A SOUTHERN TOUCH

Whether you are getting married in the South, are from the South, or would simply like to add some southern touches to your wedding, here are some ideas that you can consider. Though many southern brides are still planning “traditional” southern weddings, there are many new trends that are also considered uniquely Southern. Above all, gracious and abundant hospitality is the key to achieving a memorable southern wedding.

The Ceremony

• A traditional, formal southern wedding is most often held in a church, with a reception following either at the church hall or another location.
• Many southern brides opt for an outdoor wedding, whether in a fragrant garden or on the lawn of a historic antebellum estate.
• Receiving lines are still seen as a genteel southern custom, either at the church following the ceremony, or at the entrance to a reception ballroom. Most couples today choose instead to take the time to visit each table during the reception and thank each guest for attending. You may enjoy having your photographer accompany you and your new spouse to have a photo taken with each table of guests!
• The wedding program that doubles as a hand-held fan is a vintage southern touch.
• Flowers that contribute to the southern look are usually any garden flower, and especially gardenias, fully blossomed roses, and magnolias.
• Ring bearers, usually age 3 through 7, need not be miniature replicas of adults. The southern style is a dressy special occasion short pants outfit. Ditto for the flower girls.

The Reception

• Wedding portraits are a time-honored southern tradition, as is having the portrait prominently and elegantly displayed at the reception site
• Consider mint juleps as your signature drink during the cocktail hour as a southern touch.
• If the reception is cocktails and hors d’oeuvres only, Southerners prefer bite-sized finger foods they can carry around with them, making it easier to mingle. These can be everything from little ham biscuits, mini-quiches and barbecued chicken wings to fried green tomatoes and cheese straws…forks not required!
• There is much debate about what constitutes “southern food”. A consistent favorite and uniquely southern dish is shrimp and grits, but southern fare runs the gamut, with a trend toward local and seasonal foods, from in-season fish dishes to North Carolina pork.
• A very old-fashioned tradition is to have a Cigar Room, where those who wish to indulge are invited for a smoke near the winding-down part of the reception.
• The bouquet and garter toss are still popular.
• If there is to be dancing during the reception, be sure to include some southern beach tunes, soul music and shag dancers – maybe even a demonstration for those not familiar with the dance!
• For a real down-home southern touch, consider a rehearsal dinner that is a casual outdoor pig-pickin’ or barbeque; this is a popular way to balance a more formal reception celebration.

Taking Your Leave
Remember those photographs of your parents and grandparents leaving the reception smartly dressed in their “going-away” outfits? In past southern and north-eastern wedding affairs, the bride and groom changed their wardrobe (still in dressy duds) before their exit to their getaway car or limousine, the bride wearing a corsage from her bouquet.

Favors

• Wedding favors are a time-honored tradition around the globe. In the old South, wedding guests were treated to a piece of the happy couple’s wedding cake to take home and enjoy, thereby sharing in the good fortune of the wedded couple. Today, it is not unusual for various desserts to be served at a reception, and the wedding cake cut and “packaged” (often in a creative and distinctive manner) for guests to take home.
• Hundreds of years ago, five almonds or pieces of candy were given as favors, representing fertility, health, wealth, happiness and longevity. Today many couples likewise offer their guests small bags of candies as a wedding memento.