Need a break from wedding planning stress? Have a butchers at these totally weird wedding facts. From fooling evil spirits to marrying the best man, suddenly your wedding woes won’t seem half as bad.
A Veiled Threat
So why the veil? To spare the bride’s blushes? No, it’s actually a little more sinister – The ancient Greek and Roman’s believed that evil spirits were hell bent on destroying the wedding but would be warned off as long as they couldn’t see the bride’s face.
Dress to Impress
If your bride tribe aren’t feeling the dresses that you’ve picked out for them, it could be way worse…back in ancient times bridesmaids had to wear the exact same dress as the bride in order to trick, you’ve guessed it, those pesky evil spirits again.
Bread Head
We all love a bread basket at a wedding but would draw the line at wearing it. Back in the day brides in Italy had to endure the tradition of having a bread loaf broken over their head. Crumbs!
Let’s Get Leathered
A couple of pre-wedding drinks for Dutch courage is one thing but in ancient Scottish tradition the happy couple were literally soaked in alcohol then covered in treacle and feathers the day before the wedding. Talk about hangover!
Pinch Punch.
In Egypt brides were pinched for good luck by all their female guests. Ouch! Think we’d much prefer a gift card.
The Better Man
The original role of the Best man was to step into the groom’s shoes so to speak and marry the bride if he failed to turn up. Awkward
Something Fishy
In Korea, the groom’s feet were hit with a fish or a cane in order to prove his strength of character.
Bigger is Better
Sick of the wedding diet? In Mauritania girls were sent to fat camp prior to their weddings to fatten up before the big day….more cake anyone?
Hair Today, Gone Tomorrow
If your hair trial hasn’t gone to plan or you can’t seem to find that perfect dress spare a thought for ancient Spartans who had to shave their heads and dress like a man for their wedding day.
Feeding the 5 Thousand
Back to Egypt where tradition was that the bride’s family had to do all the cooking for an entire week. Wow that’s a lot of cooking and washing up! At least we can take care of all that on the day itself.