Something old, something new, something borrowed, something blue

In the busy times we are currently in, all good stuff – and hardly time to blog!! I had wanted to get Lucy something special for her “ Something old, something new, something borrowed, something blue”. So I found on “Not on the high street.com” a lovely keepsake pin which has a charm for each the new, old, borrowed and blue.

I then wondered what this old tradition was about.  Something Old: Represents the link with the bride's family and the past. A common solution many bride's choose is to wear a piece of family jewellery or their mother's or grandmother's wedding dress.

Something New: Represents good fortune and success in the bride's new life. The wedding dress is often chosen as the new item.

Something Borrowed: To remind the bride that friends and family will be there for her when help is needed. The borrowed object might be something such as a lace handkerchief or an item of jewellery.

Something Blue: Symbolises faithfulness and loyalty and dates back to biblical times when blue represented purity. Frequently the bride's garter is the blue item.

And while most of us are familiar with the rhyme of  “Something old, something new, something borrowed and something blue” not everyone is aware of the end line “and a silver sixpence in her shoe”. The silver sixpence symbolises wealth – not just financial wealth but also a wealth of happiness and joy throughout married life. 

So I dug out the sixpence which my Grandma ( My Mum’s Mum) gave me for my first wedding; which I had kept and used for the second one too! As you know by now, I’m not that good with real shoes anyway, but somehow I managed to slip the coin into my shoes on both occasions. 

My Grandma who enjoyed painting, often made little pictures to accompany things, and sure enough had made one for the sixpence.

So when I presented my daughter with her Something old, something new, something borrowed, something blue pin and I gave her the family sixpence. We were both amazed that the little picture which must be over 27 years old has the most beautiful deep purple colour, which is almost exactly the shade of the bridesmaids dresses.