4 Wedding traditions you can skip
Earlier in the month, we posted a blog about money saving wedding tips. Most of our tips involved steering away from the old wedding traditions that have been around for centuries, some even belonging to the ancient Greeks and Romans.
Weddings have been wrapped in so many traditions and, in many cases, you receive criticism for not conforming to wedding “norms”. But why are we sticking to wedding customs that aren’t really significant to today’s circumstances? We’ve compiled a list of 10 wedding traditions that you can skip (if you want to).
#1. Bride’s parents pay for the wedding
This tradition dates back hundreds of years ago. Back in the day, women were seen as chattel (an added responsibility for her groom), especially because they weren’t allowed to live alone, own property or work outside of their homes. Therefore the bride’s family used to pay the groom's family to take ownership of her. The tradition evolved over the years and the bride’s family took on the responsibility of handing out cash for the wedding - and in many cases they still do!
This seems a little unfair nowadays, especially because there is often pressure on brides and grooms to throw such extravagant weddings, no matter how financially impractical it is for the bride’s parents.
These days, women are way more independent than they were in the past and do not need marriage to ensure they are loved and cared for.
#2. Asking for daddy’s permission
Back in the day, a groom would seek their future father-in-law’s permission before asking for a woman’s hand in marriage. However, nowadays, this is still important for many fathers but not so relevant. We live in a day and age where a woman is not seen as a possession to be passed from one male to another.
#3. Wearing a white wedding dress
Most brides choose their white wedding dress without even thinking twice about the reason this tradition exists. The dress symbolised the virginity of the bride. This is especially not relevant when it comes to non-religious marriages.
#4. Father walking his daughter down the aisle
Most of us are very accustomed to seeing fathers walk their daughters down the church aisle; however, lately you may have noticed a lot of brides aren’t following this tradition.
The tradition dates back to the time of arranged marriages. As mentioned above, daughters were seen as property of their fathers and, therefore, when a father walked his daughter down the aisle, it was done as an act of agreement of trade.
These days, many brides choose to walk themselves down the aisle or choose another friend or family member - anyone who has been a great support to them throughout their lives- to walk alongside them.
Bottomline…
There are actually so many wedding traditions that aren’t applicable to weddings today; however, it is absolutely up to you to decide what type of wedding you want! These days ANYTHING goes, which is so exciting - you can plan any type of wedding you want.
You may also want to read: Wedding trend predictions for 2018