This is the year of the weddings in my family. My sister and my sister-in-law are both getting married in the next few months. While there will probably be more posts in the future regarding the weddings, today I want to talk about the bridal shower. While there are several stories out there about how the bridal shower originated, the most accepted seems to be that the bridal shower originated in Holland when a young Dutch girl fell in love with a poor miller. Her father disapproved of her marriage to the poor miller and refused a dowry. The poor miller had spent his life helping those needier than he and when it cam time to get married their friends got together and showered them with gifts from their new home.
To me, a bridal shower reminds me of an old fashioned quilting bee. It is a chance for the women of the families of the bride and groom to get together and pass wisdom on to the next generation. The thing I love about a "traditional" bridal shower is all the women, from great-grandma to the youngest niece are invited and welcomed to share their thoughts and experiences of life. What a range of perspectives you get when women of all ages gather in support of the bride. To me, the true gift of the bridal shower is the wisdom and moral support that each woman brings. Whether it be fail-proof recipes, tips on getting stains out, or advice on how to keep your your marriage stong, this wisdom that is passed on is priceless, no matter the culture. 
While today's bridal showers take all forms, I believe the intent of the bridal shower is one of support for the new bride. It offers a fun atmosphere for the women of the bride and groom's families to get to know one another and to begin to form strong bonds. I believe it takes so much more than a bride and groom to make a marriage work. The friends and family of the bride and groom will have an impact on their marriage from this day forward. Getting off on the right foot with a bridal shower is a great way to make the impact a positive, supportive one. Do you have a bridal shower coming up? Please take a moment to visit the etsy shops featured in this post. For the vintage shower invitation, please visit Gwen Marie Designs. For the vintage OOAK journal, please visit Stories Divinations. For the beautiful vintage baking dish, please visit Art of LALS.
What an interesting and sweet post! We don't have Bridal Showers in either the UK (where I am originally from) or Israel. I'd love to join in on one one day :)
ReplyDeleteThank you for commenting on my blog a couple of times. I'm delighted that you like it and that you especially enjoyed my day out in Jaffa. Please do keep visiting.
You make a valid point! It is a time too brings two families together. When I was married no one had given me a shower. Because of it being part of our culture it was a disappointment. You miss out on the women bonding and words shared in marriage advice. It is the exchange of women’s conversation and sharing the excitement of your future marriage commitment. Bridal showers are the celebration of you finding your true love.
ReplyDeleteThe idea of bringing a gift is supporting the idea of her being married and assisting her in establishing her future home.
The lessoned learned is to make sure the future bride is offered a bridal shower to begin her journey into the next phase of her life. A gift is a sentimental token of her special day. One always reflects on the gift and remembers who gave it.
Good luck with your new family members. They will need your words of kindness. They are lucky to have a relative like you.
LALSART
I never thought about showers and their significance, sharing women's wisdom and knowledge. Lovely post.
ReplyDeletei'm helping a friend plan her wedding and I am working on the shower now. This was so interesting, thanks!
ReplyDeletexo, katie
www.kateandoli.com
What a great post!
ReplyDelete