There is a ribbon attached to the shoulders of the horseshoe and it is carried on the wrist.

The Threshold Submitted by: Jessica H. of Bear, Denmark I was once told the reason a bride is carried across the threshold into there "Honeymoon". It is said that to sweeten the marriage, the couple's family would paint honey on the door frame of there new home. The groom must then lift the bride so as not to ruin her dress.

Honeywine Submitted by: Kim of Coudy Honeymoon: In medieval times, in the evening after the wedding the couple were given mead - a honeywine. It was said that the couple would drink of it and procreate. If the bride gave birth nine months after the wedding it was a great honor to the brewer of the mead. It would increase his business and reputation, and often the new child would be named after him in honor.

Top-tier of the Wedding Cake Submitted by: Kim of Coudy In the days of old, the top-tier of the wedding cake was to be placed under the couple's bed so that the bride would be fertile and bear strong children. After a year, the bride and groom would consume what was left of the cake for luck or health. Needless to say, the tradition has changed somewhat in recent years, but you still find the newlyweds putting cake in their freezer till the first anniversary.

Over the Threshold Submitted by: Jess E. of Melbourne, Florida, USA The tradition of carrying the bride over the doorpost comes from as far back as the ancient Romans. It was tradition for the family to annoint the doorpost with fine oil and herbs. For this reason the groom would lift the bride over the threshold so she would not slip.

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