Will You Throw Your Bridal Bouquet?

Throwing the wedding bouquet is one of those long standing wedding traditions that we have all come to expect. All the unmarried women at the wedding stand together as the bride turns her back and throws the bouquet, superstition states the one to catch the bouquet will be the next to get married.

The throwing of the bridal bouquet has become a hotly debated topic in the hitched.ie office lately, with some loving the throw the bouquet moment and others hating it! Take a look at two very different options on throwing the bouquet right here, one from our very own editor Caroline and the other from the editor of our sister site in the UK — Francesca.

See why Francesca loves the bouquet throwing moment...

“I’ve been a huge fan of ‘tossing the bouquet’ as a wedding tradition for as long as I can remember and I got to witness the fun and excitement of this very event at a wedding just the other week.

“I love a bouquet toss because it gives single gals hope — even if it’s just for that moment in time — the vision of catching the bouquet and the fairytale of actually meeting ‘the one’ or getting proposed to next could be a dream come true for any friend or family member, with — or without a boyfriend. And, if you’ve ever witnessed a bouquet toss, then you’ll know how excited the new owner of the bouquet can get. It’s a happy moment for all!

“I’m also in favour of breaking up the wedding reception to have a little bit of fun. The bouquet toss isn’t just for the ladies! The whole wedding party can watch in anticipation to see which lucky lady is going to catch the bouquet — and with cameras at the ready, the guests, and the photographer if they are still around, can capture this warm moment as a memory for the bride and whoever else joins in. To switch up tradition, tossing the bouquet to all the single guys could create a fun twist — or for another fun alternative, why not have the groom toss the bouquet instead of the bride! Either way, the bouquet toss is a great way to get your female or male guests involved at your wedding, and seeing as you’ve already found your love, why not pass a little bit of luck onto one of your bride-to-be wannabe friends!”

See why Caroline dreads the bouquet throwing moment...

“Ever since I have been old enough to be dragged into the ‘bouquet toss’, I have not been a fan! Firstly there is the logistics of the situation, I’ve spent a long time applying my makeup, getting my fascinator in just the right place and I’m wearing heels — then all the single ladies are sent to the heel-sinking grassland to stand and basically have something thrown at their faces. If you had ever witnessed me play a game of netball at school then you would know that catching isn’t my strong point and I’m more likely to punch the ball — or in this case the bouquet — away from me to avoid a big smack in the face.

“Secondly, as my friends and I head towards our late twenties, the group of unmarried friends is quickly changing from a fun group of all our girlfriends, down to a dwindling circle of shame. I was actually talking about this with a friend recently and she showed me a photo on her phone of a lonely one girl waiting to catch the bouquet as she was the only one not married or engaged at the wedding!

“So if you are a bride considering whether or not to throw your bouquet, all I ask is that you do a quick mental add up of how many ladies would be there waiting to catch the bouquet and if it’s less than five, do them a wedding favour and give the bouquet toss a miss!”

Will you be throwing your bouquet? We’d love to hear — why not tweet us @hitchedireland.