Weird, Wild Wedding Etiquette

Posted by brideblog

Posted: May 15, 2008 - 4:50 pm

I found this bit of knife-as-gift advice interesting... FROM EVA'S ETIQUETTE BLOG ON E-VITE:

***In my family, giving a knife as a gift is considered super bad luck. When we get one, we immediately "pay" the giver a coin or, the superstition goes, we risk severing the relationship between giver and givee. Of course, we also have weird traditions about petting this wooden dog statue at my cousins' house every time we pass it and referring to ginger ale as "pinger pale," so what do we know.

But as it turns out, people unrelated to me also believe in this knife thing. Wedding and etiquette websites, in particular, are full of advice about this, and I even found some wacky "it's true; it happened to me!" stories about relationships ended because of a knife gift....

No offense, people, but maybe it just wasn't that great a gift. I mean, I love my santoku and my Swiss Army knife, but there are occasions when opening a fancy-wrapped box and finding a knife inside would be underwhelming or downright creepy. Do you believe giving a knife as a gift is bad luck? What other gift or wedding superstitions do you follow?....***

No comment on the wooden dog or pinger gale thing, but I'm starting to believe that weddings and superstitions go hand in hand like Halloween and Vincent Price. Why else would all of us know from birth the sing-songy "Something borrowed...something blue..." and how many of us follow it the day of the wedding? Like, everyone, right? It's not that you have to believe it; but similar to chain e-mails which I hate, the consequence of not forwarding it to your ten friends or following the "something old/new/borrowed/blue" seems so ominous, why risk it...? And I'll admit that there is some mild amusement in coming up with things I could wear or have with me that are blue. Do my fiance's eyes count? Seriously. I own nothing blue.

...Plus, I've always wondered, do they have to be separate items, or can I borrow something that's old and blue? ---Triple play right there!

Back to the original argument, I don’t think giving knives should be so taboo. Especially when you live in Alaska. As Jeff Foxworthy might say… “If your fiancé gives you a knife, that’s on a necklace, shaped like a fish, and doubles as a bottle opener…and you wear it…and you LIKE it… you jus' might be livin' in Alaska...”

I swear, I love it and wear it all the time. Good for cutting things…like bear claws should I have to defend myself against a Grizz and want something as a souvenir.

Love,
Whoa Bear Wojcik

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