The Proposal

In the past when the marriage proposal was a more formal procedure, the man seeking to be a groom sent his friend or member of the family to tell of the man's interest to the bride to be and her family. If he saw a blind man, a priest, or a pregnant woman it was thought that the marriage was not meant for fate if they continued their on their way as these things were thought to be bad luck "charms."

If, however, they saw goats, pigeons, or wolves these were good omens which would bring good fortune to the marriage.

Last Name

It was thought unlucky for a woman to marry a man whose last name began with the same letter as hers. The sentiment was summarised in the following rhyme:

“To change the name and not the letter, is to change the worst and not the better.”

The bride should not practice writing her new name before the wedding. This is thought to bring bad luck by dreaming of her fate.

Choosing the day

Although most weddings take place on a Saturday it was considered unlucky in the past. Fridays, especially Friday the 13th, was considered unlucky. The famous old rhyme advises a wedding in the first half of the week:

“Monday for wealth,
Tuesday for health,
Wednesday the best day of all,
Thursday for losses,
Friday for crosses,
Saturday for no luck at all.”

The wedding dress

It is thought unlucky for the bride to make her own wedding dress. It is also unlucky for the groom to see the bride in her wedding dress before she has arrived at the ceremony.

The bride should not wear her entire outfit before the wedding day. Some brides leave a stitch undone on the dress until it is time to leave for the ceremony.

The veil

Traditionally, brides have been thought to be particularly vulnerable to evil spirits and many of the customs and traditions associated with weddings, they wear a veil to be protected from these spirits and the sort.

Flowers

A combination of red and white flowers is avoided by the superstitious because they stand for blood and bandages. Of course no bride would want blood and bandages(maybe just the badnages).

The groom often chooses a flower for his buttonhole which also occurs in the bride’s bouquet. This is a vestige of the time when a knight would wear his lady’s "color" to display his love.

On the way the wedding

When the bride is ready to leave the house for the wedding ceremony a last look in the mirror will bring her good luck. However, looking back at the  mirror once she has began her journey will result in bad luck.

Seeing a chimney sweep on the way to a wedding is thought to bring good luck and it is still possible to hire one to attend wedding ceremonies. Other good luck charms include spiders, black cats, and rainbows.

Bad weather on the way to the wedding is thought to be a bad luck charm. One of an unhappy marriage, although in some cultures rain is considered a good luck charm. Cloudy skies and wind are believed to cause rocky marriages, snow on the other hand is associated with fertility and money.

Bridesmaid

Bridesmaids were dressed in a similar way to the bride. The bridesmaids were thought to act as decoys to confuse evil spirits and thus protect the bride.

The couple’s first purchase

It is said that the first people to buy a new item after the wedding will be the remembered one in the relationship. Many brides (to ensure that they make the first purchase) buy a small item such as a pin from a bridesmaid immediately after the ceremony.