Wedding Traditions & Customs

Wedding announcements appear in newspapers across the country every day. The stories range from simple informative briefs to long, winding tales filled with romance and adventure. Every wedding...

It is an honor and privilege to be a best man. Even if you're not the kind of guy who gets excited about something like a wedding, you can get excited about helping your best friend get through an...

In a Marine wedding, it is customary to honor the bride with an arch of swords at the completion of the ceremony. This time-honored ceremony allows for a warm welcome for the new bride and is...

Sand ceremonies represent the unity of a couple that is marrying or demonstrate the union of a couple and their existing children coming together as a family. Sand ceremonies reinterpret the older...

The Secret To Preparing For Best Man Toasts With Confidence? Preparation. "There's No Excuse For Lack Of Preparation" - Lou Holtz DIY Best Man Toasts Start by putting pen to paper and...

Lighting a unity candle during a wedding service is a traditional way to symbolize that the bride and groom are joining their two selves and two lives into one life together. This beautiful...

A speech by the maid of honor should be planned well in advance unless you are a more spontaneous person, in which case last-minute inspirations could make the toast special and memorable. If you...

Weddings performed in the United States often incorporate symbolic rituals of the union between the bride and the groom. Lighting a unity candle symbolizes the intertwining of the two families...

Attending a wedding of a loved one is often a joyous occasion in which participating in various traditions can create additional questions. One of those questions is, if you happen to catch the...

Getting married is exciting for brides and grooms. Don't let cultural wedding protocol stress you out on your big day. Learn proper Canadian wedding etiquette to avoid an unwanted matrimonial...

Weddings are joyous occasions celebrated in different ways by people all over the world. Most wedding traditions originated before the medieval times. Each country or society celebrates marriages...

A traditional Mexican wedding is a festive portrayal of the culture and rich history of Mexico. Many customs that are an integral part of the ceremony and celebration are deeply ingrained in Latin...

The removal of the garter is one of the oldest standing wedding traditions. Modern brides can be thankful that the garter is now just fabric and elastic to make removal easier. They can be even...

Fall bridal showers can incorporate much more than orange pumpkins and falling leaves. Create a memorable party by incorporating the season’s rich color palette of golds, rusty reds and even deep...

Many brides think the custom of tossing their bouquet is an outdated one, but they are at a loss for an alternative. Thankfully, there are many alternatives to tossing the bouquet, so any bride is...

During wedding toasts, the bride and groom will fill, drink and raise flutes or glasses. Buying a set of these can be expensive. Making your own personalized bride and groom glasses can be...

Mexican weddings are full of colorful décor and fun traditions that make for an exciting day. You may be looking to incorporate the country's wedding customs into your special day for...

Except for a few instances, the mother of the groom doesn't pay for wedding costs on her own; she usually splits them with her husband. The rehearsal dinner, the honeymoon and the alcohol that's...

Weddings and the planning that goes into them can be very stressful. The proper procedures for how weddings are supposed to be aren't always made clear. From the issues of who pays, to the...

Being asked to give a wedding toast is an honor, as well as a big responsibility. It is to your words that guests will raise their glasses to wish the bride and groom well in their life together....

The lighting of the unity candle symbolizes the joining together of two families--the bride's and the groom's--into a single family unit. Other couples use the ceremony to mean the bringing...

A wedding is one of the most important days in a couple's life. As soon as the proposal has been made, many are ready to announce it to the world. However, when announcing a wedding or engagement...

Just about every region in Italy has its own unique wedding traditions, but when it comes to the marriage ceremony and reception, similar customs extend throughout the entire country. For an...

Lighting the unity candle during a wedding ceremony symbolizes that two lives are becoming one. This ceremony is used in many weddings, but some couples prefer to symbolize their union in a...

A garter toss has been a time honored tradition at wedding ceremonies, but if you want to shake things up a little, have a few surprises under the dress before revealing the finale.

Unity candles are popular in wedding ceremonies as a symbol that the bride and groom are joining to become one. Unity candle sets usually contain two taper candles and one pillar candle. The...

So you are ready to tie the knot, and you want to have a church wedding. In order to make this day truly special, you should know a few guidelines when it comes to church wedding etiquette. Follow...

The garter toss is a longstanding wedding tradition that remains popular today. Wedding garters can range from whimsical to elegant, but should be carefully chosen since your guests will see your...

Weddings are joyous events filled with laughter, sentiment and memories. Pranks pulled by family or members of the wedding party sometimes provide the best memories, although they can also fall...

There is a wide range of choices in wedding-ring sets. The bands can be made of white- or yellow-gold, silver, platinum or now titanium, and set with diamonds or other precious or semiprecious...

During wedding preparations, the mother of the groom often sits back waiting for direction. While she can offer her help, traditional wedding rules dictate what she should do on the wedding day.

Chinese weddings are planned with actions and symbols to wish the new couple a successful marriage. For the Chinese, marital success means financial stability, fertility, and most importantly, the...

The unity sand ceremony is an alternative to the more traditional unity candle as a way to illustrate the joining of two lives into one. In weddings where the bride or groom has children, the...

Before streets, sidewalks and pathways were paved, the wedding guests typically tracked dirt and mud into the church aisle and a wedding dress quickly became soiled as the bride walked down the...

The Ritualistic Lighting of the Unity Candle For Brides and Grooms at Weddings is Often A Mystery to the Guests

Being picked to stand beside a friend as his best man is an honor. The best man's duties include holding the rings during the ceremony and planning the bachelor party. In addition, it's the job of...

Though many customs and traditions have changed how and why wedding bands and engagement rings are used, the meanings are still there: love, commitment and fidelity. Though the engagement ring is...

Being a maid of honor has many duties but one of the most important is giving a toast at the reception. The toast should focus on the bride and should be given during the first half of the...

A bridal shower is a party for a bride to be, usually given by her bridesmaids before the wedding. It is customary for gifts to be given to the bride at the bridal shower. The traditional "ladies...

Wedding showers are best planned by a group of people, such as the bridesmaids and mothers of the bride and groom, each of which has a specific task to complete. Choose a theme, create a guest...

The traditional Indian wedding is a brilliant reflection of India's opulence, faith and vibrant spirit. Lavish and colorful, Indian wedding ceremonies are one of the culture's most sacred and...

Italian weddings are rich in symbolism and tradition. An Italian wedding reception will be lavish with great care taken to ensure that all in attendance enjoy themselves and the day is memorable....

Te role of the mother of the groom is not set in stone. Although there are several established traditions regarding the groom's mother, couples might choose to follow only some or none of the...

Wedding guests will always remember an exhilarated, joyful and ecstatically laughing couple as they dash towards their honeymoon and new life together. Here's how to pull off this picture-perfect...

Letting everyone know which car contains the new bride and groom is one of the most fun projects for the wedding party. Some wedding parties keep the car classy, with just a few "Just Married"...

A garter is a type of women's undergarment that has been worn for hundreds of years. While it is modernly associated with weddings, it has a rich history fit to enhance the meaning for any bride.

The wedding garter is part of the traditional bridal apparel. It is common for a bride to wear two garters, one to toss and one to keep. Plan a traditional or an unusual garter toss to continue...

The literal meaning of a chuppah is canopy. Used in traditional Jewish wedding ceremonies, a chuppah uses an ornately decorated piece of fabric or prayer shawl attached to the tops of four poles....

A wedding is one of the most important events in both the bride and the groom's entire life. All the events leading up to the wedding can be stressful and very time-consuming. On the wedding day,...