The simple guide to

Traditions and Etiquette on

the Big Day

2

Summary

Hi my name is Ashleigh and I have created a

simple guide on how to plan your wedding and

give you a little history lesson on what use to

be done and what we still do today.

This ebook will cover the traditions and the

correct etiquettes of weddings.

Happy Planning.

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Content

Summary P.2

1. History of weddings P.4

2. Traditions around the world P.5

3. Bridesmaids and Best Man P.6

4. Wedding cakes P.7

5. Wedding rings P.8

6. Something Old, Something New P.9

7. Planning the wedding P.10

Invitation P.11

Cancelling, proposing the wedding P.12

And 2nd marriage

Seating Plan P.13

Who pays for what? P.14

Speeches P.15

The Ceremony Etiquette P.16

8. Bibliography P.17-18

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History of Weddings

Nearly every girl dreams about their wedding day with

their man of their dreams with a fairy tale ending, but

have you ever stopped and thought how did weddings

start in the first place?

Back in the Anglo-Saxon time, getting married was not

a happy time that we know of it today; back in those

times it was when a man kidnaps a woman of his

choosing with or without her consent.

By the Middle Ages girls as young as 15 where seen as

their fathers property to do what they wanted, mostly

married off for power, money or alliances.

To make matters worse did it ever cross your mind

where did wearing a vail come from?

A vail was worn in the Roman times to guard off evil

spirts while if it was a arrange marriage it was worn to

hide the brides face until the vows where finished

just in cases he didn’t like what he saw.

Not a fun time to be a bride.

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Traditions

around the

world

Hundreds of couples from around the world get married each year and every one of those weddings is

completely different but I bet you didn’t know certain countries had unique customs when it came to

weddings.

Ancient Rome: The groom bought his bride from her parents.

Holland and Switzerland: It was known to plant a pine tree in front of your home because it was seen as

happiness and fertility.

Italy: The groom would cut up his tie to pay for the honeymoon.

Germany: The best man would kidnap the bride and basically take her to a pub until the groom would come

and rescue her and pay for the tab.

Chinese: They only get married on the half-hour because the hands are moving up and not down.

Greece and Cyprus: While the bride and groom are dancing guest would pin paper money on them.

What one would you like if you had the chose?

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The History of bridesmaids is pretty interesting.

The reason behind a bridesmaid is of course to

help the bride get ready but also to protect her

from evil spirts by dressing just like the bride so

the evil spirits will get confused who the bride

was.

The best man basically the same as the

bridesmaid to protect the groom from bad luck

and to make sure the groom arrives in one piece

to his wedding.

Bridesmaids and

Best Man

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The traditional richness of the wedding cake was a symbol

of fertility from Roman times. It is still usual for the bride

and groom to cut the first slice together to ensure a

fruitful marriage.

At one time, the cake was broken over the bride's head

while guests scrambled about for pieces which were thought

lucky. An old custom suggested unmarried girls should sleep

with a slice of wedding cake beneath their pillow if they

wished to dream of their future husband.

The familiar three-tier wedding cake we see so often today

is said to have been originally inspired by the unusual shape

of Sir Christopher Wren's 70-metre-high spire on St

Bride's Church in Fleet Street, London.

Wedding

Cakes

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Wedding Ring

Choosing an engagement

ring or wedding ring is

one of the hardest parts

of this wedding journey

and it hasn’t even begun.

Have you ever thought to

yourself one the left

hand on the third finger

and is Gold?

The reason why dates

back to the Egyptians

and the early Greeks

because they believed

that an artery ran to the

heart from the third left

finger.

The beliefs behind having

your wedding ring Gold

was to believe it had

magically powers and

rubbed on warts to make

them disappeared.

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Something borrowed: This could be anything, it

represent the link to her old friends.

Something old: Usually a piece of jewellery from her

grandma so she doesn’t forget where she came from.

Something new: This item is usually the

wedding dress.

Something blue: Represents purity. These days’

brides wear a blue garter.

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Planning the

wedding

Planning a wedding is hard work from guest list, venue, seating

arrangement, cake, djs the list goes on and on. Hopefully this next section

will show you how easy it is to plan your dream wedding step by step.

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Invitation

There are so many types and styles to choose from that would

make any couple go a bit crazy.

After choosing your invitation the next question is who do you

want to come?

Here are a couple of tips to help you through this journey.

1. Guest over the age of 18 should receive their own

invitation.

2. You must add your RSVP address and when the cut off is

3. You must ask all guest for their dietary requirements

4. If someone hasn’t RSVP 1 week past the cut-off date call

them.

5. Family should receive an invitation as a memory.

6. If you do not want children at your wedding here are a

few tips to address your request in a proper manner.

Don’t mention the children in the invitation.

We hope a and b will be able to attended

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Things always come up or don’t work out. Here are some guidelines to

help you through these stressful times.

1. The engagement ring should be returned straight away.

2. Out of town guest should be contacted first so they can cancel

their travel arrangement.

3. All gifts should be returned even if they have given you money

with a reason why the wedding has been cancelled.

4. If the gift has been personalized you do not need to return it.

If you’re postponing your wedding you should contact your entire

guest asap. You also have to send out new invitations out with the new

details.

If you’re walking down the aisle again there’s a few do’s and don’ts you

should be aware of.

1. You can still wear a white wedding dress.

2. You should not wear a veil or have a train

3. Parents do not need to pay for anything.

Cancelling, proposing the wedding and 2nd marriage

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Seating Plans Where to sit your guest? You don’t want people fighting or feeling awkward on your big day so here’s

some tip to keep in mind when you’re planning your setting plan.

1. Do not put relatives together if they’re not talking to each other.

2. Don’t force guest to get along with each other if they don’t know each other.

3. Sit guest by ages eg. Teens with Teens, Aunty and Uncles together so they can get along with

each other and be able to have a good time.

The rules for the head table have changed so many times there isn’t any rule.

A typical head table would be the bride and groom followed by Best Man and Maid of Honor then

Bridesmaid and Groomsman.

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Who pays for what?

The cost of weddings these days are

getting more expensive and family members

do not need to help pay but in some cases

families are old school and feel obligated

to pay.

Bride's Family

1. All Reception Costs

2. Church Fees

3. The Groom's Rings

4. Invitations

5. Flowers for Church, Bridesmaids and

Reception

6. Music for Ceremony

7. Bridal Party Transport

8. Gifts for Bridal Party

9. Groom's Gift

Bridal Party

1. Their Attire

2. The Shower

3. If from out-of-town, transportation

to the town the wedding is in

4. Gift for the Couple

Groom's Family

1. Bride's Ring

2. Clergy Fees

3. Bride's Bouquet, Corsages and

Boutonnieres

4. Rehearsal Dinner

5. Transportation for Groomsmen

6. Gifts for Groomsmen

7. Bride's Gift

Groomsmen

1. Their Attire

2. The Stag

3. Gift for the Couple

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Speeches

When it comes to speeches only the best man

needs to do one, followed by the couple.

If your bridal party would like to make a toast

this is the order you should try and follow.

1. Best Man toasts the couple and the

bridesmaids

2. Groom's parents

3. Bride's parents

4. Maid of Honour toast the couple and

the groomsmen

5. Groom toasts his wife, his groomsmen

and both sides of parents

6. Bride toasts her husband, her

bridesmaids and both sets of parents

The Do’s and Don’ts while you’re doing your

speech.

DOs

o Make it short, there’s nothing worse

than a speech which keeps on going.

o Practice your speech, be relaxed

o Add a funny story but nothing to

personal or embarrassing.

DON’Ts

o Don’t be drunk

o Don’t have anything in your mouth, eg.

Gum or food.

o Don’t bring up past relationships

o Make it about the couple not you

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The Ceremony Etiquette When it comes to the ceremony there are a few

un written rules which need to be followed.

The brides’ guest and family sit on the left hand

side of the church while the grooms’ side is the

right.

What is the correct order to walk down the

aisle?

There are many different ways but the more

traditional is as followed;

o The groom and best man are already at the

altar

o Groomsmen first

o Bridesmaids follow

o Maid of honour

o Flower girl and ring bearer

o Bride walks with her father or other.

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Bibliography 1. Front page:

http://www.playbuzz.com/greenfieldsevents10/what-type-of-wedding-will-you-have

2. History of Wedding:

http://www.victoriana.com/bridal/bridal6.htm

http://www.phildweddingphotography.co.uk/frequently-asked-questions/

3. Traditions around the world:

http://www.knotforlife.com/planning/basics/5-strange-wedding-traditions.shtml

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wedding_customs_by_country#/media/File:Greek_Wedding_Photography_Money_Dance.jpg

http://www.onewed.com/photos/show/stunning-indian-bride-shows-off-wedding-day-henna-on-hands

4. Bridesmaids and Best Man

http://www.wisegeek.org/what-are-a-best-mans-duties.htm#

http://blog.weddingpaperdivas.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/bride-getting-help-getting-ready.jpg

https://kentuckykindred.files.wordpress.com/2013/07/scan_pic0729.jpg

https://au.pinterest.com/pin/556053885212542784/

5. Wedding cakes:

http://ohnotheydidnt.livejournal.com/58511386.html

http://www.hitched.co.uk/wedding-cakes-pictures/

http://www.zankyou.us/p/our-favorite-wedding-cake-trends-for-2016

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6. Wedding rings:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wedding_ring#/media/File:Wedding_ring_Louvre_AC924.jpg

http://apracticalwedding.com/2016/02/online-engagement-ring-shopping-james-allen/

http://popularwedding-ring.blogspot.co.uk/2016/04/gold-wedding-rings-2013.html

7. Something old, something new:

http://zenadiadesign.com/something-old-something-new-history/

8. Planning the wedding:

http://www.lovewedbliss.com/wedding-ideas/7-hot-wedding-gift-trends-of-2013

http://blovedblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/02/bloved-wedding-blog-its-all-in-the-details-obsessions-place-settings-menu-bag-

band.jpg

https://dreamerseventplanner.files.wordpress.com/2014/03/wedding-drape-drapery-draping-pattern-print-reception-tent-48.jpg

https://au.pinterest.com/pin/180918110004278309/

9. Invitations:

http://amorluxuryweddingstationery.co.uk/PhotoAlbumsPro/pearlweddinginvitationsamy/#/0

10. Cancelling the wedding:

http://www.thisismoney.co.uk/money/bills/article-2446083/TONY-HETHERINGTON-Reception-called-hotel-demanded-3-500.html

11. Seating Planning:

http://www.toptableplanner.com/top_table_seating_arrangements.php

12. Speeches:

http://www.ghostwords.com/custom-wedding-speeches/

13. The Ceremony Etiquette

http://www.bridalpulse.com/uploads/2015/11/bride-walking-down-aisle1.jpg?12cb30&12cb30