Here's the latest installment of my "Why Royal Weddings Matter" series for Confluence Daily...excerpts from The End of the Fairy-Tale Bride with updates from the recent wedding of Prince Harry and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex. Enjoy!
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Tokens of Abundance & Love
Most
wedding rituals today are “rooted in the potent mix of tradition and superstition,”
wrote Barbara Tober, former editor-in-chief of Bride’s magazine.
Take the
rhyme, something old, something new, something borrowed, something blue,
and a sixpence for your shoe—the familiar
little verse that became a beloved personal ritual for generations of brides.
The rhyme itself may not be that old (first appearing in print in the nineteenth
century according to my research), but the customs it describes have been
around for centuries. In cultures worldwide and for as long as we know, there
was some sort of ritual conjured up out of superstitious notions encouraging brides
to tuck “tokens of abundance” (pieces of bread, a lump of sugar, bits of
ribbon, a silver charm or coin) into their purse, glove, or shoe; or sew the
item into their bodice or dress hem. This was all done in the desire to call
forth good luck, great fortune—including the birth of a male heir—or some
magical promise of love forever!
Shoe
historian Cameron Kippen declares that throughout ancient times “it was widely
accounted wearing something borrowed was lucky. The something borrowed varied to something
golden or something stolen. A
common belief was the bride would enjoy the same luck as the previous owner if
the shoes of another happy bride were worn.” (And the good-luck superstitions
extended to the groom by wearing old boots loaned to him for his wedding.)
The
historian also reminds us that “a long standing bridal superstition stated no
harm could befall a bride wearing blue.” Through the ages, wide-ranging
references to the color blue surround it with compelling, even divine properties.
The color is often associated with Mary, mother of Jesus, and Brigit, the
Celtic goddess of healing and the arts; and in Ayurvedic wisdom, the color blue
is linked with the throat chakra, or energy center, and inspires balance in our
true self-expression. It is cited in Geoffrey Chaucer’s fourteenth-century The Canterbury Tales as a symbol of
truth and faithfulness and Shakespeare fondly considered the “blue of heaven’s own tinct....”
With
such rich folkloric history, it stands to reason that somewhere along the way a
sentimental poet neatly put it all together in a romantic rhyme—some think
derived from an old Italian saying, others believe it’s British in origin. Proving,
once again, that wedding traditions have “complicated roots”—to borrow a phrase
from Carol McD. Wallace’s book, All Dressed in White. Whatever
the origin of the rhyming verse, nineteenth-century Victorians popularized it and
even royal brides followed its feminine directives for their wedding day.
Princess
Diana’s wedding gown designers, Elizabeth and David Emanuel, shared how they custom-fit
the rhyme’s legacy for their royal bride:
The old was
represented by the piece of Queen Mary lace that we used on the bodice and
flounces while the new was obviously the silk dress itself. The tiara that
Diana wore was a Spencer family heirloom—so something borrowed—and to complete
the tradition, we hand-sewed a little blue bow into the back of the dress.
Following
the rhyme continues to be a treasured ritual for many modern brides; not
because of any “superstition,” but because it has a way of bringing together generations
of women in conversations and remembrances over things we hold dear. A
grandmother unpacks a precious family heirloom; a great-aunt shares something
from her own trousseau and recalls stories from her mother’s wedding; a
sisterly friend offers love, support and deep listening.
The “something
old, something new” rhyme seems to be infused with a kind of fairy-tale quality
and delights of feminine mystique—is the mystery part of its appeal? I call the
old-fashioned rhyme the most feminine of all wedding rituals. Whether a bride
borrows her grandmother’s handkerchief; wears a gift of birthstone earrings or an
antique lace veil; pins a blue silk ribbon to her corset or slips a sixpence
coin into her shoe or his pocket, they have put something magically mysterious
into motion. And what woman doesn’t become more attractive wearing a bit of
mystery? ~
[Excerpts
from The
End of the Fairy-Tale Bride: For Better or Worse, How Princess Diana Rescued
the Great White Wedding, available on Amazon, with updates from Prince Harry
and Meghan Markle’s recent “something wonderful” wedding celebration! www.CorneliaPowell.com]
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