Between Naps on the Porch: Wedding Superstitions: Burying the Bourbon

Mar 30, 2012

Wedding Superstitions: Burying the Bourbon

Since my son, Chip and his sweetheart, Nancy will be marrying in less than 2 months :) a day doesn't go buy that something wedding doesn't enter my mind. Yep, I have all things wedding on the brain these days.

In the pic below, Chip had just popped the question after dinner while they vacationed in Cancun.

On their wedding site the moment is recorded:

"Well, those of us who know Chip knows he does not always play by the rules, and this time was no different. Somehow sneaking the most beautiful engagement ring through customs didn’t make him nervous but the first evening at dinner, Nancy knew something was up! After thanking her for the journey they had been on over the last few years, Chip told Nancy he wanted to spend the rest of his life with her, then got down on one knee, and ask for her to continue to be by his side forever and marry him. Nancy’s enthusiastic “ABSOLUTELY!” was followed by tears, kisses, hugs, and kind wishes from those surrounding them."

A nice couple across from them grabbed their camera and snapped this pic. You can see the ring box there on the table. This photo always gets me. ♥

Recently, Southern Living sent this lovely issue of Weddings my way.

Inside I found this fun story: "Burying an unopened bottle of bourbon one month before the wedding, at the exact time of the wedding, at the site of the wedding, ensures good weather on the day of the event."

Don't you love this photo of the dutiful groom digging the hole?

Photo from Southern Living, Weddings 2012

The article said it's very important that the bottle be unopened...no sipping allowed. I guess you have to buy a second bottle if you're to celebrate the occasion of the "Burying of the Bourbon." ;)

So, I want to know...did you have any superstitions or die-hard traditions you followed when planning your wedding or a family members wedding?

Receive BNOTP updates right in your Inbox:
To receive the latest posts, as well as updates about upcoming blog parties, subscribe To BNOTP posts via an RSS Reader. Or, have BNOTP delivered right to your Inbox. You'll find links to subscribe via RSS and e-mail on the top ride sidebar of the BNOTP home page, OR click HERE to subscribe via RSS Reader and HERE to subscribe via e-mail. Thanks for reading...you are the reason I love blogging!

Labels: Wedding Planning

52 Comments:

At Friday, March 30, 2012 , Karen said...: Just the old time tradition of "Something old, something new, something borrowed, something blue". We have a gold broach that has been passed down in the family for the past 6 generations and it is worn on the bride's blue garter. You can be sure it is taken off prior to the groom throwing the garter to his groomsmen!
At Friday, March 30, 2012 , Susan (Between Naps On The Porch.net) said...: Karen, what a great tradition and for 6 generations! Love that!
At Friday, March 30, 2012 , Anonymous said...: LOL... I can just imagine sneaking the bottle of bourbon on church property to bury it. Perhaps a small airline size bottle would work, too:)
At Friday, March 30, 2012 , Susan (Between Naps On The Porch.net) said...: LOL Good point! The article didn't say it had to be a certain size, so that sounds like a great idea. Also, you wouldn't have to did such a big hole! Less work for the groom.
At Friday, March 30, 2012 , Johanna Gehrlein said...: Hi Susan,
that is probably a wonderful and a stressy time for you. On my small wedding we had no special tradition. But it is habbit tthat the bride trouw her bride bouqet backwards. She who catch it, is the next bride. Borrowing the bourbon sounds like a sacrificial offering for the groom.
Best greetings, Johanna
At Friday, March 30, 2012 , Anonymous said...: I hit publish too soon. That is a beautiful pic of your son and daughter to be. You must be getting more excited every day. Will the wedding be near your home or where he's living now?
At Friday, March 30, 2012 , Susan (Between Naps On The Porch.net) said...: Thanks! It will be here in Georgia, close to friends and family.
At Friday, March 30, 2012 , Haworth said...: For my wedding and my daughter's we each followed the old traditional verse (Something old, something new, something borrowed, something blue, and a sixpence in her shoe) -- and she used the same sixpence in her shoe that I had used in mine!
At Friday, March 30, 2012 , Susan (Between Naps On The Porch.net) said...: Ahhh, lovely tradition. :)
At Friday, March 30, 2012 , Deanna said...: Yep, I believed it was BAD LUCK to be seen in my wedding dress before the ceremony! Honored this tradition and don't regret it a bit. The Groom should be pleasantly surprised to see his bride all adorned walking down the aisle. My Father also walked me down to present me to my future husband. I also wore a veil that would be lifted during the ceremony.

I had something old, something new, something borrowed, something blue as well. I deliberately followed this. Traditional cake, punch, nuts and mints served the guest.

So many people take formal pictures before the ceremony and I dislike this! The photos can be taken during the ceremony and later and not spoil the moment. Guest can be seated elsewhere while pictures are being taken and munch on something while waiting.

The best to you while you prepare for the big day!!!
Some traditions are beautiful!

God bless,
d
At Friday, March 30, 2012 , Tranae said...: We did the jumping of the broom tradition. My husband's grandmother presented us with a beautifully decorated broom and I wore her sixpence during the ceremony. We broke a couple traditions too when we saw each other before the wedding. We wanted that moment to be private.
At Friday, March 30, 2012 , Haworth said...: Enjoy these weeks leading up to your son's special day! I hope it's a beautiful day for all of you.
At Friday, March 30, 2012 , Unknown said...: Susan auguri con tutto il cuore per tuo figlio e per la sua futura moglie!!
Tanta tanta felicità!!
A presto
Baci
Sabry!!
At Friday, March 30, 2012 , Anonymous said...: My husband and I didn't have any special traditions that we celebrated for our wedding. After 10 years of dating, I was so glad to be marrying him that I was just happy to be getting married. Almost 23 years later, it's the best thing I ever did besides having my sons.

Gretchen
At Friday, March 30, 2012 , Laura @ duke manor farm said...: Never heard of that one- but what the heck! It appears that the groom above( not your Chip) looks a bit nervous- perhaps he needs a drink! Congrats to your son and his lovely bride to be!
laura
At Friday, March 30, 2012 , Ashley@AttemptsAtDomestication said...: We followed the tradition of not seeing each other until the wedding, no first look for us!
At Friday, March 30, 2012 , A Cottage in the Clouds said...: Oh gosh, that picture made me cry!
At Friday, March 30, 2012 , Lori @ Dining Delight said...: Never heard of that tradition but maybe I should suggest it to my daughter's fiance as I know they'd love to have fabulous weather on the date of their wedding (Sept 15/12). Not sure if its appropriate to bury booze in the church parking lot though! Like you, I'm thinking ALL things wedding these days!

DD
At Friday, March 30, 2012 , Mrs.Marie Lester said...: Well I had a quick Military wedding because my husband-to-be was leaving soon and so we had 24hrs to put it together we got married on Christmas eve none the less it was very important to my dad that I wore white because he (and I was of course) so proud that I waited till I was married but on December 23rd it's kind of hard to find a white dress on a budget because all the bridal shops and dress shops had closed already of course! I ended up wearing a white shirt with a black skirt (my mom joked I looked like a waitress in a mexican resuraunt lol) but I'm very glad I stuck with that tradition for my dad my wedding was the best day of my life :) Congrats to your son and his wife-to-be!
At Friday, March 30, 2012 , megan said...: Marrying in England, we followed the usual white wedding traditions which also included being handed lucky horseshoes, bride dolls and L plates made out of silver and cardboard, adorned with flowers. I still have all of these items.
Because we married in the old church where I was christened and attended, our photos contained gravestones in the background. When looking at our wedding album, my daughter enquired why we were married in a cemetery!! :)
Susan, can you share what you will be wearing for the wedding? We will all expect lots of photos!!
At Friday, March 30, 2012 , Glenda said...: My wedding followed the traditional "Something old, something new, something borrowed, something blue, put a penny in your shoe". My daughters both used the same penny that I had put in my shoe. I have a photo of my mother putting the penny in my shoe - but didn't think to have the photographer do one when I slipped the penny in their shoes.
At Friday, March 30, 2012 , Mary said...: What a wonderful picture of Chip and Nancy!

I have never heard of burying the Bourbon, but I love the idea! However, I think too many of the "men folk" in my family would have thought it a waste to bury such a good drink!

Like Megan mentioned I hope you share what you will be wearing the day of the wedding and I hope you post lots of pictures. Nancy is going to be a BEAUTIFUL bride!

I am truly excited for you!

Oh, the only thing my mother insisted upon was on the day of the wedding that we not see each other until I entered the church. She said it was bad luck!
At Friday, March 30, 2012 , Susan (Between Naps On The Porch.net) said...: Thanks! You have to celebrate the special times and enjoy them. It all goes by way too quickly!
At Friday, March 30, 2012 , Susan (Between Naps On The Porch.net) said...: Deanna, you and I must have gotten married around the same time. Mine was very much like you described.
At Friday, March 30, 2012 , Susan (Between Naps On The Porch.net) said...: Thanks, Sabry!
At Friday, March 30, 2012 , Susan (Between Naps On The Porch.net) said...: Thanks, Laura!
At Friday, March 30, 2012 , Susan (Between Naps On The Porch.net) said...: We did, too. Wonder how that tradition got started?
At Friday, March 30, 2012 , Susan (Between Naps On The Porch.net) said...: lol Maybe it's okay if it's a teeny bottle.
At Friday, March 30, 2012 , Susan (Between Naps On The Porch.net) said...: Thanks, Marie!
At Friday, March 30, 2012 , Susan (Between Naps On The Porch.net) said...: That's too funny about the gravestones in the background. I haven't bought a dress yet...just know it will be cocktail length...not to the floor. I miss Lord & Taylor. That used to be my go-to store for dresses.
At Friday, March 30, 2012 , Susan (Between Naps On The Porch.net) said...: Sweet tradition!
At Friday, March 30, 2012 , Susan (Between Naps On The Porch.net) said...: lol Mary, ya gotta do what ya gotta do. :) If that's what it takes to ensure great weather...gotta sacrifice I guess. ;)
At Friday, March 30, 2012 , Yellow Rose Arbor said...: I wish I had known about this the month before our wedding - it absolutely POURED rain on our wedding day :-( The sun (here in FL) was shining beautifully the day before, and the day after, but not on our special day!! :-((

I want to see your dress too!

Katherine
At Friday, March 30, 2012 , Susan (Between Naps On The Porch.net) said...: Katherine, how frustrating is that! You definitely needed this trick.
At Friday, March 30, 2012 , Susan (Between Naps On The Porch.net) said...: Gets to me, too!
At Friday, March 30, 2012 , Zuni, Chickadee Home Nest said...: I know you will enjoy every moment leading up to the wedding and the day itself, Susan. Our son just got married in October, and HE was the one who insisted on not seeing his bride before the wedding--I thought that was very, very sweet. Because I was watching HIM as she appeared, I was able to take a beautiful picture of him, where he closed his eyes and took a deep breath. (Yes, I DID take pictures. The photographer was focusing on the bride :)! ) Enjoy every moment, Susan. ~Zuni
At Saturday, March 31, 2012 , Anonymous said...: We saved our cake's top layer to eat on our first anniversary. When the time came, we really didn't want to eat a piece of cake that had been in the freezer for a year. Our marriage didn't make it to five years. :( I later remarried, and by golly, I was going to eat that year old cake!!!! We'll celebrate twenty years in December! He's a keeper!
At Saturday, March 31, 2012 , Lori said...: This one is from my sister-in-laws family and I learned about it after my son's wedding, but would like to start it when my girls get married. In her family, they have a lovely silver cake knife and server and they have the names and wedding date of each couple who use it engraved on the blade. On theirs, there are three generations so far. Also, at my son's wedding, they had collected wedding photos of all the parents and grandparents and displayed them on a table together. It was lovely and all the guests really enjoyed looking at them.

That photo of Chip and Nancy is so precious. It brought tears to my eyes!
At Saturday, March 31, 2012 , Ann said...: We had a scramble for our older daughters wedding which is a tradition here in Scotland. T. FOTB throws down a handful of coins for any children watching when he leaves the house with the bride. It isn't done as much nowadays but a lovely tradition.
At Saturday, March 31, 2012 , Bonnie said...: These are exciting times for you. Enjoy it all.

We did save our wedding cake top and ate it excitedly on our first anniversary and now forty years later I still remember the excitement. I set the table with our wedding china, crystal, and silver! It was a special candlelight dinner. I think you should make those occasions special.

Proposals are so special now. I think we were parked in his driveway when I received my ring and I really can't remember much about it. How special to plan a destination with pictures and everything.
At Saturday, March 31, 2012 , Merlin said...: Hmmm, no one mentioned "penny in the shoe"...my dad gave me a penny for my shoe before the wedding...course, there was a double meaniing...I had asked (my now hubby) "penny for your thoughts"...and he popped the question. Ahhh, forty years later....
At Saturday, March 31, 2012 , Anonymous said...: Hi Susan,
This is such a special time so make sure to savour all the festivites. I am a Roman Catholic and it is tradition for the bride to hang her prayer beads outside the night before the big day. All this is done with the hope that beautiful weather will follow the next day. I did this for our wedding 39 years ago this July and made sure our daughter did the same. She and our dear son-in-law will celebrate their 10th wedding anniversary this July. We both had beautiful sunny days with temperatures in the high 80's. Sheila S.
At Saturday, March 31, 2012 , martinealison said...: Je ne connaissais pas cette superstition en ce qui concerne le Bourbon enterré !...

Nous jetons du riz à la sortie de l'église.
Il ne faut pas que le marié est pu voir la robe de la mariée.
On évite le mariage en mai.
On évite aussi deux mariages dans la même année dans une famille...
J'oublie peut-être encore certaines choses dites autour du mariage.

En ce qui concerne le mariage de votre fils, je lui souhaite à lui et sa charmante fiancée tout plein de bonheur.
Gros bisous à vous
At Saturday, March 31, 2012 , Diane said...: As a southern girl, I would have thought I would have heard of any tradition having to do with bourbon! Our superstitions were the regular ones - rain is bad luck - seeing the bride in her dress, before the wedding is bad luck - something old, something new, something borrowed, something blue is good luck. I think marrying the right person is the best luck. We just celebrated our 44th anniversary. Best of luck to your son and his future bride!! Oh, my son is not married, yet, but one of my friends had advice for the mother of the groom - "wear beige and keep your mouth shut" - lol!,
At Saturday, March 31, 2012 , The Barnett Family said...: Traditions....huge believer in those! I did the traditional ones...something old, blue, borrowed and blue! Of course, I had a penny in my shoe given to me by my moma. My daddy passed away when I was a baby; therefore, my father-in-law walked my down the isle (but my moma gave me away). I listened to my daddy's 45 records as a child, so I included two of them in my wedding music: Love Me Tender by Elvis and Sweeter Than You by Ricky Nelson. I carried one of my MeMaw Smith's hankies (she passed away when I was 13). I had old wedding rings of both MeMaw's pinned to my garter. The Bible that was carried in our wedding has been used in every family wedding since ours in some way or another. I have started a NEW tradition with our Bible! Also, I had a memory book bearer. I had a Victorian Style photo album filled with deceased family members on my side of the family and my future husband's side! Good luck with this exciting time in your lives!
At Sunday, April 01, 2012 , Sylvia said...: I did all the Southern traditions as well and the bourbon is a new one for me. We saved the top layer of the bride's cake for our first anniversary as tradition requires. There was just one little problem. It wasn't cake... it was a small can. Seriously, a can. It was hilarious. My mother called the caterer and expressed her displeasure and the caterer explained that she didn't have a cake pan small enough for the top layer. We still laugh about it.
I'm looking forward to seeing all the pics. I know it will be a beautiful wedding.
At Sunday, April 01, 2012 , Nancy B said...: When I married almost 54 years ago, my sister made the little pillow the ring bearer carried with the rings. Our mother had made her wedding gown, so she used leftover fabric to fashion the pillow. Mother didn't live to see my wedding, but I'll always treasure the little pillow. I hope it will become a tradition for my grandchildren to use at their weddings. The engagement picture is really sweet. I know you must be over the moon excited!
At Sunday, April 01, 2012 , mrsben said...: A belated Congratulations to the happy couple on their engagement. The photograph is a treasure. I am sure the upcoming wedding will be just beautiful Susan.

When my dtr. got married she opted to have a Destination Wedding in the Tropics and upon my insistence had a follow-up reception a few weeks later for those who were unable to attend. As it was early December (close to Christmas) deciding on a non-seasonal wedding theme was the greater of the challenge. Long story short, we choose the theme of 'TRADITIONS' for both the 'Exchanging of Vows' ceremony and follow-up 'Celebration of Marriage' which worked out exceptionally well. Flowers, tablescape decor, favourS for the guests etc. were all based on tradition/meaning. (As one example for the 'C of M'; favours included a Sixpence Coin for all the female guests significant to the Bride's heritage, whereas sterling silver Shamrocks were given to all attending males which represented the Groom's. Both were accompanied with enclosures explaining their tradition/meaning.)

As far as my own wedding goes, fourty years later it is all but a blur. I know .... I was a working gal back then and worked right up to the day before. Some how in my free time, I managed to make my own wedding gown, four attendants dresses including my Mother's with a matching coat and even the Ring Bears 3-piece outfit. Thinking about it now, totally exhausts me. Speculative guess, I don't think I had time to even consider 'traditions'. :)
-Brenda-
At Monday, April 02, 2012 , Anonymous said...: Oh, I just LOVE both of those ideas! An engraved cake knife is a lovely shower gift ~ Beverly Bremer could probably help you get this tradition started. Also LoveLove the idea of old family wedding pictures out for display. Don't forget a few childhood photos of the bride & groom...those are priceless on the Guestbook table!
*Terrie from Atlanta, GA
At Tuesday, April 03, 2012 , Carolyn said...: At my wedding, we gave each guest 5 candy-coated almonds wrapped in a little cellophane package. Like Jordan almonds. According to my mother, it was a Lebanese tradition (her father was Lebanese) but his wife, my Italian grandmother, insisted it was an Italian tradition. (I've since heard it is a tradition of many nationalities - LOL!) The almonds signify five wishes for the couple: health, wealth, happiness, fertility and longevity. The Lebanese relatives said it had to be an odd number because odd numbers are not divisible, therefore the couple will stay together. Something like that.
At Wednesday, April 04, 2012 , maria grazia rizzo said...: yes...is true ..I'm Italian and here at the weddings we distribute some"confetti".these are covered almonds with colored sugar: white for wedding, red for graduation , gold for 50 th wedding anniversary.
At Wednesday, April 04, 2012 , mrsben said...: Correction to my above comment: The Shamrock tokens given to the men were 'pewter', not sterling silver. (Sorry about that folks. I just found the wedding plan notes.)
Footnote: Something old, Something new, Something borrowed, Something blue
Happy is the Bride with a Sixpence in her shoe.

Sixpence coins were first minted in England in 1551. Etc. Etc. Etc.........
They are no longer in circulation and have become a Good Luck token if placed in the left shoe of the Bride on her wedding day.

A Shamrock charm
For the Groom's wedding day,
Is sure to bring
Good Luck his way.

The 3-leaf Clover or Shamrock, has been Ireland's emblem dating back to 433 A.D. Etc. Etc. Etc...... It is considered to have a great power in healing and enticing Good Luck.

Sweets given to wedding guests date back to the 16th Century in France. Etc. Etc. Etc .... In recent times they are given in numbers of 5 which represent 'health, wealth, happiness, fertility and longevity'. Sugar coated Almonds are said to represent the 'sweetness' and the 'bitterness' of marriage. -Brenda-

This Page

Between Naps on the Porch

Mar 30, 2012

Wedding Superstitions: Burying the Bourbon

52 Comments:

Post a Comment

About Me

Previous Posts