Something old, something new, something borrowed, something blue and a silver sixpence in her shoe.

- A Victorian Era Saying

Closet Content Analysis: Something Blue

NICE NO THANKS NOTE-WORTHY NEED NEW

Brides getting married in the summer in 2012 already have their dresses or gowns chosen but it is the extras that some brides are still contemplating.

Whether a bride chooses an icy pale blue dress or blue nail polish, following the "something blue" in the Old English Victorian bridal mantra, seems required. Then there are those who have good intentions. Under-garments are a great way to incorporate the something blue, but one recent bride (JO, my massage therapist) found the perfect "something blue" underwear in lime green. So be it.

NO THANKS: The "something blue" for many brides, past and present, is one of those single garters sold in a box that has as much lace trim as the garter. Sigh. Now should I tell you how I really feel about bridal lace garters? Mind, the photograph is pretty. However, tradition being what it is, if the groom is planning to throw a garter, you might do better to support a crafts person, such as the person making and selling garters on GarterBoutique (Etsy). I have no idea who she/he is or if her/his work is any good but if I were to do it now, I would buy from a private source such as this individual rather than from the wedding bric-a-brac store.

Here are a few examples of brides who smartly chose their "something blue" choices.

"blue shoes" by Lesley Porter

NICE : Blue heels or flats for "something blue" is a great move. For her destination wedding in Mexico, Marjorie Jean S. chose, "a pair of Manolo Blahnik Something Blue satin heels (Featured in the original Sex and the City movie)." She goes on to say, "The shoes were beautiful, and I did break them in, but with the heat of the day and all the walking, I was barefoot for most of the time other than the ceremony and some pictures."

At other tropical destination weddings, the brides chose: blue flowers as hair-pieces, blue crystals in the bridal jewelry and blue trim on the wedding gown.

The blue sparkle on this wedding gown was captured by Carly Blake Photography.

NOTE-WORTHY 1 - Family: Cara C told me the following story: "I have a friend who did something lovely . . . (she) was really close to her grandfather but he had passed prior to her wedding . . . she took fabric from one of his old blue ties and had it sewn in a tiny heart at the back of her dress in memory of him. It really was beautiful!!"Now that is NICE and NOTE-WORTHY.

NOTE-WORTHY 2 - Heritage: Canada has always prided itself on being a multi-cultural country and many families keep traditions from their ancestors' ethnic and national backgrounds. Judy-Anne AKA Jzaba told me about incorporating her Eastern European background into her something blue which was "a blue sheer ruffle with embroidered Ukrainian motif flowers (roses) in red and dark blue. This ruffle was around the neckline, bottom of the dress and on the cuff of the sleeve. . . bridesmaid's dresses were in blue too, with embroidery on them."

Contemporary bride wearing a headscarf to symbolize
her status as a married woman (in Ukrainian tradition).

Another cultural trait from brides with Eastern European background, in this case Ukrainian, is to have the bridal veil removed at the end of the wedding festivities and before she goes off with her new husband. A "babushka" square scarf is then wrapped around her head to symbolize that she can now no longer wear flowers in her hair because she is a married woman. (Apologies for the out of focus representation but it was a tiny part of the original photo and I enlarged it from the original panorama shot.)

The blue bridal choice for me was the blue "babushka" kerchief in honour of my Ukrainian maternal grandmother, however, the symbolism was inconsequential for me.

Share your "something blue" stories.