Wedding Traditions
Have you ever wondered where the old rhyme “Something Old, Something New, Something Borrowed, Something Blue, A sixpence in your shoe” came from? The rhyme that many brides incorporate into their wedding day for good luck originates from late 1800s Lancashire. In modern day, the first four trinkets are most familiar but there are some brides who will place a penny in their shoe which symbolizes wealth and prosperity.
Something Old
Many brides incorporate something old from family members as it represents incorporating her previous life into her married life, however, there are no rules that it has to come from a relative. Couples can incorporate a vintage car as “something old.”
Examples of something old: Grandparents or Parents champagne flutes, cake server or knife, necklace or earrings, veil, or even some fabric from a relatives wedding dress sewn into your own.
Something New
Something New represents hope in the couple’s future. Any item that is bought by the bride or gifted to her and worn for the first time on the wedding day can count!
Examples of something new: jewelry gifted to you from your fiancé, perfume, wedding band, shoes, or anything that is brand new.
Something Borrowed
When it comes to the borrowed items, this could also be combined with something old. Most often, the borrowed item is from another bride of a successful marriage to transfer luck to the new marriage. Have fun with this, it can be anything!
Examples of Something Borrowed: Grandma’s Veil, Dried flower tucked into the wedding bouquet, silk flowers made from a veil or dress, earrings from your a married bridesmaid, etc. You can even “borrow” a song for your first dance or during the ceremony.
Something Blue
Another item that can easily be combined with something borrowed, new or old. The color blue represents purity and ward off the evil eye. In the past, brides incorporated something blue in their garter, however, recently we see a lot of brides adding pops of blue into their jewelry or bouquet!
Examples of Something Blue: Garter is the most common item seen, blue shoes, ring, hair pin, or anything else that can be added to your special day! We’ve even seen brides sew in part of a family member’s blue clothing to the inside of her dress.
Wedding Traditons: A Sixpence in Her Shoe
Placing a sixpence or penny in your shoe represents wealth and prosperity over the marriage. In the early 1600’s, it was customary for the bride’s family to include a piece of silver (represented as a sixpence) in the dowry gifted to the groom on the wedding day. Some families pass the same item down throughout generations!
You can buy a lucky sixpence here!
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This is an education blog post on Wedding Traditions, written by our team! You can meet them here: Wedding Planning Dream Team. As always our entire team is here to help guide you on your planning journey. We offer free consultations and are always looking for upcoming blog topics. What has got you stuck, chat with us here: Schedule your Complimentary Call
