13 Wedding Rules You Can Break

Some rules are just too silly, you wonder who started it. I have come up with thirteen old school wedding rules you can break; you don’t have to do these things at your wedding or include them in your wedding. 
Since a wedding is meant to be enjoyed; break any rules to suit you!

• THE BRIDE’S FAMILY PAYS – Says who? No rule book says so. It’s okay if your parents want to pay for everything but no rule book says they are obligated to do so. The bride’s family paying for the wedding expenses is now a passé rule. In recent times, the responsibilities of wedding finances are being shared between the two families. How you finance your wedding is left to you. Click here to read more on how to finance your wedding. Just make sure you do not live your married life in debt because you had a wedding that was the talk of the town.
• THE COUPLE SHOULDN’T SEE – It’s believed in ancient times that its bad luck for the bride to be seen by the groom before the ceremony. When the couple have a little time with themselves before the ceremony, it could help in relieving stress that had accumulated during the planning process.
• YOU MUST WALK DOWN THE AISLE – isn’t it funny when we blindly follow old customs and traditions without really knowing why it is necessary and if it is still relevant? I do not think it is necessary for the bride to take a trip down the aisle with her father (or whoever is giving her away) while a processional is played. After all, the groom and his men are already at the altar! Why can’t the bride just walk in through the front door or like anyone else without a ceremony to it? Chic, if a long journey down the aisle in your stiletto heeled shoes would be a tiring trip to the altar, ditch it. Anyway, if you hold any meaning to the travel to the altar to meet your groom, it’s okay to travel.
• HIRING FRIENDS AND FAMILY SAVES YOU MONEY – I bet you are wrong. Just because Kate bakes plain cakes well at home doesn’t make her a good wedding baker. Hiring a friend is a great way to lose a friend. Avoid hurt feelings by hiring professional vendors. Allow your friends to enjoy beings guests at your wedding.
• BEING A BRIDE MEANS WEARING WHITE – Brides have a choice when it comes to colours. It is not compulsory to wear a white wedding gown. Ivory and cream make excellent colours for wedding dresses. I have heard wearing white stands for purity and you don’t want to give others the wrong impression about your ‘purity level’. Is it in the Bible that you must wear white on your wedding? How many brides in white are actually pure? If you have a favourite colour you would love to wear, put it on girl. However, if the church you are marrying insists on white, it’s okay to follow them. Else, go on a colour splash!
• DIY SAVES YOU MONEY – do-it-yourself projects are not only time consuming but capital intensive. Before embarking on DIY journey, research into the cost implications. Baking your own cake or arranging your own flowers will cost you some bucks. Decorating the reception venue yourself means renting stands, drapes and aisle runner. Have you considered how much rentals of such things will cost? Except, of course, you have the materials, expertise and time, hire a vendor.
• THE BRIDE MUST WEAR A VEIL – I doubt if the veil has its origin in the Christian faith. The veil is just one of the accessories. If you do not like a veil, don’t wear it. It’s not a must. Whatever meaning you may think the veil has, it is not compulsory.
• YOU MUST PRINT WEDDING BULLETIN – I have always wondered what the congregation did with the wedding bulletin after the event. With the technological advancement creeping into churches today, I foresee bulletins becoming obsolete. The church technical crew can project the processional and recessional hymns on a screen. The wedding vows are meant for the bride and groom, why do I need to read it? Do I need to know the names of everyone in the wedding party? If you don’t want to distribute bulletins, don’t! After all, no one would arrest you.
• SPLITTING GUESTS – I thought a wedding is a celebration of love between two people that have become one today? Why should there be a disparity in the seating of the wedding guests? In the old school rule book, guests from the bride’s side sat on the left while guests of the groom’s side sat on the right. Wouldn’t the whole seating be lopsided if the groom’s family had more guests than the bride’s? I once attended a wedding where the guests of the groom’s side are being given a particular souvenir while the guests of the bride’s family are neglected. How about the wedding where the bride’s guests were served food first, and by the time the groom’s guests were being served, food had been exhausted. A wedding is a celebration of love not a promotion of family differences. Have guests sit wherever they like.
• LEAVE FOR HONEYMOON RIGHT AWAY – after several months of planning just a day, it’s okay to take a vacation afterwards. Planning the honeymoon is work itself. To save you another round of stress, delegate the planning. You can also go for your honeymoon after you have settled down in your new home. You would have time in your hands to plan your dream vacation.
• YOU HAVE ONE YEAR TO MAIL YOUR THANK-YOUs – courtesy demands that as soon as the hustle and bustle of the wedding is over, thank your guests for their presence and their presents. You should already have a detailed list of your gifts. If you waste time on it, you may never get time to appreciate your guests.
• BLACK IS FOR FUNERALS – so you have this gorgeous black dress you want to wear to a wedding, what’s stopping you? If the wedding couple loves black and white as their wedding theme, why can’t they go all the way? If your bridesmaids are indifferent, have them wear a black dress. I agree black is usually associated with mourning and all of that, it is still a colour some people love. If you think black is a bad idea, why do you wear black shoes or a black suit?
• A COORDINATOR IS EXPENSIVE – with the level of completion in the wedding industry today, you can find an affordable wedding planner that would offer you excellent services. A coordinator is takes the stress off you, why don’t you want to pay to enjoy your day?