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Your Great Big Italian Wedding – How to Make It Happen

An Italian wedding is a joyous occasion, filled with traditions and memories. From the walk down the aisle to the last waltz, planning your Italian wedding can be as much fun as the event itself.

Customs and Traditions

Tradition starts with the engagement and the giving of a diamond ring as a token of the promise to marry. The choosing of the ring is of utmost importance, since Italians believe that the flames of love provide the intense heat to create a diamond. The diamond ring chosen must symbolize the groom’s love for his intended bride, and the many facets and undiscovered joys of their life together.

It is also traditional for the bride to be to start gathering her trousseau and items for her new home. This tradition has become the bridal shower, and important part of planning your Italian wedding.

A charming Venetian custom is the `obstacle race’, when the bride and groom take a walk together and obstacles are placed in their path by friends and relatives. How they react to these obstacles says a lot about how they will handle the challenges of married life.

Invitations

Invitations should be issued handwritten or engraved on linen or parchment paper. It is worth getting these especially made, as Italian wedding invitations are so beautiful that they will be treasured among keepsakes for generations to come.

The 'Italian' Bride

For the bride, nothing is more important that choosing the right wedding dress, and with an Italian wedding, the bride can wear a dress exactly to her taste, whether it is the epitome of Italian grace and style, or a froth of romantic lace. The bride is expected to wear a veil, but no other gold than her wedding ring, which she receives at the ceremony.

To be truly traditional, the bride should carry a small white satin bag, called a borsa, in which guests may place small gifts and money for the couple.

The Ceremony

An Italian wedding isn’t over in a couple of hours, so planning should start well in advance of the event. Because a large crowd is usually invited, a suitable venue should be chosen. Indoors or outdoors will be suitable, as long as there is plenty of room for the guests and the groaning table of food!

The day may start with a church attendance early in the morning, with the wedding ceremony held in the afternoon and the reception planned to go on into the wee small hours.

The Wedding Feast

The wedding feast is one of the most important aspects of an Italian wedding. The traditional number of courses is 13, but can be 14 or more! Traditionally, Italian wedding soup should be served, made with delicious beef meatballs and rice, topped with parmesan cheese.

Among the courses should be tasty little appetizers with mozzarella, crostini, Italian sausage and antipasto. Little sweet nibbles such as twists of sweet bread dusted with icing sugar should also be offered. There should be an abundance of salad and a variety of dressings.

Main dishes can include salmon, chicken or lamb with pasta, of course. Dessert can be a classic dish such as tiramisu or panna cotta with the wedding cake. Drinks served should include espresso coffee and liqueurs.

The wedding table should include bonbonieres, filled with pink and white sugar almonds for the guests. These can be tied to the chairs with white satin ribbon.

Flowers

Flowers should be abundant and suitable to the season, placed in vases and tied in bunches around the venue. Fresh flower bouquets should be carried by the bride and her attendants, and tied to the honeymoon car instead of beer cans!

Dance and Music

Dancing and music are vital to a proper Italian wedding. A band should be secured well ahead of the event, with a repertoire that includes traditional as well as modern numbers. Find a band that knows the traditional Italian wedding music such as the Father and Daughter Dance, and the Tarantella.

And Most Importantly...

The most important ingredient for a successful Italian wedding should the happiness and joy of the bride and groom. This is an occasion when young and old gather together to celebrate one of life’s most precious moments, the start of a life together.