Bridal bouquet - traditions, superstitions and rituals associated with it

Signs and superstitions associated with a wedding bouquet
Where did the tradition to throw the bride’s bouquet come from??
Original ways of throwing a bouquet

Bouquet is an integral part of the image of the bride. Previously, flowers donated by the groom on their wedding day, the girls were dried and stored along with wedding accessories, a wedding dress in a chest. Recently, a flower arrangement is not only a decoration for the bride, but also an attribute used in the ritual that defines the lucky woman who is destined to marry the next. The tradition of throwing a bouquet is firmly rooted and it is difficult to imagine the ending of a wedding celebration without performing this rite.

Signs and superstitions associated with a wedding bouquet

Superstitions, traditions regarding the wedding bouquet came from antiquity, some are unfounded, but still girls in most cases trust in signs, try to stick to them, observe. Other brides openly ignore superstition, acting in the manner suggested by the heart or adhering to only a few traditions. Popular signs and superstitions:

Flowers in the wedding arrangement must be alive, ideally combined with the outfit of the bride, her image. According to tradition, it is undesirable to use bright, evocative shades in a floral arrangement; preference should be given to light tones - white, cream, pale pink.
Particular attention was paid to the flowers that make up the composition, because if you know «language of flowers» it is easy to guess what feelings the groom feels for the future life partner. So, roses symbolize sincere, passionate love; orchids - affection; tulips - love, hope for a happy life together; lilies are a symbol of gratitude, an expression of sincerity of feelings.

Once the grooms independently made bouquets or wreaths, collecting for this certain wildflowers, herbs - field daisies, bells, cornflowers, lilies of the valley according to the season, for decoration they used greens, for example, ferns. It was believed that such a composition would protect the young from the evil eye during the wedding ceremony, as well as protect their family happiness from spoilage throughout their lives.

During the wedding day, the bride should always keep the bouquet with her, without letting go of her hands. During the banquet, they put him in a vase on the table of the young, and in the evening the newlyweds take it with them. According to another tradition, the bride, at the end of the walk, throws a bouquet to her unmarried girlfriends. The one that will catch him, according to legend, the next will go down the aisle. Many brides manage to combine two traditions, using a double understudy for throwing. This allows you to save a bouquet and thereby not offend the bridesmaids.

Where did the tradition to throw the bride’s bouquet come from??

The tradition of throwing a bouquet at a wedding has different roots, because all nations had various forms of this custom, which changed slightly over time:

In Russia, at the end of the evening, the bride was blindfolded, and her girlfriends, ready for marriage, stood around her. The girls were dancing, and when they stopped, the one that was closest to the bride received the cherished attribute.
In Europe, girls sacredly believed that a piece of the bride’s wedding dress would surely bring joy in family life, so the unmarried did not hesitate to try to grab «tasty» a piece of the dress, as a result of which the bride had only rags, and this upset her. Over time, in order to please the girls and keep the outfit intact, the brides began to decorate the dress with small compositions of flowers, which were subsequently allowed to be taken unmarried. Later, it developed into a tradition of buying a bouquet for a wedding, and throwing it to girlfriends in the evening.?

This tradition in America has a beautiful beginning. According to the story, one bride at the end of the evening, deciding to please her friend, gave her her bouquet with the desire to meet a loved one and a happy family life. Rumors of this spread throughout the country, and soon it became a worldwide tradition.

Altering, overgrown with legends, the tradition to convey a wedding floral attribute to unmarried girlfriends has come down to us. Many girls are anxiously awaiting the end of the celebration, looking at the bride with hope and are ready for anything to just catch the flowers. But you should not take this rite so seriously, because this is just entertainment, and fate is in your hands.

Original ways of throwing a bouquet

To make the wedding event fun and interesting, you need to come up with and do something original. Few people know that the bride’s ceremony of throwing a bouquet can be diversified and played in different ways, making this process original and exciting for both participants and guests. Such options are popular: round dance, auction, competition. But by connecting imagination, you can come up with your own exclusive way to share a little bit of happiness with your girlfriends.

Presentation of a bouquet with wishes of happiness

If at the wedding party there was only one girlfriend who did not meet her «the prince» and did not find family happiness, then there is no point in throwing a bouquet. In this case, the bride should simply give flowers to the girl with the wishes of love, family well-being, happiness. If desired, the bride can add a small postcard to the flowers with warm words and heartfelt wishes.

Bouquet with ribbons: beautiful lot

handsomely «play out» a bouquet is possible with ribbons. How to do it? It is necessary to take as many ribbons as there are unmarried girlfriends at the wedding, one of them to be tied to a bouquet. Girlfriends choose a ribbon for themselves. The bouquet will go to the girl in whose hands there will be a ribbon tied to it.

There is another option for the draw with ribbons. Each of the unmarried girls present attaches their ribbon to a wedding bouquet. When all the ribbons are tied, the bride lifts the flowers up and one by one begins to cut the ribbons. The girl whose last ribbon will remain tied and receives a bouquet. For such a lot, it is desirable to choose tapes of the same color.

Ancient Russian way «Round dance»

Do not forget about the old customs, sometimes they are able to bring diversity into our lives. A vivid example is the tradition of delivering a bouquet to an unmarried girl, using the Old Russian method - «round dance». According to the rite, girlfriends stand around the bride, hold hands, form a circle, and begin to dance. The bride spins in the center of the circle, but in the other direction. When the music ends, the round dance and the bride stop, and the girl who was closest to the bride becomes the happy owner of a wedding flower arrangement.

Option with mini bouquets

To please your friends by giving them «a piece of happiness», not difficult. If there are two or three unmarried girls at the wedding, then the bride will be able to make everyone happy by pre-ordering a bouquet with a secret, consisting of several separate flower arrangements, but it looks like a whole. Before throwing it, the bride imperceptibly unties the ribbon that held the composition and not one bouquet, but several small ones will fly to the girls. Each girlfriend will be able to catch her flower and everyone will be happy. To save the intrigue, you should not talk to anyone about such a surprise.

It is unlikely that at least one modern wedding dispenses with a beautiful tradition of delivering a bouquet to unmarried girlfriends. How this will be done - in the traditional way, using tapes or with the help of a round dance - it does not matter, the main thing is that during the ceremony, the bride mentally wishes the future flower owner a happy marriage, a strong family, mutual love. And the girls, in turn, must understand that this is only fun entertainment and if this time the bouquet went to someone else, it still does not mean anything.