Scottish wedding

Scotland, United Kingdom. Superstitions, rituals and even the eminent feet washing are all important aspects of a Scottish wedding. Lets start with pre-wedding traditions such as The Open House, or more commonly known as the "Show of Presents." Before the bride is married, her mother holds an open house, similar to a bridal shower, where invitations are sent to women who give wedding gifts to the couple. Why does this happen? In order for the bride to show respect for her guests, she must know who will be attending the wedding. After the "Show of the Presents", she is given a baby doll, and a plastic potty with salt at the bottom. Accompanied with her guests and friends, she walks through the town as the others bang pots and pans announcing the bride's upcoming nuptials. This tradition is said to bring luck, prosperity and fertility to the bride on her wedding day as she exchanges kisses for money, which is then dropped into the potty. Not only does the soon-to-be bride receive money but also has the opportunity for her feet to be washed. She sits on a stool while an older, married woman washes and dries her feet. This ritual is said to bring good fortune for the marriage. So what about the soon to be groom? Similar to the bride's Open House, the groom is taken out by his friends for a Stag Night. Having a few drinks leads to the groom becoming partially or fully stripped from his clothes by his friends covered in soot, flour and feathers and left overnight tied to a tree; this ritual is called blackening.
The morning of the ceremony is extremely important as one must take caution. Why you must ask? If the bridal party encounters a funeral or a pig on the way to the church, they must return home and set out again as it is considered bad luck. Who knew a harmless pig could do such damage. As a token of good luck, the bride is given a Silver Sixpence to place in her shoe that morning. When leaving her house for the last time, the bride must step out the door with her right foot as it symbolizes good luck in her marriage. For a traditional Scottish wedding the bride will wear a white or cream colored dress along with "something old, something new, something borrowed, something blue and a silver sixpence in her shoe". Something old is a gift given from the mother to the bride to start off her married life symbolizing her mother's wisdom. Something new is a gift that represents the new start of a married life. Something borrowed will be from a married couple in hope that a little of their "marital bliss will rub off on the newlyweds"; and something blue is usually a blue garter, a sign of love and modesty. For the groom, his outfit consists of the following: a Bonnie Prince Charlie jacket and waistcoat, kilt, tartan flashes to match the kilt, white hose, gillie brogues, kilt pin, sgian dubh, black belt with buckle, formal sporran with chain strap, wing collar shirt, black or colored bow tie, and a piece of lucky heather on the lapel...and he ends up looking like this! As the bride enters the church, pipers start to play the bagpipes; many play outside as to protect the guests' ears. As part of their Celtic heritage a couple engages in hand fasting during the ceremony; the couples hands are bound together in a tartan cloth or with a cord during their vows. This shows everyone that from that point on, they are no longer two but one. Many celebrations also include the "Presentation of the Sword", where the groom presents a family sword to his bride which will then be given to their first born son or the bride's family presents the groom with their sword as acceptance into their family and the obligation he now has in protecting his new wife. A famous tradition in Scotland is for a toddler to hand the bride a horseshoe as she walks out the church with her husband. A horseshoe carried by the bride is a symbol for fertility and luck towards their marriage. Another gesture for luck and fortune involves the bride and groom scattering coins for the children to collect at the end of the ceremony.
Now it isn't a wedding without a cake right? A traditional Scottish cake consists of two tiers of brandy-flavored fruit cake. As much as this sounds appetizing, only one tier is eaten at the wedding celebration as the other is saved to celebrate the birth of the couple's first born. As superstitious a Scottish wedding might sound, all the elements lead up to a beautiful wedding filled with laughter and dancing and most importantly lucky newlyweds.