14 Aug 2016

Why the tradition “Something Blue? Satin Garter

Why the tradition “Something Blue?” More specifically the blue satin garter.  In ancient Israel, brides wore a blue ribbon to signify “fidelity.”  The garter-throwing itself derives from a bawdy ritual called “flinging the stocking.”  In Britain, the guests would playfully invade the bridal chamber.  The ushers grabbed the bride’s stockings; the maids; the grooms.  They took turns sitting at the foot of the bed flinging the stockings over the heads of the couple.  Whoever’s stocking landed on the bride’s or the groom’s nose would be the next to wed.

Today, many brides will wear two garters.  The one she wishes to keep as a memento of her wedding day, possibly to be displayed on her grooms rear view mirror, and another, to be retrieved and tossed by the groom to all the young unmarried men attending the event.  The “toss garter” is likely to be in the color of the wedding, and not as elaborate as the more decorative garters kept by the bride.