Choosing Your Something Old, New, Borrowed, and Blue
We have all grown up with the wedding poem, “Something old, something new, something borrowed, something blue.” But did you know the next line is “And a silver sixpence in her shoe”? A sixpence is a British silver coin minted from 1551 to 1967.
All these items – old, new, borrowed, blue and a sixpence are supposed to be tokens of good luck for a happy marriage, will you choose to follow this tradition?
Old
Something old has to do with the bride’s family continuing on and on; from the past and present into the future. It can also mean you are leaving your old life and joining your husband in a new life together.
- A lace handkerchief from your grandmother that you can carry tucked in with your bouquet up the aisle. It could come in handy if you become teary.
- An old piece of jewelry from your mother or grandmother. For example, you could wear an old wedding band on your other hand, or wear her brooch.
- Use your parent’s cake topper on your wedding cake.
- Wear your mother’s wedding dress or veil.
New
Something new represents hope and an optimistic outlook for the bride’s new life with her husband.
- Many of the items you are wearing are probably new – your wedding gown, your veil, your shoes.
- Wear new silky undergarments.
- Purchase jewelry just to go with your wedding gown.
- Get a new charm bracelet with charms that represent all that you and your fiance have experienced together so far. Then you can add to it over the years and you’ll always remember where it came from.
Borrowed
Something borrowed should be something loaned from a happily married person – family or friend. They are loaning you the item with good wishes for your own happy marriage. It also reminds you that you can depend on them in the future.
- Ride to the wedding in your grandfather’s antique roadster.
- Wear a garter that your best friend wore.
- Borrow your mother’s pearl necklace.
- Use the hairpins your sister used in her wedding hairdo.
Blue
Something blue has a variety of meanings, but the color blue has been associated with weddings through the ages. Blue represents staying true to your loved one, constancy, and modesty.
- Jewelry set with sapphires.
- A blue garter.
- Pale blue undergarments.
- One blue flower in your wedding bouquet.
- For fun, paint your toenails blue.
As far as the sixpence, it means a blessing for prosperity and future wealth.
- Tuck a symbolic coin into your shoe.
- Slip the coin into your purse.
- Or put it in the shoes you will wear upon leaving the reception.
Some items may fit into a couple different categories and that’s perfectly fine. Here’s an example that could cover the first four categories: wear an old, borrowed, blue garter and tie a miniature picture frame to it using your engagement photo.
This is just a few ideas to get you started. Just have fun with this and do get photos of the things you decided to use to put in your wedding album. Your children will love “knowing” what you used in each category.
