I guess it's good my Dad isn't walking me down the aisle - I don't want to have him barter me for debt when he isn't helping!

I doubt I could even get through a traditional ceremony b/c of all the sexist symbolism I associate with weddings, but I certainly wouldn't have my father walk me down the aisle. I'm not a piece of chattel to be handed from one man to another.

Interesting

I wasn't walked down the aisle, but I don't have a problem with anyone else doing it. I didn't toss the bouquet, save the top of the cake, or have rice/bubbles/etc either. I did wear white (well, ivory) however. 1 for 5

Yeah, I'm not using any of the traditions in that article. I'll probably link to it on my wedding website so people know where I'm coming from.

i forgot to throw the bouquet... by the time i remembered most of the single ladies were gone
and i was given the top tier of our cake to save, but i didnt cuz a) we didnt get any, only the one bite that we fed each other and b) freezer burn...it never tastes good after a year
no rice either

Actually the wearing white thing? It's because marriage is a sacrament and white is worn to reflect purity. Technically, the groom is supposed to wear white as well. It's the same reason that babies are dressed in white for their baptism, and children (boys and girls) wear white to receive their first communion...

bg2007: I wonder if, like you said, babies and children always wore white for baptism and first communion, and brides didn't originally wear white, but after Queen Victoria set the trend people copied, and then just started saying that it was because brides were supposed to be pure, because that sounds better and goes along with the other beliefs people already had (the kids wearing white).
So the white was not originally because the bride was pure, but it was brought into religion/marriage that way.
Anybody know? I was just thinking....lol.

Oh and I agree that I don't want any of these traditional things at my wedding. I am not a piece of property to be given away. I hate when people just follow traditions without thinking about why they came about.
Traditions are good...if you know why you are doing them and agree with the reason you are doing them.

bg2007, that's what I always thought, too.

Maybe it's a regional thing, but I'm not against any of these traditions. I could not imagine walking down the aisle without my father there to give me away. It's 2008 - I think everyone knows he's not using me to barter.

I love my Dad! I think that it's important to him (and to me) that he be there to walk me down the aisle on my wedding day. Not because he's giving me away for DEBT, but because he's giving his only daughter away to her new husband.

That... and I'm wearing white... but I'm not sure how I got from a purple dress to white!

i will keep some of the traditions, not all though. and not necessarily for the original meaning of the traditions. the one tradition that is the most important to me is having my dad walk me down the aisle... and its not for the same reason the tradition started. simply put- i am close to my dad, and i invision this walk as my last walk with him as his "little girl".... that is, if we can stop from crying long enough to see the aisle!

They used sawdust instead of rice during the Middle Ages...

Also pre-1800, yellow was also a favored choice for wedding gowns because it was the color of loyalty (as was blue).

wow i always wanted to know where did those traditions come from.. but i never heard of saving the top of the cake though

I didn't know that people save their wedding cake... doesn't it get stale?

linb great comment

hahaha! Takes all the beauty out of getting married when U relize your father is using U as a bartering tools to pay off debts or make peace....lol

I like these traditions and would follow most of them. I really don't like the whole "rice-throwing" tradition. While it has meaning, it seems a little messy to me.

Coming from a traditional family, I definitely did follow all the traditions except saving the top of the cake. My husband and I found it weird so we ate the cake the morning after.

Because I'm Filipino and my husband is American, I need to incorporate also the Filipino wedding customs such as; guests pinning money on the gown and groom's suit while the couple are dancing. We ended up having more than $2,000 aside from our gifts. We donated half of it to charity.

Bingkaycoy - Mexicans do that too! (Dollar dance).

Sporky and Bingkaycoy - so do Cajuns

i don't like the origin of dad giving the bride away, but i still think i would do it because it would be important to my dad.

I also don't like the origin of dad giving daughter away... but I'm still going to do it when I get married. Actually, I would like for both my parents to "give me away"--I'm an only child and my parents (especially my mother) have always been very attached to me, so for me it would be sort of symbolic for my parents letting me go to form my own family. Just me, though.

Sporky and Elizabeth Rae--thanks for the info. I think we got this custom from our Spanish heritage . The Philippines was under the rule of Spain for 300 years and that is why a big part of our socio-cultural traditions and values stem from them.

Wearing white never symbolized virginity. That's what the face veil represents.

i wore an ivory dress but i spiced things up with bright red shoes- you can imagine some people's reactions!

Where did 'something borrowed, something old, something new, something blue' come from?

Well, I wore white rather than cream because I thought it looked better on me; I had my dad walk me down the aisle because I think it's sweet, not because I am his property that he is passing on to my new husband; I didn't throw my bouquet because I hadn't taken enough photos yet and didn't want it to get squished; we are keeping the top of our wedding cake to eat on our first anniversary (it is WELL insulated but I still don't expect it to taste that good); and our church didn't allow us to throw rice or anything like that.

brides carrying flowers down the isle came from the fact that there was no deoderant way back when, and the flowers used to coverup any foul smells/make the bride smell good and attractive

I always thought these traditions were weird.

I want both of my parents to walk me down the aisle - not to "give me away", but for them to help me reach the next destination in my life which is marriage and a family of my own. I want them to know that they helped me to get there and that this is the point where they don't always have to worry and look out for me every second.

i love reading about where traditions came from