We Skipped These 3 Wedding Traditions From Our Big Day

When Scott and I started planning our wedding, we knew that we wanted to allow the big day to reflect us, and we didn’t want to worry about all the wedding traditions. That’s why we decided to skip out on a wedding party, a garter toss (cringe), throwing a bouquet, and forget about favors. Let me elaborate on why.

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1. Not Having a wedding party

Although having a wedding party is perfectly fine, it can sometimes be overwhelming. Especially when there are too many people standing alongside the bride and groom. Everyone is dressed alike and sometimes this can make it challenging to identify people in photos. However, this doesn’t mean that your friends cannot be a part of your wedding celebration or help with the planning process!

By choosing to omit a wedding party, you’re allowing your bridesmaids and groomsmen to enjoy the wedding as guests, without any added pressure. They’ll still be right beside you on the dance floor to celebrate your special day! With the help of a planner (which is highly recommended), you can rest assured that all the logistics will be taken care of, and the wedding will run smoothly. Having a large bridal party can cause unnecessary stress and drama, as well as additional costs.

By foregoing a traditional wedding party, your friends won’t have to worry about purchasing a dress, shoes or accessories that they’ll likely never wear again. Choosing to not have a wedding party doesn’t mean that your friends aren’t included in the wedding festivities. It simply means they can enjoy themselves without any added responsibilities. This can also make the big day feel more intimate between you and your partner, which is what matters in the end!

2. GARTER TOSS AND THROWING A BOUQUET

Removing the garter at a wedding can be a bit embarrassing, especially in front of close friends and family. While I’m not sure how this tradition originated, I hope this wedding tradition doesn’t continue for too much longer. I am relieved that we didn’t have to endure that particular ritual at our wedding. On the other hand, tossing the bouquet seems less awkward. However, it can seem somewhat silly given that catching it traditionally signifies the next woman to get married. Ultimately, both customs carry the same meaning, but the garter toss is more uncomfortable. If you want to save yourself the hassle, it’s perfectly fine to skip both traditions altogether.

3. Favors

We debated whether or not to include wedding favors that would represent us and also be useful to our guests, but we couldn’t decide on anything. Ultimately, we chose to skip the wedding tradition of favors altogether. This is because, in our experience, wedding favors are usually thrown away and not used by guests. We decided to allocate the money we would have spent on favors towards something more enjoyable, such as food and cake. This decision proved to be worthwhile and no one seemed to mind not receiving a favor at the end of the night!

Let me know if you decided to skip any wedding tradittions in the comment section below!