Interesting Wedding Superstitions

One of my blogging goals for 2012 is to post more about international weddings.  While researching different cultures, I've found that a lot of their traditions originated in some very old superstitions.  Since today is Friday the 13th- the most superstitious day in America- I've pulled together a list of my favorite international wedding superstitions.  Enjoy!

#1. Middle Eastern brides paint henna on their hands and feet to protect themselves from the evil eye (source).

#2. Saturday is the unluckiest wedding day, according to English folklore (source).

#3. If the younger of two sisters marries first, the older sister must dance barefoot at the wedding or risk never landing a husband (source).

#4. The bride is said to be doomed if she wears her complete wedding outfit before the big day (source).

#5. Pre-colonial Filipino superstitions warn that the groom and the bride should avoid traveling before the nuptial to prevent accidents from happening (source).

#6. In Russian villages they still believe that only sorcerers and ill-wishers “cut the path” of the newlyweds to harm them. No one should cross the path in front of the bride and bridegroom neither on their way to ZAGS (Registry Office) and/or church and back (source).

#7. When a London chimney sweep saved King George II's life 200 years ago, the King declared that all chimney sweeps bring good fortune and should be treated with respect. It's now considered good luck to see a chimney sweep on your wedding day, and many hire out their services to come to the ceremony and kiss the bride (source).

#8. It is bad luck for a bride to see a nun or a monk on the wedding day because they represent chastity and poverty (source). 

#9. To make sure their love keeps burning throughout their union, Finnish brides head to the altar carrying an appropriate symbol: a match (source).

#10. In ancient times the bridesmaids dressed in identical clothing while the bride wore a different dress and a veil. This was done in the hope of confusing the evil spirits that may be descending on the bride (source).

Photo credits: photo 1 and photo 2

Adult Goodie Bags

True or False: wedding favors are a recent tradition?  The answer is FALSE!  Wedding favors date back a few centuries (source) and many countries today celebrate this tradition.  Here is the US, many of us grew up expecting goodie bags at our classmate's birthday parties (even though our parents said to never expect anything but a thank you) and the adult equivalent is favors at weddings.  There are many people on both sides on the "should we or shouldn't we" debate.  I found this post and this post letting brides know that while favors are not required, here are some cost effective ideas to give a favor without breaking the bank.

Source

As a wedding planner, I have a mix of emotions of favors.  I never believe that the couple should break the bank to provide favors.  But if there is room in the budget & it is important to the couple, then I'm all for favors.  And there is really no 'wrong' favor because it is all dependent on the situation.  Here are my 3 rules:

If SHE Likes It, She Should Put A Ring On It

Did you know that in Chile couples wear their wedding rings on their right ring fingers while engaged and then switch the rings to their left hand after they are married?  I didn't know that either until I started to research cool wedding traditions in preparation for creating a post on a different country's wedding customs for this blog.  I kind of like the idea that the Chilean couples both wear engagement rings.  It brings up an issue which I hear about from my engaged girlfriends a lot: why doesn't my man have to wear an indicator that he is taken?  The classic "look-on-his-ring-finger-to-see-if-he-is-taken" can be misleading since any un-ringed guy may or may not be completely "on the market" single.

So when this Wedding Paper Divas blog entry came up on my google reader (OMG I'm so obsessed with my google reader checking all my favorite blogs all day long), I was definitely intrigued.  The post is about "man-gagement" rings and has a picture of Michael Bublé wearing one.  Which I guess the paparazzi figured out because they asked Michael if he had gotten married and he told them that it was a "man-gagement" ring.  The WPD ask their followers if they agree with this idea, if they would want their man to wear a "man-gagement" ring to show the world he is taken.  At the time when I looked at the comments, there were only two and they were both PRO- man-gagement rings.  I'm sure some brides would be against it because it is pretty non-traditional and I'm not sure what exactly is the difference between a man-gagement ring and a wedding ring.  Would the groom wear the man-gagement ring on another finger after he is married?  Most guys don't like to wear a lot of jewelry, much less rings, so I find it hard to believe a married guy would want to wear two rings.  So, it doesn't make a lot of sense to spend good money on a ring he will only wear for about a year.  But maybe that's just me, I'm way too practical for my own good sometimes.  I think if this idea strikes a chord with the bride to be, the groom should be open to the idea.  My choice would be a casual ring, nothing too flashy.

As I tried to search for more images, I saw that "mangagement ring" is actually in the urban dictionary.  Which means that it is catching on in our society.  I also saw a bunch of articles talking about this as a new trend and that man-gagement rings are also being given by women who are proposing to their men!  So, what are your thoughts?  Are you progressive or traditional?  Would you think its weird if your friend's fiancé was sporting a ring? 
 

M Bublé sporting the new trend. Source

 

Because RR is so dreamy! Source

Colombia Continued

So in my search of all things Colombian, I stumbled across a really cool profile on a Colombian wedding on one of my favorite blogs, Style Me Pretty. This blog is a fusion of real weddings, cool vendors, new & unique ideas, and pretty much the latest details people are weaving into today's events. Being sooo new to blogging, I definitely have some favorite blogs that I rely on for ideas for not only Felicity C Weddings events, but as a template for what I want this blog to feature. Check out Style Me Pretty if you have a free hour (or ten), because it is definitely worth a look.

The post is Perfect Wedding in Colombia and everything is absolutely gorgeous. I love that it is whimsical and light and it feels like anyone would be comfortable at this wedding. I'm so glad to have found this link because I did want to point out that while cultural traditions do affect weddings, every detail can vary so much from region to region and couple to couple. That being said, I was pretty excited to see a picture of the candle ceremony. Disfrutala! (Enjoy!)