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White dresses, traditional
songs date back centuries
Bridesmaids originally acted
as decoys for the groom
when he and his best men
attempted to kidnap the bride
By Moriah Balingit
Freelance Reporter
For those who missed the grand fi
nale of "Who Wants to Many a Million
aire?" and for those who aren't com
pletely steeped in American wedding
culture, the notion of hideous brides
maid dresses and other bizane customs
may seem a tad enoneous. But many of
these traditions have origins that date
back hundreds of years.
According to http://www.bridestuff.
com, the popular wedding rhyme that
requires a bride and groom to obtain
"something old, something new, some
thing bonowed, something blue and a
silver sixpence in your shoe" originated
in the Victorian era. "Something old"
was worn in hopes that the bride and
groom would sustain their friendships
from when they were still bachelors
and bachelorettes; "something bor
rowed" was usually an item of import
to the bride's family — such as a family
heirloom — which the bride had to re
turn eventually to ensure good luck;
"something blue" has its origins in Is
raeli weddings, when brides wore blue
ribbons in their hair to symbolize fi
delity; and the "silver sixpence" was to
ensure wealth for the newlyweds.
And why does Billy Idol sing
about a "White Wedding?" Accord
ing to bridestuff.com, the first
known white wedding dress in Eu
rope was worn by Anne of Brittany
for her marriage to Louis XII in
1499. Before that, women usually
just wore their best dress. In China
and Japan, white wedding dresses
were worn to symbolize mourning
for the bride's departure from her
family. By the 20th century, white
had come to symbolize the joy of
the wedding day.
According to http://www.amom
slove.com, a bridesmaid's place in
the wedding originated in a bizarre
kidnapping ritual in which the man
and his best men (hence the term
"best man") would attempt to
abduct the bride-to-be. Bridesmaids
were supposed to dress like the bride
to act as decoys. In ancient Rome,
the bridesmaids acted as decoys for
evil spirits. According to modern
convention, bridesmaids are dressed
in less flattering dresses to not "out
shine" the bride.
The placement of the bride and
groom also originated in this kid
naping ritual, according to the Web
site for Kendrick's Designer Images.
In the original custom, when the
bride was kidnapped, she was
placed on her groom's left side for
protection. Additionally, grooms
had to leave their right side open in
case they had to draw their sword.
The dreaded meeting of in-laws is
hardly a modem convention. In fact,
the honeymoon was originally a
month the newlywed couple spent
in seclusion drinking honeyed wine
and hiding from their new in-laws,
who might attempt to separate
them.
Richard Wagner's Bridal Chorus is
the bona fide wedding song, which
was written in 1848 for Lohengrin,
an opera based on a German legend.
Nearly as popular is Felix Men
dolssohn's Wedding March. Both
songs were popularized by Victoria,
princess of Great Britain and Em
press of Germany, when she used
them in her marriage to Prince Fred
erick William of Prussia, according
to http://www.hell-vetica.com.
Moriah Balingit is a freelance reporter
for the Emerald.
Big day shouldn't be big hassle
Only 187 days until the big day: my
wedding. It sounds like plenty of time
to sort everything out but the ulcers in
my stomach and the streaks of gray
hair don't agree
Well, it's not that bad. I don't really
have ulcers or gray hair, but planning a
wedding, especially while in college
does carry a lot of stress.
My gift to you is some practical ad
vice for planning a wedding while go
ing to school, especially if you are get
ting married outside of Eugene.
First things first: Make sure you
have time off during the week. You
will have to make a lot of phone
calls and go to a lot of appoint
ments. Many wedding vendors will
not meet on the weekends, so you
will have to accommodate their
weekday and evening availability.
I can't count on three hands how
many classes I have missed to drive to
Portland for meeting after meeting.
Keep in mind all of the meetings
involved with each vendor, such as
your photographer. First you will
have a meeting to view their work
and talk about prices. Then you
meet again to sign the contract. A
third meeting is necessary to talk
about the type and style of photos
you want. Don't forget the meeting
at the photography location to go
over where and how the photos will
be taken. That is just for one of the
many vendors at your wedding.
Before you kick into full wedding
planning, you should decide on a few
things with your fiance.
Do you want your wedding indoors
or outdoors? Do you want the ceremo
Lisa Catto
Bridezilia
ny and reception at the same location
or separate ones? Which dty do you
want to get married in?
Also set a preliminary budget pick a
style or theme for your wedding and
outline a rough guest list.
All of these dedsions will help you
eliminate places and vendors quickly.
If you are inviting 350 guests and want
an outdoor wedding, the church that
seats 50 will not work for you.
When it comes time to talk to differ
ent vendors, ask a lot of questions and
compare the company to others.
We found a ceremony/reception lo
cation that seemed great. It was only
five minutes from where I grew up,
and it had indoor and outdoor fadli
ties to protect from the fickle Oregon
EE5TAJDAFT & F>AP
' ft* * kinJa ptoe+!‘
541.342.4141 • 174 E Broadway Ave
www.ambrosiarestaiirant.oom
The perfect
wedding begins
with a rehearsal”
dinner in
Ambrosia's Wine
Cellar
Seating for fifty and
your choice of cuisines
weather. The price even included the
wedding cake, alcohol, decorations
and all of the food. What a great deal
— or so we thought.
Once we began breaking down the
pricey we found that they were charging
quite a bit more than other locations
we were looking at It just seemed like a
better deal because one price included
almost everything.
The only reason we came to that
conclusion was because we were
looking at other places and com
pared all of them.
If you are thinking of a summer
wedding, start looking at vendors be
fore the big bridal shows in January.
Many of them offer specials for book
ing during the bridal show, and if you
have already looked at their work or lo
cation, you can sign with them guilt
free. They also fill their availability
rather quickly after the shows.
I have a few last pieces of critical
advice.
Remember that the wedding is just
one day, emotionally and financially.
Don't stress your relationship over the
wedding — it isn't worth starting your
new life on the wrong foot. Also, don't
break your bank over the wedding. You
will probably have a lot of financial re
sponsibility *afterward like a honey
moon, a house or even student loans.
Secondly, make the wedding
about you and your fiance. I know
that sounds cheesy, but it will be
more special if you incorporate
things that both of you love and
pieces of your personality.
Our wedding invitations have our
family crests on them, along with our
ring bearer's pillow. My fiance, the
"Rocky" freak, might walk down the
aisle to the movie's theme song (if he's
lucky), while I will be escorted down
by bagpipes. Our guests may think we
are crazy, but I will enjoy it.
These little things that reflect our
personalities make me even more ex
cited for the wedding.
Planning a wedding can be a lot of
fun and a lot of stress. But once it's over,
you don't have to worry about it again
— unless you get remarried.
Contact the crime/health/
safety reporter
at lisacatto@dailyemerald.com.
Her opinions do not necessarily
represent those of the Emerald.