Why do we do what we do? Seriously. We’re grown-ups. We can think for ourselves! We make micro-decisions daily and huge life-changers sometimes weekly without looking at what others before us have done. But there are some customs that are old that we stick to.

Weddings bring all sorts of traditions and superstitions with them and some mean precisely nothing, but are so tender and metaphorical that we just keep doing them. There’s nothing wrong with that, I think, so let’s explore a few in this little 2-part series.

The coin in the bride’s show…. the Royal Mint in the U.K. has some insight into this tradition:
“In Great Britain, the bride traditionally wears ‘Something old, something new, something borrowed, something blue.’ But what is less well known is that the rhyme ends ‘and a silver sixpence in her shoe.’ For many years, the father of the bride would slip a sixpence into his daughter’s shoe before she walked down the aisle. The sixpence stood for good luck, and to show that the father wished his daughter prosperity in her marriage.

Sweden has its own version of this tradition. Before a wedding, the bride’s mother gives her daughter a gold coin to put in her right shoe. The bride’s father then gives her a silver coin to put in her left shoe. The coins symbolize their wish that the bride will never go without money.”

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Not only is “something old, something new, something borrowed and something blue” a tradition in Britain, we took it with us when the colonies told King George that we’d have enough. This tradition still stands in the US, but why? Each of these was considered to be lucky. Something old was said to ward off “the evil eye” when children were young, hence older relative and nannies. But more generally, it represented continuity and family. You were taking something old with you into the future.

Something new simply meant a token of hope and optimism. For brides these days, it can be anything new that was purchased for the bride to wear, like her veil.

Something borrowed literally meant that the bride should borrow an item from a happily married woman, something that would stand as a item of luck. Want lots of kids, borrow a slip or an undergarment from a prolific mother. Seriously!! I’m not saying that you have to, but people did back in the day. Maybe a bracelet would work…….

Something blue was again about warding off evil, because blue was a color said to do this. But blue is also a color that represents love, purity and fidelity, so brides would pin a blue ribbon to their garter or inside their hemline just in case.

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Why does the Father “give the bride away” by walking her down the aisle? Traditionally this was about arranged marriages when the combining of families meant more land, more property, more power and resources. The daughter was given to her husband and the two clans or families were joined. She was property – there I said it. But these days, fathers walk their daughters with great tenderness and affection, as if to say, “I raised this amazing creature and now she’s ready to make her own life.”

Rain on your wedding day is dreaded, because you worry that people will be inconvenienced, you’ll all be wet and droopy and outdoor weddings will be ruined. Rain is actually considered for centuries to be good luck. It’s a sign of fertility and cleansing and it can make for some pretty amazing photos. We promise.

Jumping the broom is said to describe a marriage of doubtful validity. Whether is was referring to a civil union instead of a church sanctioned affair, it has origins in Wales, Britain and African culture and was later adopted by African-Americans as part of their wedding traditions. Slaves in the US took it up when marrying on estates where they had no rights. These days, jumping the broom occurs when a couple has said their vows and is headed down the aisle. They are committed to each other and the future.

Breaking a glass at the altar and saying “mazel tov” is a distinctly Jewish tradition.

“Modern explanations have focused on a more solemn theme, claiming that the broken glass reminds Jews assembled at a joyous occasion of the Temples and recalling those individuals, Jew and non-Jew alike, who do not have the freedom to celebrate either religiously or publicly. A more mystical explanation of the ceremony is that the glass represents the couple and that just as the glass, when it is broken, enters a state from which it will never emerge, it is the hope of the community that this couple will never emerge from their married state.”

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Some couples bury bourbon as part of their celebration. This one is easy… and fun. Southern wedding tradition claims that if you bury a bottle of bourbon on the spot where the wedding will take place, then it won’t rain. Rain or shine, dig up the bourbon and raise a glass!

This tradition is actually more about the excitement of seeing each other in the modern era than anything, but it didn’t begin that way. Originally, this practice was related to arranged marriages and a fear that the groom would back out if the bride was less that desirable to look at… buyer’s remorse. Now, brides and grooms enjoy the anticipation of seeing each other the day of as the bride makes her way down the aisle. An improvement, I’d say.

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