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“Something old, something new, something borrowed, and something blue”. This wedding charm is a tradition that has been followed many betrothed couples for decades. Brides traditionally incorporate this tradition into their bridal attire, wearing something old, new, borrowed, and blue, typically obtained from loved ones. But where does this tradition come from, and why do we still do it today?

The tradition began in the Victorian era as an English rhyme. Originally it went, “Something Olde, Something New, Something Borrowed, Something Blue, A Sixpence in your Shoe”. The final part of the rhyme is typically a British custom only, and thus largely omitted from the saying.

Each object is meant to bring the couple good luck on their wedding day and encourage a successful marriage.

Something Old:

Brides were traditionally required to incorporate something old into their bridal attire to ward off evil. In the olden times, brides traditionally wore an undergarment of a woman that had already bore children as their something old. Doing this was meant to confuse the Evil Eye, who was said to cause infertility. Through this, the Evil Eye was tricked into thinking the bride was already fertile, thus leaving her alone.

However, the more favoured meaning is that of continuity. By incorporating something old, brides carry with them something sentimental from their past.

Typically, brides opt for heirlooms to represent their something old.

Something New:

As the betrothed begin their new life as a married couple, the something new acts as a symbol of optimism  for the future.

This is the easiest and most straight-forward element to incorporate, as it can literally be anything. The easiest is to have jewellery or the wedding dress itself stand for the something new, as those will most likely be purchased brand new.

Something Borrowed:

Something borrowed works to bring the couple good luck on their wedding day and their marriage. Traditionally, couples are meant to borrow something from a close friend or relative that is already married and ideally has children. This way, the luck of the happily married person will rub off on the newlyweds, thus starting the marriage off on a positive note.

As with the something old, brides were encouraged to borrow the undergarments of a close relative or friend as a positive sign of fertility.

Nowadays, couples generally borrow things of significance from friends or family. Once again, it can be anything, from accessories to shoes.

Something Blue:

Blue is said to represent purity, love and fidelity, and as such has become a highly symbolic colour for weddings. It also has the bonus of warding off the Evil Eye, according to legend.

Traditionally, brides incorporated their something blue into their garters. However, today brides can use blue in any aspect of their wedding attire to get the same effect.

The “Sixpence in your shoe” part of the rhyme typically refers to British custom, in which a bride places a sixpence coin inside their shoe for good luck and prosperity.

Picture: Unsplash

 

 

 

Where you get married is an integral part of the big day. You want your surroundings to be absolutely stunning and the photos to be a beautiful reminder of the day. We found these spectacular, slightly off-the-beaten-track venues to keep in mind as you go on the search of the perfect space.

Granny Mouse Country House

Considered one of the most romantic venues in the KwaZulu Natal Midlands, the Granny Mouse is a sight to see. The chapel has panoramic views over the Caversham Valley and is the perfect combination of countryside and luxury. It has an old time charm to it, and is far away from the hustle and bustle of everyday city life.

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Lord Milner Hotel

This venue is in a somewhat obscure place of the country, but trust us, you want to go there. On the fringe of the Karoo, the hotel is one of those rare places that takes you back in time and makes you feel like you’re not even in this century. Named after Lord Alfred Milner, the hotel is also a heritage site and was completed in 1899, and shortly thereafter served as the Headquarters of the Cape Western Command.

Credit: Matjiesfontein.com
Credit: Matjiesfontein.com

 Forest Hall Estate

If you want a fairy tale inspired venue, this place is for you. Situated outside of Plettenberg Bay along the Garden Route, the venue is one with nature and has an enchanted forest look. Almost no need for expensive decor, as nature is your backdrop!

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Oranje Gasteplaas

It’s not news that Clarens in the Eastern Free State is arguably the view-mecca of the inland. Nestled in the Maluti mountains, you get the veld atmosphere without having to sacrifice class. Think open green fields, cattle grazing and mountainous peaks popping up all around.

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 Flycatcher Castle

This awe inspiring structure is on the outskirts of Graskop towards God’s Window in Mpumalanga. Set in the style of a 17th century Italian castle, the venue is an experience in itself. The castle was constructed using hand picked relics and works of art to create a magnificent masterpiece set in one of the most beautiful areas of the country.

Credit: Facebook
Credit: Facebook

Picture: Matjiesfontein.com

Weddings have been happening since time immemorial. From the ancient Romans and Greeks to today’s millennials, weddings have stood the test of time as the ultimate symbol of love and commitment for many.

Many wedding traditions have been around for centuries, and have shaped how we get married. But have you ever wondered where they come from? Turns out, we have Queen Victoria to thank for many modern wedding traditions we use today.

Queen Victoria has gone down in history as one of the most iconic royal monarchs, and for good reason. She has survived multiple assassination attempts, she proposed to her husband, and is the second longest reigning British monarch after Queen Elizabeth II.

Her wedding to Prince Albert took place on February 10, 1840, in the Chapel Royal of St. James’s Palace in London. This day became one that would shape modern weddings for a number of reasons.

A wedding spectacle:

Royal weddings were traditionally small and private night-time events. However, Queen Victoria had other ideas. She wanted her wedding to be a moment. She had her bridal procession drive through the streets to St. James palace so that thousands of members of the public could see her. This has become a tradition for many betrothed royals since, with their weddings becoming public events observed the world over. No other royal monarch weddings have been held in the evening since. She also had many more wedding guests than the norm, making her wedding a massive event.

The white wedding dress:

Up until this wedding, brides traditionally wore coloured wedding gowns. This was mainly for practicality, as they could rewear the dresses and because white is notoriously difficult to keep clean. Royal brides typically had elaborate wedding dresses made in gold or silver fabrics and were highly embellished to show their wealthy status. However, Queen Victoria wanted to be different on her wedding day. She refused the crimson velvet robes of state in favour of a white, lacy gown with an 18ft (5.5m) train. She chose white to enhance the finely detailed Honiton lace on her gown. She also chose this colour to stand out from the crowd and be more visible during the bridal procession, as well as to enhance her purity and innocence. She had the pattern for her dress destroyed after her wedding so that no one else would copy it.

And thus, the white wedding dress tradition was born. Her wedding gown was reported on all over the world, and spurred on international wedding trends. Initially, wealthier brides emulated her look, but by the 20th century most brides were donning pure white for their wedding day.

The veil and floral headdress:

Queen Victoria completed her wedding ensemble with a veil and floral headdress decorated with orange blossoms and myrtle. Orange blossoms were a wedding tradition as they represent fertility and purity. Until her wedding, wedding veils has largely gone out of style in favour of caps and bonnets. However, her decision to don a veil revived the trend for decades to come.

No guests to wear white:

Because Queen Victoria wanted her look to stand out, she banned all of her wedding guests from wearing white on the big day. This tradition has since been an unspoken rule at weddings. Today, wearing white to a wedding is considered incredibly disrespectful to the bride.

The cake:

Queen Victoria’s wedding cake was a sight. At 300lbs (136kg), 9ft (2.7m) circumference and 16 inches ( 40.6cm) in height, this baked wonder required four men to carry it in. It was decorated with a figure of Britannia, and flanked by cupids, one of which held a book bearing displaying their wedding date. This took the wedding cake to new heights. Today, the look of your wedding cake is just as important as any other aspect of the wedding. Many couples spend a large chunk of their wedding budget on crafting an elaborate wedding cake that makes a statement.

 

Picture: Roger Fenton / Getty Images

In a dramatic turn of events, sometimes when you hear the phrase “Speak now or forever hold your peace,” it’s followed by a notable entrance. Someone bursts through the doors just in time, yelling “Don’t marry him!” and the scene then more or less concludes with bouts of tears and the wedding being cancelled. The couple who was actually meant to be together, of course, end up declaring their unending love to one another and ride off into the sunset. Yes, I’m talking about every hopelessly romantic movie ever.

In real life, though, things don’t always end that dreamy. Objections do happen and in fact, sometimes it’s really, really awkward! Here are some of the worst (or best) stories of objections when people did not hold their peace.

– At a small and intimate wedding, a man claiming to be the bride’s lover jumped up during the ceremony and started yelling at the groom. He was screaming that he wasn’t going to let him steal his woman, pointing a gun and threatening to shoot him if he didn’t give her up. Reddit user jjett89 attended the wedding and rightly said it felt like an episode of the Jerry Springer show. The guests were screaming and running for cover as the looney lover stole the show.

– Setting: A vibey, hipster beach wedding in a small town in Canada. The groom waws from Trinidad and Tobago, so all his relatives travelled far and are dressed wildly different from the Canadians. Everyone was loving it.  As the ceremony progresses, everyone was getting teary from the vows. Then the line comes. “Any reason why these two should not be joined in holy matrimony, speak now.” The father of the groom gets up, stumbling and making a scene. A collective gasp followed by silence overtakes the scenic venue. Everyone is holding their breath. But he’s just standing there with glassy eyes. Turns out he was high on marijuana. The 70 year old man in a suit, sunglasses and dreadlocks laughs and says “No, I kid, I kid!” and the audience cracks up laughing as he sits back down. What a jokester.

– During a very prim and proper wedding, a man and says, “Yeah, I object. That’s my wife.” As everyone sits in shock, he claims that they got married at 18, she abandoned him and they never divorced. He had been trying to get a hold of her, and he actually told her that if she didn’t at least get a legal divorce, he would show up at her wedding. She had just ignored him, never answering his calls after leaving him at age 19.  Complete disaster. The wedding was cancelled. The groom married the bride a year later after the divorce went through, in a small private ceremony. And here’s the kicker: two years later she just walked out on him.

– Here’s one you don’t hear everyday. When the pastor got to the part “or forever hold your peace,” the bride said, “Yes, I’d like to say something.” Then she turned around to her guests and said, “I’d like to thank my maid of honour for sleeping with my fiancé last night.” With that, she threw her bouquet and stormed off. The story apparently even made it on the radio at the time.

– This one does not have much theatrics to it, but the sheer mess of it will leave you stunned. The bride and groom were siblings, and their estranged father hadn’t told them until he objected at the wedding. They already had a child together, says didyouknowfacts.com. Twisted.

 

Picture: Unsplash

A welsh bride lost 63kg for her wedding day, stunning her wedding guests with her incredible physical transformation.

Claire Williams (44) from Wales has battled with her weight for the majority of her life.
Speaking to Fabulous Digital, she said, “I was a chunky child and in my early 20s I was about a size 14 which was fine. But I just got bigger and bigger. Any food I could find I’d put in my mouth.”

“I would eat a stupid amount of bread – almost a loaf a day. I’d have it with every single meal of the day. Breakfast, lunch and dinner, too.”

At her heaviest, she weighed 125kg. Her weight began to negatively affect her life in many ways.

“I was beginning to suffer with my mobility. When I got on a plane I sat in my seat the whole journey without moving once – terrified if I undid my seat belt I’d never do it up again.”

At her heaviest she weighed 125kgs. Credit: Facebook

When she met her now-husband Matthew in 2013, however, everything changed.

“Matthew loved me unconditionally. He met me when I was fat and he got a lot of stick. People asked him why he was going out with a fat lass like me.”

Matthew received lots of criticism for dating her, which is what made things truly change for her. She decided to embark on a weight-loss journey, this time sticking to it because she knew she had the full support of her partner.

“Having such a wonderful partner who loves you unconditionally is amazing. If it wasn’t for him, I’d not be the healthy and happy woman I am today.”

With his support, she joined a Slimming World group, a UK-based weight loss organisation. The group members quickly became family to her during her weight loss journey, so much so that she even asked her consultant to be one of her bridesmaids.

Through this programme, Williams lost a dramatic 63kg, almost half her body weight. She now feels full of energy, and has a renewed confidence. Her weight loss also had another important effect. As she lost the weight, she discovered a prominent lump in her stomach that turned out to be a tumour. She had the non-cancerous tumour removed, and feels lucky that her weight loss helped her discover the tumour.

“It’s shocking to think I had something that big in my stomach and I had no idea.”

Credit: Facebook

She confidently walked down the aisle on her wedding day, stunning guests with her transformation.

“I did feel truly amazing on my wedding day. Walking down the aisle felt wonderful. Matthew did nothing but tell me how beautiful I was and the whole day was fantastic,” she said.

She looked confident and happy on her wedding day. Credit: Facebook

Picture: Facebook

Themed weddings have grown in popularity over the years. From movies to books to decades, there is no end to the possibilities. But what about holidays? The month of October is spooky season because of the popular holiday Halloween, and some Halloween fans are taking their love for this spooky holiday to the next level.

If you’re a big Halloween fan, here is some inspiration to throw your own Halloween-themed wedding.

Fashion:
Black dresses go well with a Halloween wedding theme. Think black lace and tulle for an edgy yet romantic finish. Princess cuts give a traditional look, but the black fabric still makes it spooky. It’s a perfect juxtaposition for Halloween.

 

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Decor:
Decor truly pulls a wedding together. Make use of lots of fabric like mesh, tulle and velvet, as well as candles and dried/dead flowers to create a dark and spooky yet elegant atmosphere. Gold finishes provide an antique look perfect for Halloween. Add fake skulls and dried twigs to complete the look.

 

 

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Cake:
Black cakes adorned with Halloween-themed imagery work best for these kinds of weddings. Think skulls, spiderwebs and dead flowers. For an extra touch, choose a red-velvet or black velvet cake.

 

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Photography:
As with any wedding, you’ll want some iconic photography to preserve your memories. Props will greatly add to your images. Make use of fake skulls, face paint, pumpkins, candles, mist and smoke bombs to create a spooky atmosphere.

 

 

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A British couple took their love for Monty Python to the next level when they centred their wedding theme around the popular surrealist comedy group.

Superfans John Wood and Gemma Harris from West Sussex wanted their wedding to honour the 50 year anniversary of Monty Python’s Flying Circus’s first broadcast. The extravaganza took two years to plan and cost over £15,000.

They invited their guests with this unique save-the-date video. In a Facebook post, Harris wrote, “As well as a Monty Python theme, we also had ‘The Wood Party’ as a consistent thread throughout the process which was based on a real Monty Python ‘Wood Party’ sketch and also the ‘Silly Elections.’ This was our Save The Date video.”

Their wedding, held on October 5, 2019, featured numerous references to the popular show. Harris walked down the aisle to the Python theme song and fart noises in lieu of the wedding march, and a hand of God pointed to the couple throughout the ceremony. They even recreated the ‘Buying a Bed’ sketch at their ceremony.

Facebook/Hyacinth Daniels

“There was a 9ft parrot, a handmade albatross, all sorts of things. We commissioned artists to make some of the props, but most things we did ourselves,” says Wood.

Facebook/Gemma Wood

“Instead of saying ‘I do’, I said ‘perhaps’, to which Gemma replied: ‘Oh, say you do!’ To which I replied: ‘Oh, all right then.’”

As a starter, they served guests salmon mousse, which Wood explains to BBC was “a reference to the salmon mousse which kills everybody at the end of ‘The Meaning of Life.'”

The main course featured spam in reference to another popular sketch. Instead of cutting the cake, they smashed it with a prosthetic foot.

Facebook/Gemma Wood

Carol Cleveland, an actress well known for her work with Monty Python, even made an appearance at the wedding.

Facebook/Gemma Wood

The British surrealist group entertained viewers with their Monty Python’s Flying Circus TV show from 1969 to 1974, as well as several movies. Members of the group included John Cleese, Terry Gilliam, Eric Idle, Terry Jones, Graham Chapman, and Michael Palin.

Monty Python is incredibly important to Wood, who was once married to a woman that did not like the show.

“The way I look at the world, everything reminds me of it,” he told The Guardian UK. “I wanted a woman who likes and understands Monty Python. It was the most important thing in my search for a new partner.”

He took his search very seriously, even setting up a Monty Python themed Facebook group called Pythonesque Dating to help Python-heads find love with each other. It was here that he met his future wife, Gemma Harris.

The couple became engaged in front of Monty Python stars Michael Palin and Terry Gilliam at a fundraising event in London.

Picture: Facebook/Gemma Wood

American socialite Amanda Hearst and Norwegian film director Joachim Rønning had a four day nuptial celebration. The wedding ceremony took place on August 2, 2019. The romantic love affair was held in California at the Hearst Castle. Amanda is the great-granddaughter of American publishing mogul William Randolph Hearst, and Joachim is known for directing Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales (2017) and Maleficent: Mistress of Evil (2019).

 

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Our cathedral ❤️

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Micaela Erlanger was Amanda’s stylist for the big weekend. The rehearsal dinner entailed a Viktor and Rolf Soir dress, which was a beautiful white garment that was paired with a Judith Leiber Crystal Castle clutch and Sergio Rossi shoes.


Amanda wore an Oscar de la Renta gown for the ceremony. The bride requested that her gown be completely sustainable. This meant that nothing was imported or specially requested and all materials were sourced locally or taken from the designer’s own supplies. Even the boning of the dress was reused as it was taken from a previous gown. The silk was bought from the Taroni mill, which the Green Carpet Fashion Awards in 2017 announced as their ‘sustainable producer’ winner.


After the ‘I dos’ Amanda slipped into a Galvan halter dress for the reception. To end off the night, she wore a Giambattista Valli couture dress, and on Saturday Amanda turned heads with yet another Oscar de la Renta dress.

 

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Maybe blondes do have more fun ??‍♀️??‍♀️??‍♀️ @parishilton #makeupbydianebuzzetta

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The Moroccan-themed reception included caviar, champagne and a traditional white wedding cake. Their guest list included Paris and Nicky Hilton, Jay McInerney, Kick Kennedy and Candace Bushnell. They indulged next to the famous Hearst Castle pool.

 

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Blonde crew ✨ #KathyHilton #ParisHilton @AmandaHearst @AnneHearst #NickyHilton

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Amanda and Joachim didn’t have a typical and ordinary rehearsal dinner though. To incorporate a bit of Norwegian flair on the day, guests were encouraged to visit a reindeer that had a special invitation to the party.

 

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The bride and honorable guests #hearstgoesrønning

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The Hearst Castle wasn’t just any venue for the happy couple. The castle was partly designed and conceptualised by Amanda’s great grandfather, William Randolph Hearst. The estate is a national historic landmark and belongs to the state of California.

 

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Golden hour ✨

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Picture: Instagram/Amanda Hearst