Big Fat Greek Wedding Traditions. Opaaaaa! Ouzo for Everyone!

Greece is suffering some economically terrible times.  However, people are always getting married, and so there are parties going on in the midst of the austerity.  They may not be quite as big and fat as in years past, but a Greek wedding is never anything but a joyous celebration.

Most Greek weddings take place under the aegis of the Greek Orthodox Church, which has some lovely wedding rituals, including the bride and groom wearing ceremonial crowns that are tied together with ribbon to signify the bond between them.  The bride and groom hold lighted candles, and make three circles around the altar to represent their journey through life.

Chris & Alethia's Wedding: Courtesy of TheBrideAndGroom.com

At the reception, the party gets underway.  Live music is de rigeur, Plates are broken for good luck, and money is traditionally thrown at the musicians.  Traditional foods such as spanakopita and baklava are served, and are easy ways to bring a little bit of Athens to any wedding.  Toasts are raised with ouzo, a strong licorice flavored spirit.

One last tradition to be very careful with, should you choose to adopt it, is that of breaking open a pomegranate on the ground representing fertility, and good luck.  As an event planner, this makes me apoplectic.  My bride is wearing white, and you’re stomping on pomegranates?  Where’s the ouzo? Opaaaa!

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Living La Vie En Rose: French Wedding Traditions. (Retail, Romantic and Rousing)!

Oh the French. We all know about the wine, the cheese, and the persistently seductive skunks (who doesn’t love Pepe Le Pew?) But wedding traditions abound! And I’ll highlight three: One Retail, One Romantic, and one Rousing. Let’s dive in.

Retail: The concept of the “bridal trousseau,” the collection of clothes and a bride assembled, was originally a French one, coming from the word “trousse” meaning “bundle.” In Victorian times it became a status symbol to have an elaborate wardrobe prepared for the wedding celebrations, and the honeymoon. Women and society have changed, but outfit-shopping for the honeymoon is a fun way to relieve planning stress. Take your guy with you – you can “bundle” up together.

Romantic: We love this one – guess why? French wedding bouquets are usually quite fragrant (if you have allergies, skip this part) and include flowers that hold special meaning for the bride and groom. Did he pick daisies outside your house before your first date? Sneak one in there. No flower in mind? Use the language of flowers, and whisper it in his ear.

Rousing: This one’s kind of nutty, and more likely to appeal to bridesmaids reading than brides, but I couldn’t resist. Apparently friends turn up outside the happy couple’s room in the night banging pots and pans, singing, and otherwise behaving badly, loudly. And, the groom is, by tradition, supposed to invite everyone in for a nosh.

So there you have it, three ways to make your (or your friend’s/sister’s/daughter’s) wedding more French. One last note: my guess is that in any culture, a rag-tag bunch of guests at the honeymoon suite door would be about as welcome as a relative of Pepe Le Pew.

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You want even more wedding centerpieces? Now this is getting personal..

The stats don’t lie, centerpieces are all the rage. And why not?  They do make a good starting point.  So now we get personal. Here’s the scoop (and the photos) of the centerpieces from my October 2010 wedding expertly planned, designed and coordinated by My Little Flower Shop, soup to nuts.

My now husband and I told Greg the colors we liked, and that we wanted the wedding to be on the contemporary side.  From there, Greg came up with the idea that instead of one big design in the center of the table, he would do three smaller ones – more of a tablescape than a centerpiece.  The outcome was elegant and modern, and suited us perfectly.

This low, rectangular centerpiece element is green cymbidium orchids and seeded eucalyptus in a natural fiber container

 

This centerpiece element consists of tightly clustered green button poms in a modern glass container lined with a ti leaf
This centerpiece element added height to the trio with white dendrobium orchids in a bed of moss in a neutral ceramic container
Pin-spot lights focused on each table highlight and unify the three pieces and make the glassware sparkle
The tables varied: there were also low arrangements made of green roses.

 

For more photos of our wedding, click here.

Thanks to Cheryl Mac for her beautiful photographs, and to Greg and Al and Mary for my beautiful wedding.

Be well, and love well!

-Dinah

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