This good luck saying dates back to Victorian times and is probably the most famous Wedding Day tradition of all :

Something Old, Something New,

Something Borrowed, Something Blue,

and a Silver Sixpence in Her Shoe.

Something Old represents the link with the bride's family and the past. Many brides choose to wear a piece of antique family jewellery or a family heirloom wedding gown.

Something New represents good fortune and success in the bride's new life. The wedding gown is often chosen as the new item.

Something Borrowed is to remind the bride that friends and family will be there for her when help is needed. The borrowed object might be something such as a lace handkerchief.

Something Blue is the symbol of faithfulness and loyalty. Often the blue item is the garter.

The Wedding Dress

It is thought unlucky for the bride to make her own wedding dress.

It is also unlucky for the groom to see the bride in her wedding dress before until she arrives at the ceremony.

The bride should not wear her entire outfit before the wedding day. Some brides leave a final stitch on the dress undone until it is time to leave for the ceremony when the outfit is completed.

Most brides marry in white which symbolises maidenhood. This tradition, started by the rich in the sixteenth century, and was given a boost by Queen Victoria who chose to marry in white instead of silver which was the traditional colour of Royal brides. Before the white dress tradition started, brides wore their best dress. The colour was a matter of preference. The following is a traditional rhyme offering advice on dress colour:

Married in White, you have chosen right,

Married in Blue, your love will always be true,

Married in Pearl, you will live in a whirl,

Married in Brown, you will live in town,

Married in Red, you will wish yourself dead,

Married in Yellow, ashamed of your fellow,

Married in Green, ashamed to be seen,

Married in Pink, your spirit will sink,

Married in Grey, you will go far away,

Married in Black, you will wish yourself back.

A green dress is thought to be unlucky unless the bride is Irish. The old expression that a woman has a 'green gown' was used to imply promiscuity, the green staining being due to rolling in grassy fields.

The Wedding Day Garter(s):

Throwing the garter began in France when pieces of the bridal attire were considered lucky. The bride would throw the garter to the guests at the wedding and whoever caught it could expect good luck. In the United States, the groom traditionally removes the garter from the bride and throws it to the unmarried men. The man who catches it is thought to be the next to marry. At some weddings the man who catches the garter will place it on the leg of the lady who caught the bouquet or they may start the next dance. It is also common for the recipients of the bouquet and garter to have a photograph taken with the bride and groom.

The garter is placed on the brides right leg, just above the knee.

Often the bride chooses to wear both a garter to throw and one she could keep.

Shoes

In the past there have been a number of customs involving shoes which were thought to bring good luck. The best known, which is still upheld, is to tie shoes to the back of the newlyweds' car. This has evolved from the Tudor custom where guests would throw shoes at the newlywed couple. It was considered lucky if they or their carriage were hit.

Less well known is for the bride's father to give the groom a pair of the bride's shoes to symbolise the passing of responsibility for the daughter to her new husband. A variation of the custom is for the groom to tap the bride on the forehead with one of the shoes to assert his dominance.

The custom of the bride throwing her bouquet shoulder, was originally performed by the bride throwing one of her shoes over her shoulder.

Bridesmaids

Bridesmaids were dressed in a similar way to the bride for the same reason as the origin of veil. The bridesmaids were thought to act as decoys to confuse evil spirits and thus protect the bride.

It is the Best Man's duty to protect the groom from bad luck. He must ensure that once the groom has began his journey to the church he does not return for any reason.

He must also arrange for the groom to carry a small mascot or charm in his pocket on the wedding day.

When the best man is paying the church minister's fee he should pay him an odd sum to bring luck to the couple.

When the bride is ready to leave the house for the wedding ceremony a last look in the mirror will bring her good luck. However returning to the mirror once she has began her journey will result in bad luck.

Seeing a chimney sweep on the way to a wedding is though to bring good luck and it is still possible to hire one to attend wedding ceremonies. Other good luck omens when seen on the way to the ceremony include lambs, toads, spiders, black cats and rainbows.

Seeing an open grave, a pig, a lizard, or hearing a cockerel crow after dawn are all thought to be omens of bad luck. Monks and nuns are also a bad omen. This may be because the are associated with poverty and chastity. They are also though to signal a dependence on charity by the newlyweds.

Bad weather on the way to the wedding is thought to be an omen of an unhappy marriage, although in some cultures rain is considered a good omen. Cloudy skies and wind are believed to cause stormy marriages. Snow on the other hand is associated with fertility and wealth.

Flowers have always been used for decoration at weddings.

Some people choose the flowers at the wedding on the basis of their symbolic meaning. For example orange blossom has always been associated with weddings because it signifies purity and chastity.

Roses symbolise love, azaleas represent temperance: and snowdrops represent hope. Peonies are avoided by some as they are believed to represent shame.

However, people from different regions may attach other meanings to the same flower. For example lilies symbolise majesty to some but are thought unlucky by others because of their association with death.

A combination of red and white flowers is avoided by the superstitious because they stand for blood and bandages.

The groom often chooses a flower for his buttonhole which also occurs in the bride's bouquet. This is a vestige of the time when a Knight would wear his Lady's colours to display his love.

The Bouquet or Toss Bouquet

At its inception, the bouquet formed part of the wreaths and garlands worn by both the bride and groom. It was considered a symbol of happiness. Today the practice of tossing the bouquet is an offshoot of throwing the garter. The single woman who catches the bouquet is believed to be the next to marry.

These superstitions are maintained in the belief that they will bring good luck and happiness to the couple at a time when their lives are changing, hopefully for the better.

Setting the Date

May has been thought unlucky since Roman times, when the month was reserved for making offerings to the dead - and there is a Scottish saying still widely heard, 'Marry in May, rue for aye.' Lent is also said to be an unlucky period, just as is Advent - though both seem to be objected to purely on religious grounds. The following is a list of the good days of the year - at least according to a much reprinted list compiled by the seventeenth century almanac writer, Andrew Waterman, who 'assembled it from many sources.' These were supposed to be days when 'women will be fond and loving': January 2, 4, 11, 19 and 21. February 1, 3, 10, 19 and 21. March 3, 5, 13, 20 and 23. April 2, 4, 12, 20 and 22. May 2, 4, 12, 20 and 23. June 1, 3, 11, 19 and 21. July 1, 3, 12, 19, 21 and 31. August 2, 11, 18, 20 and 30. September 1, 9, 16, 18 and 28. October 1, 8, 10, 19, 23 and 29. November 5, 11, 13, 22 and 25. December 1, 8 10, 19, 23 and 29.

A wedding conducted after sunset is believed to be irretrievably doomed, according to superstition, for not only will the couple's life together be miserable, but they will lose their children and both go to an early grave. And here is a wedding night tip. It should always be the husband who locks the front door before going to bed, not the wife, or there will be a quarrel during the night; and superstition adds that whoever falls asleep first on this night will be the first to die.

Wedding Day Good Omens:

seeing a rainbow , having the sun shine

meeting a black cat , meeting a chimney sweep

A week before the wedding, it is considered good luck to have a cat eat out of your left shoe.

Chinese superstitions state that carrying an open red umbrella over the bride will protect her from evil spirits.

If the bride sheds a tear on her wedding day, she will never cry again for the duration of her marriage.

Wear earrings when you are married and you will always be happy.

Wedding Day Bad Omens:

Seeing a pig, hare, or lizard running across the road , seeing an open grave,

meeting a nun or a monk foretell barrenness

If candles are lit on your wedding day, and they sputter out, it means an evil spirit is nearby.

A woman should only propose to a man during a leap year, otherwise it endangers the marriage.

It's bad luck for the bride to start down the aisle on time.

The Wedding Cake

Cutting the wedding cake is now part of the ritual celebrations at the reception. The couple make the first cut together to symbolise their shared future.

Cakes have been associated with weddings throughout history. The Romans shared a cake during the wedding ceremony itself. This was not the rich fruit-cake we enjoy today. It was a plain confection made from wheat flour, salt and water. The Fijians and some Native American tribes still incorporate cake in the wedding ceremonies, in some Pacific Islands the actual eating of the wedding cake constitutes a marriage ceremony!.

In Britain early cakes were flat and round and contained fruit and nuts which symbolise fertility. In centuries past there was a custom that guests at a wedding should each bring a small bun with them. These would be piled up in a mound in the room where the festivities were to be held. If the bride and groom could lean over the pile from opposite sides and kiss each other without disturbing the mound then they would enjoy a long and happy life together.

In the past the custom was to throw many small cakes over the bride in a similar way in which we throw confetti today. A modification of this custom was to crumble cake over the brides head and in some versions to break the cake over the Bride's head. In Scotland Oat Cakes were used for this purpose. This was done to promote fertility.

In Yorkshire, a plate holding wedding cake was thrown out of the window as the bride returned to her parental home after the wedding. If the plate broke she would enjoy a happy future with her husband - but if the plate remained intact her future would be grim.

Another old English custom was to place a ring in the wedding cake. The guest who found the ring in their the piece of cake would be ensured happiness for the next year.

The shape of the modern three tiered iced cake is believed to have been inspired by the spire of Saint Bride's Church in the City of London. It is said that unmarried guests who place a piece of wedding cake under their pillow before sleeping will increase there prospects of finding a partner and bridesmaids who do likewise will dream of their future husbands.

The top tier of the cake is often kept by couples for the christening of their first child.

Confetti

Confetti is Italian for sweets which in Italy are thrown over the couple as they emerge from the Church in that same way we use paper confetti. Raisins and nuts may also be used.

Before the use of paper confetti the married couple were showered with flowers, petals, rice or grains. This was to bestow prosperity and fertility on the couple.

The term "honeymoon" is though to originate from the times when a man captured his bride. The couple would hide from the bride's parents before marrying. The couple would remain in hiding for a further cycle of the moon after the wedding. During this period they drank honey wine.

In Scotland the custom was for a woman with milk in her breasts to prepare the marital bed to encourage fertility in the newlyweds.

In Ireland a laying hen was tied to the bed on the first honeymoon night in the hope that some of its fertility would be passed on to the couple. Eating a double yolked egg was also thought to bring fertility.

After the wedding the bride must enter the new marital home through the main entrance. It is traditional for the groom to carry the bride over the threshold when they enter for the first time. The reason for this is uncertain. One explanation is that the bride will be visited by bad luck if she falls when entering. An alternative is that the bride will be unlucky if she steps into the new home with the left foot first. The bride can avoid both mishaps by being carried. A third explanation is that it symbolises the old Anglo-Saxon custom of the groom stealing his bride and carrying her off.

Hindu's have a similar tradition. The bride is carried by her new husband so that she does not touch the threshold when entering her new home.