Wedding traditions that are still relevant today

It’s no secret that weddings are rooted in tradition. From something borrowed to something blue, there is a multitude of ways you can bring traditional sentiments into your modern wedding day. Take a look at these ten wedding traditions that are still relevant today and consider integrating them (or a modernized version of them!) into your big day.

Wearing a veil

The tradition of a bride wearing a veil covering her face has many origins, ranging from hiding her away from evil spirits to hiding her face from the groom before an arranged marriage. While neither of those narratives sounds especially romantic for your wedding day, the concept of wearing a veil is still very common in modern weddings. Brides now see the accessory as a wedding-specific item and something that truly distinguishes you as a bride as opposed to someone just in a white dress. 

Pro tip: Looking for a modern take on this tradition? Consider a floral hair accessory, a cape or even a lace headpiece to make your look especially statement-worthy.

Writing a letter to your soon-to-be-spouse the night before

Because traditionally the bride and groom won’t see each other the night before their wedding, couples began writing sweet letters for one another to exchange before the wedding takes place. This tradition is a wonderful one, even if you do see each other before the wedding. 

Pro tip: Make sure the photographer gets a shot of you both reading your respective letters!

Having a gift registry

Traditionally, couples would not live together before they were officially married, a concept which isn’t as likely today. However, even if you already live with your fiance before you get married, you can still register for items! Instead of cutlery and a blender, think about registering for experiences you’d like to enjoy as a married couple like a romantic dinner on your honeymoon or a cooking class. Your guests will appreciate the chance to gift you something you’ll actually enjoy instead of something that will end up gathering dust in the basement.

Using an inner envelope for your invitation suite

Back when sending mail was a little more rustic, the envelopes of letters would get extremely dirty and perhaps torn by the time they reached their recipient. For that reason, wedding invitations were often sent with an outer and inner envelope, which would have prevented the actual wedding inner envelope from being damaged by the mailing process. While the mail is a bit more cleaned up now, you still might see some damage to your envelopes. If you’re spending money on a calligrapher or using a special seal on your invitations, you might consider using an inner envelope still.

Tossing rice over the new couple

Rice is thrown over new couples as a sign of prosperity, fertility and good fortune to come. While all those sentiments are symbolically great, rice is not used as commonly anymore for fear of it being ingested by animals or simply not allowed by venues. Do you still want to keep this tradition as a part of your special day without using rice? Here are 20 alternatives to rice that you could use!

Being “given” away

In the ‘old days,’ women were thought of as property that was passed from a father to a groom on their wedding day, a physical representation of the transfer of property. As you can imagine, this is quite an antiquated belief and a tradition that seems both sexist and extremely dated. However, modern brides do still maintain this tradition in part by having their father or parents walk them down the aisle and asking for their blessing over the marriage. You can keep this part short and sweet by not saying a word or you can request your officiant ask your father or parents to acknowledge their support verbally by saying, “She gives herself, but with her family’s blessing.”

Having a grooms cake

The idea of a groom having his own wedding cake is actually stemmed from grooms believing that the traditional wedding cake was too feminine, and a more bold groom’s cake was just served to the bridesmaids and groomsmen. Sounds a little funny, huh? These days it’s a nice gesture for a bride to plan a special cake specifically suited to the groom’s tastes. Forget the traditional story for this one and just supply a smaller cake in a flavor the groom loves, or even another non-cake dessert that he would appreciate. Looking for wedding cake alternatives? Read more in our top ten alternatives to wedding cake article (link to post)!

Planting a tree together

As a symbol of your unity as a married couple, consider following the tradition of planting a tree together on your wedding day! Watch the tree grow at your new married home or leave it at your ceremony venue for a place you can always re-visit to remember your special day.

Marrying on the half-hour

In Chinese tradition, weddings are meant to start on the half-hour (or later) because that way the hands of the clock are moving upward instead of downward. If you have no other reason for picking the time of your ceremony, you might as well go with this idea!

Something old, new, borrowed & blue

The idea of having these four special items with you on your wedding day actually stems from the Old English rhyme, “Something Olde, Something New, Something Borrowed, Something Blue, A Sixpence in your Shoe”. While you don’t necessarily have to include all these items in your wedding style, it can be a nice nod to tradition. Consider asking family members for a special piece of jewelry for your something borrowed. Have the groom wear colored socks as something blue. Wear your mother’s wedding veil as your something old and consider your dress or shoes as your something new!

Ever wonder why a bride wears a veil and carries something borrowed? These are just some of the traditions tied to a wedding, many of which are rooted in sweet sentiments. If you want to bring that piece of nostalgia to your wedding day, consider integrating these 10 wedding traditions that are still relevant today into your celebration. Have other traditions that you’d like to share? Write them in the comments below!