Ed. note — Another clever idea for an Irish favor, especially if you're marrying someone of another nationality: to serve small bottles of Bailey's Irish Cream at the reception, plus a mini-liquor bottle for them (Tequila, rum, whiskey, you name it!).
By Jackie Duescher
Honor your Emerald Isle heritage with traditions
that are romantic, clever, and a couple that are downright strange.
Uncover here how to fill your wedding with all things Irish save
the Blarney Stone.
Harvest Knots. According
to history, Irish men declared their intentions of marriage by giving
their fiancee harvest knots of straw decorated with flowers or bells
to wear in their hair or around their neck. Make a harvest knot
to wear on your wedding day, or place one in your bouquet to symbolize
your Irish heritage.
Ceilidh. The steps
of Irish folkdances are called ceilidh. Treat your attendants to
an Irish dancing lesson, and then "perform" a jig to traditional
Irish music at the reception.
Lace! A way to incorporate
Celtic pride into your wedding attire (besides hand-beading four
leaf clovers all over your gown) is to adorn yourself with beautiful
Irish lace. Known for its intricate patterns and zenith quality,
wear a veil or carry a handkerchief made of this intricate Irish
decoration.
Playin' o' the Pipes.
Infuse your ceremony with the strains of the Irish pipes.
Although bagpipes have Celtic roots, they are traditionally Scottish.
For a truly Emerald Isle affair, locate an Irish uillean piper to
lead the processional or recessional.
Irish Wedding Feast.
The customary wedding feast in Ireland was a potluck hosted
at the bride's family's home. Each guest brought traditional Irish
dishes such as soda bread, coddle, and stew. Even if you're having
a more formal reception, you can still celebrate this Irish tradition
by having a "feast" for your bridal shower or rehearsal
dinner.
The Wedding Cake. Old
custom dictates that the Irish wedding cake (usually a dense fruit
cake with white icing) was cut by one of the bride's sisters or
bridesmaids. Where would they cut it? Over her head, of course.
The bride remained seated while the groomsmen held the cake over
her head while her sister or best friend did the honors. Our only
concern: this tradition works best and safest when the cake is NOT
a four-tiered confectionary concoction. Eeeek!
Noise Makers. A noisy
way to ring in your nuptials with the luck o' the Irish is to have
a recessional like those in Celtic history: instead of throwing
rice upon exiting the church, men would fire rifles or other firearms
into the air to signal that a couple is wed. Not your traditional
exit (most churches would frown upon guns in the parking lot), if
the men use blanks in their guns, and if you are getting married
in an area without noise ordinances, then fire away, Irish style.
Giving the Claddagh. Two
hands holding a heart underneath a crown is the Irish symbol for
"Let Love and Friendship Reign". Share your Irish heritage
with your attendants by giving them Celtic-inspired gifts marked
with the claddagh. Give your maid of honor a candle gift engraved
with the "faith ring", or jewelry made of claddagh. Buy
claddagh wedding rings, or wear the Irish symbol around your neck
on your wedding day as a reminder of your heritage.
Tokens of Hair. A
more unusual Irish tradition is for the man to give the woman he
loves a bracelet woven of human hair. Symbolic of acceptance, when
the woman wears the circle of hair, she is linking herself to him
for life. There's no mention of exactly who's hair it is, however,
so if wearing hair jewelry gives you the heevies, see "Harvest
Knots" for the same idea, using straw instead.
Lucky Dates. The
traditionally superstitious Irish believed that the last day of
the year is especially lucky, since the couple would wake up on
the first day of their new life on the first day of the new year.
Plan your wedding for December 31, the luckiest of Celtic days.
Jackie Duescher provides the customer service for
Keepsake
Favors as well as inspiration for many of the favor creations
on the site. Jackie has a special knack for finding Irish themed
favors for weddings other occasions, and she firmly believes that
a favor doesn't have to be expensive to impress your guests.
did anybody ever see a shamrock wedding cake?
I am having mine custom done because we are getting married on st. paddys day. my pasrty chef drew it out and made a sample cake for me it was beautiful!!!!!!
Moo, I hope you can post photos when all’s said and done!
Lisa, it’s hard to find a pretty shamrock cake. Most that I’ve seen have been a bit “cutesy,” not what I think most brides are looking for.
An alternative is triskele designs or celtic bands around the cake layers. There are tons of designs out there that look elegant. If you’re worried about that looking a bit “tribal” these designs look amazing and feminine in white-on-white. A pretty satin plaid ribbon band around the layers also looks elegant! Here’s a few ideas, HTH!
I am planning a celtic and Irish theme wedding and I am clueless as to how to arrange silk bouquets and boutiners. Can anyone help? What flowers are traditional for a sping wedding with a Celtic and Irish theme. Thanks!
Hi Melissa, see darkeyedredhead’s Irish wedding planning album to spark maybe a few ideas. Her colors were berry and white, she had a beautiful dragonfly motif and there were a few silk bouquets in there.
I’ll keep my eyes open for more ideas, but I think you’ll enjoy checking this out. Very creative couple.
we are having a sort of irish theme wedding as my h2b is with the irish guards and im having dificulty finding nice greens that wont look dull as its a summer wedding xx
hey!!! im not irish but my fiance is, I want to have some irish things on my wedding to honor his culture. i need ideas…please..
jennifer, we’re doing a low glass globe as centerpiece with floating candles in shamrock shape and as favors i bought molds to make chocolate candy in shape of claddagh and shamrocks from http://www.getsuckered.com.
got about 8 molds for $25. and i’m currently looking for a cake serving set irish themed. also ring bearer will be carrying shamrock shaped pillow. http://www.orientaltrading.com is also good for inexpensive stuff as favors. good luck
speaking of serving sets, anyone know where i can get a decent, yet inexpensive, cake serving set with a claddagh on handle or engraved on it? thanks!
Hey Nancy thx for the ideas i will look for the serving set if i c anything i will let you know…ciao
Does anyone know where I can buy single shot bottles of Bailey’s for under $2 each?
Most local state liquor stores carry the one-shot bottles of liquor, if you don’t have one or can’t find one, a many party stores that sell acohol have them that you can even buy by the case!