Going to the Chapel!

Well, what else could it be today other than a wedding sketchbook page ........ going to the chapel! 

Weddings wherever you come from are surrounded by so much lore and traditions I wanted to take a peek at some of the ones from the countries I know! 

Unfortunately for Meghan and Harry weddings in May are thought to be unlucky; Marry in May, rue the Day! This seems to go back to the marriage of Mary Queen of Scots and Bothwell, which was a disaster. If we take a 

look on the left you can see coins, 

When a Scottish bride is getting into the car with her father to leave for the church, the father of the bride throws handfuls of coins for the waiting children to collect, it's always a mad dash and called a scramble! 

Something old, something new, something borrowed and something blue, is well known, my blue was the bow on my handmade garter, old were the pair of  antique Victorian stockings I wore, new my dress and borrowed were a pair of earrings from my bridesmaid. A Scottish bride should take a quick glance at herself in the mirror before she leaves but going back to take another look is unlucky, this idea of going back or looking back is known here in Germany too. My friend's mother always said Charles and Di wouldn't last because Diana stood looking back as she entered the church! 

In the sketch you can see a top hat and decorated stick, these are the symbols of the Hochszeits Lader, a tradition in southern Germany and Austria. The name means wedding inviter and it was his job to matchmake and then personally invite all the guests to the wedding, in rural villages this meant inviting up to 300 guests which took weeks. As the inviter was also fed and given Schnapps at every house it probably was spent in partial drunkenness! At the wedding the Hochzeitslader leads the wedding parade into the church and the newly weds out, carrying his brightly decorated crook, the coloured bands represent the wishes for the marriage, blue for example for fidelity. 

On this page is the church I was married in, in Troon Scotland. Wedding rings in Germany are worn on the right hand and not on the left.

The coin here was given to my mum on her wedding day by my dad and then passed on to my husband and given to me during the wedding ceremony, symbolising sharing of worldly goods. 

So royalist or not, today is about two people who are in love, and a country that loves tradition! My tiara is up there on the right, I'll be popping it on in a minute and drinking a toast to the happy couple, Cheers!