How to Choose Something Borrowed for Brides

Something old, something new, something borrowed, something blue--it's a poem so simple and widespread that even children can sing it, yet it becomes of great importance to a bride as her wedding day approaches! It's hallowed tradition for the bride to carry or wear something that represents each of those phrases. Some brides choose blue shoes for their something blue, a lacy garter for their something new, and a beloved string of pearls for their something old. But what about something borrowed? The choices incorporating "something borrowed" can bestow the bride's wedding day with a little more meaning.

Read on for tips on how to choose something borrowed for brides.

When choosing something borrowed, don't just grab an old handkerchief of your father's or a bracelet from your sister. You want your wedding day to be as meaningful and memorable as possible, so choose something that's imbued with good memories already; when you see it later in the pictures or think of it again, the item will become even more sentimental.

For instance, think of couples in your life who have had a happy and long-lasting marriage. Your parents? Your grandparents? An aunt and uncle, or old family friends? Anyone whose marriage has inspired or shaped your own views on love will do!

Once you have identified a few happy marriages, approach the couple who has most influenced you and ask if they have something meaningful they would mind lending you for your own wedding. Perhaps you already have something in mind, like your grandmother's veil or your mother's vintage locket. If you don't, ask them if they have ideas--they will be honored you asked and probably have some trinket or momento for you to carry. Explain to them how much their own happy example has meant to you, and be sure to thank them for lending you something that will make your own wedding day even more precious.

A bride's "something borrowed" can take any number of forms! Ask around for what other brides used, and start thinking ahead of time about what yours will be (so that you don't just grab something random at the last minute, when your head is whirling with a hundred other things).

Use these tips as a starting point for what to borrow:

• Your grandmother or mother's wedding veil
• A vintage piece of jewelry from a relative--necklace, earrings, a bracelet, etc.
• An antique handkerchief from a relative, to tuck into your bodice for emotional moments
• A bit of your mother or your groom's mother's wedding dress, sewn into your own
• A delicate haircomb or headpiece
• A brooch from a relative to pin onto your bouquet
• A penny to tape onto the bottom of yoru shoe--an old custom for luck (just be sure to borrow it from someone close to your heart!)

Remember, your "something borrowed" should come from a happily married person and is supposed to bestow their good luck and happiness into your own marriage. Once you have your something borrowed (along with something old, blue, and new), you're set to walk down the aisle--best wishes and congratulations! What was your something borrowed? Tell me in the comments below!