There are so many wedding traditions that it often seems like we have a new one every year. However, a lot of people don’t know that as soon as something new becomes a wedding trend, something old goes out of style. The “how” and “why” this happens doesn’t always make a lot of sense, especially seeing as how some of these wedding traditions are so fun and wholesome. With that in mind and without further ado, here are several wedding traditions that, in our humble opinion, should have never gone out of style.

 

Filling a Hope Chest

A hope chest is a relic from a time gone by when a mother would gift the oldest daughter a chest where she would collect special items until she got married. Here, a future bride would gather practical items like bed linens, blankets, quilts, and sentimental items like old diaries, ornaments, etc.

This was so unique due to the very nature of marriage from a female perspective. Traditionally, a bride was expected to leave a lot of her old identity behind when she got married. This way, she would carry over a part of her old life with her.

The concept of preparing this inventory for the future transition also posed as a perfect opportunity for one to become mentally prepared for this change. While, from today’s perspective, this could sound a bit outdated, it is a nice and wholesome tradition that many people are feeling nostalgic about.

 

Planting a Pine Tree Outside of Your Home

Traditionally, a pine tree was seen as a sign of a new beginning. This was especially true in some European countries. The thing is that this is a visual representation of your marriage. Over the course of years, when this sapling turns into a huge tree, it will become more than evident how far you’ve gone as a couple.

There are several reasons why the disappearance of this tradition doesn’t make any sense. First of all, this is a positive tradition from an ecological perspective and great for all the couples who see themselves as environmentally-minded. Second, this tradition can be an excellent fit for an outdoor summer wedding and seamlessly transition into a natural part of the ceremony.

However, it might be a better idea to stick to a tree type that is endemic to your own climate. This will make the landscaping much easier and increase the resilience of the planted tree.

 

Big Exit

When was the last time you’ve seen the newlyweds leave the venue in a fancy antique car with a “Just Married” sign on the back and tin cans clanging as they go? It’s one of the traditions that has gone out in the utmost silence. We don’t know when it happened. We see it all the time in popular culture (still), but when was the last time you actually attended such a wedding?

The reason for this is most often the budget. The thing is that hiring an antique car is far more expensive than just buying some confetti. Also, there are some people who found the clanging of tin cans horrifying and wanted to skip it at all costs.

Keep in mind that the “antique” car doesn’t have to be a real, expensive old-timer. Moreover, you can just skip the tin can part. In other words, you can take this beautiful tradition and make it fit your preferences (and your budget).

 

Writing a Letter

Writing a letter to your partner the night before your wedding is also one of the lost traditions. The reason why is more or less straightforward – people seldom write on paper anymore, let alone write letters. However, meeting people online is the norm nowadays doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t take advantage of this beautiful tradition.

 

So, what should you write about?

The truth is that you could write about anything that you like. You can tell them how excited you are about the wedding, remind them when you first met, or tell them about your hopes and dreams for the following years.

This is probably the most romantic and least costly idea on this list. The only problem is that you’ll have to find some time in your busy wedding-planning schedule to write all of it down. Still, this letter doesn’t actually have to be written the night before the wedding. You can start months in advance and slowly work towards it.

You can also write it in digital format and transcribe it to paper later on. Taking a couple of calligraphy classes may further enhance the idea and make the end result even more impressive.

 

A Month-long Honeymoon

While it is hard to believe it nowadays, there was a time when the honeymoon was a month-long event. Nowadays, with everyone’s busy working schedule and astronomical prices of lodging, this is pretty hard to imagine.

Also, etymologically speaking, the honeymoon got its name for the fact that, while they were gone, the newlyweds were only allowed to drink mead on their journey. Now, some couples tried to emulate this, but since mead is not available everywhere, they switched it for another sweet drink. This meant that they chose to stick to a single type of alcoholic drink for the duration of their honeymoon.

Now, while you may not be able to afford (budget- or time-wise) a month-long vacation just after getting married, this doesn’t mean that you can’t take a bit longer break. Even staying for three weeks is a huge upgrade.

In Conclusion

Remember that all wedding traditions are equally arbitrary. This means that you’re not obliged to honor any of them, yet, you are not prohibited from following one either. This means that if you like any of the above-listed traditions, you can feel free to integrate them into your own wedding ceremony. The fact that it is no longer widely practiced will only make your wedding more unique for it.