Why Does the Bride Wear White? The color white has been a symbol of joyous celebration since early Roman times. At the beginning to the twentieth century, white stood for purity as well. Today, it holds it original meaning of happiness and joy.
The word trousseau came from the French word, trousse, which meant bundle. The trousseau originated as a bundle of clothing and personal possessions the bride carried with her to her new home. This was later expanded upon into a generous dowry. Today, the trousseau includes all of the new items for the household, as well as for the bride herself.
For centuries, the matchmaker enjoyed the honored, if occasionally ridiculed, position of ensuring ethnic identity and compatibility. Groups that wanted this assurance regularly employed the services of a matchmaker, who earned a percentage of the dowries. Today, the modern version of the matchmaker is found on dating and compatibility websites . Dating websites can match individual backgrounds and traits so accurately that two people brought together for...
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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...
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Why Does the Bridal Party Dress Alike? Who hasn’t noticed that the maids, ushers, and entire bridal party dress very much like the bride and groom? It was once common for the bride, her groom and all their friends to walk together to the church on the morning of the wedding. Afraid that someone, maybe a rejected suitor, would spot the happy couple and put...
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Honeymoon traditions and customs. In ancient times, many of the first marriages were by capture, not choice. When early man felt it was time to take a bride, he would often carry off an unwilling woman to a secret place where her relatives wouldn’t find them. While the moon went through all its phases, (about 30 days) they hid from the searchers and drank a...
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Bride’s Handkerchief. Early farmers thought a bride’s wedding day tears were lucky and brought rains for their crops. Later, a crying bride meant that she’d never shed another tear about her marriage. Today, we carry a handkerchief to dab away the tears of happiness and joy. How special to keep your wedding hanky and pass it down from mother to daughter capturing all the love...
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Flouncing was a special party held for an engaged couple to meet with friends of both families. This “flouncing” established a formal contract. If either changed his mind about the marriage, the other could lay claim to half of his, or her, property. Following a flouncing, the couple could no longer be seen with, or be found talking to, other suitors. In China, the betrothal...
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