What does ‘Something old, something new, something borrowed, something blue’, a white wedding dress, and toasting to the bride and groom all have in common? They’re wedding traditions! Most modern brides follow these “typical” traditions. For a truly unique wedding experience, a great idea could be adopting traditions from other cultures. Below we briefly outline traditions from three different cultures and how you can apply them to your ceremony.
Italy
Traditional Italian weddings take place earlier in the day, typically on a Sunday. Saturdays are reserved for widows marrying for a second time and getting married on a Friday is considered to bring bad luck. The bride wears a traditional white gown with a veil covering her face to ward off “bad spirits”. The evening before the wedding, the bride wears green to bring her and her groom good luck. Menu items for appetizers and dinner include antipasti, pasta, fish, pork, and calamari (yes please!).
Revive this tradition by accessorizing with a green statement necklace or ring during your rehearsal dinner.
Sweden
Typically, weddings take place in the summer since there are about 20 hours of sunlight a day. Throughout dinner, guests sing love songs and eventually become rowdy enough to invite someone to fiddle along. Every guest is welcome to give a speech or toast in honor of the couple.
While breaking out in tune on a fiddle sounds great, we think having a karaoke hour might be a little more fun once dinner is over and cocktails are flowing.
Mexico
Mexican ceremonies are usually held in the evening. Depending on the region, dresses are either bright white or colorful and embroidered. Three bows are sewn into the undergarments of the bride (yellow, blue, red) to symbolize food, money, and passion. A traditional Mexican wedding cake is made with nuts and dried fruit and is soaked in rum.
Ditch the white dress honey! Shop for a dress of color that will show your personality.
