Tossing of the Bride's Garter

Today's popular wedding traditions have evolved over hundreds, even thousands of years of people joining together in some form of matrimony. Some wedding traditions that have endured are based on blessing the couple with good luck; others are a means for the couple to convey their feelings for one another. Regardless of the wedding tradition itself, all wedding traditions share the same essential symbols of unity, happiness and prosperity; messages that stand the test of time.


The garter tradition originated back to the 14th century. In parts of Europe the guests of the bride and groom believed having a piece of the bride’s clothing was thought to bring good luck. They would actually destroy the brides dress by ripping off pieces of fabric. Obviously, this tradition did not sit well with the bride, so she began throwing various items to the guests – the garter being one of them. It became customary for the bride to toss the garter to the men. But this also caused a great problem for the bride….sometimes the men would get drunk, become impatient and try to remove the garter ahead of time. Therefore, the custom derived at having the groom remove and toss the garter to the men.

Satterlee / Sullivan Wedding

Some brides have shunned the "garter toss tradition" because they feel it makes fun of their single friends and family members in a negative way.  However, many brides still like the idea of incorporating the garter toss into their wedding day. The garter toss is a fun and exciting tradition that will definitey draw a crowd - no matter if your guests are married or single.