Wedding tradition

Something old, something new, something borrowed and something blue

  

Wearing ‘something old, something new, something borrowed and something blue’ is an expression you have heard before... but never paid any attention to? Well, now it's your turn to get married and think about this expression again. This article is for you. Let yourself be carried away by these few lines that will help you understand the origin and importance of this wedding tradition in order to personalise your secular ceremony...

A wedding tradition

This wedding tradition originated in 19th-century England, and over the years became an important tradition in weddings, spreading very quickly to France. It concerns the way the bride is dressed and in particular the accessories she must wear on the most beautiful day of her life. These four elements have specific meanings. They are considered to be sources of happiness and prosperity for the bride and groom. Here are their meanings:

• Something brand new symbol of success and good luck
• Something brand old symbol of family and family ties
• Somethingborrowed symbol of happiness and good luck
• Something brand blue symbol of purity and fidelity

Personalise your wedding ceremony

The choice of accessories representing these four elements is as different as it is personal for each person. The first personalisation is to take up this tradition for both the bride and groom. Putting on accessories, looking for symbols with loved ones, and receiving family accessories are all highlights that everyone can experience, men and also women! So I encourage you all to take up and make this tradition your own.

Then, everyone has their own story, personality and life journey, so it's important to choose objects that make sense. I even talked to you about it in this article for choosing your dress. Want some inspiration? Read on!

Example: Hillary and Giovanni's secular ceremony

To illustrate this tradition, let's take a flashback to the wedding of Hillary Vanderosieren and Giovanni Bonamy (influencers and entrepreneurs), which I had the good fortune and honour of officiating.

As you can see in episode 6 of the mini-series dedicated to their wedding(Hillary and Giovanni for life),Hillary's mother, grandmother and best friend gave her a brooch combining the various elements of the tradition: a new pendant from the brand she created with her future husband, an earring given to her grandmother when she was little, a blue ribbon and an object representing her children.

On the groom's side, Giovanni will wear his late grandfather's watch on the day. A strong symbol for the whole family.

To discover their entire wedding, watch their programme Hillary and Giovanni for Life on MY TF1 by clicking here https://www.tf1.fr/tfx/hillary-et-giovanni-le-mariage

Other ideas for finding your accessories

Still don't know what to choose? Or are you hesitating between two items? Here is a list of traditional items to wear for your secular ceremony.

For something:

• Something brand new : something that embodies optimism and the future (an object representing a project that is close to your heart, a wedding dress, a garter or other)
• Something brand old : something old that belonged to a loved one, such as jewellery (ring, pendants, watch, earring, etc.)
• Somethingborrowed: ask inspiring couples you know (e.g. a hair clip, piece of jewellery, brooch, gloves, veil or other accessories)
• Something brand blue: a handkerchief, garter, ribbon, button, item of underwear