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The Rules and Etiquette of A Military Wedding
Guest post shared by Stephanie Bates, blogger at Military Travel Mama
There is something special when it comes to military weddings. Something that differentiates them from regular, civil types of ceremonies.
Everyone who had an opportunity to witness one such festivity will confirm this. Either it has something to do with the sight of a just married couple walking down the aisle passing beneath the arch of swords or it has to do with all the military traditions presented and exhibited at the wedding – military-themed weddings indeed create a unique atmosphere and unforgettable experience for everyone.
Unusual Locations
First of all, if we’re talking about military couples, we can’t help but think of all the things they needed to waive and all the stuff they go through that ordinary couples doesn’t have to deal with.
Living a military life comes with a necessity of making big compromises and these couples often don’t see each other for months because of frequent deployments. Settling in one place comes very difficult for them, so is planning their wedding and arranging for a wedding location also.
So don’t be surprised if you’re invited to attend the wedding taking place on a military base or on some other remote but beautiful location, such as Pocono mountains for example. Remember that oftentimes military couples have no option and had to plan for it that way.
What Else is There For You to Know?
Well, if you’re lucky enough to be present at this type of wedding, then you should dress accordingly for an occasion.
It’s common practice for military weds to wear their military uniforms instead of traditional wedding suits at their wedding. If by any chance, the bride is the one serving in the Army, she doesn’t have to give up on wearing her wedding dress, but she’ll need to show respect and give credit to the Army. With that being said, it is common for them to wear military boots underneath their wedding outfit.
All of the other service members present at the wedding are welcome to show up in their military uniforms also, wearing all the medals and ribbons they were presented with during their service and military career. In these cases, wearing boutonnieres and similar floral decorations is not recommended.
Finally, if you’re not a military member but you’re still present at the wedding, you should wear your formal attire and preferably white. In order for people like you not to stand out from the rest, you can be presented with a nice custom military-styled challenge coin, which can serve as a beautiful memorabilia at the same time.
Challenge coins are not exclusive to the military nowadays. They find very broad usage with different types of organizations and on different types of events, such as this one. You can order your batch of uniquely crafted high-quality challenge coins from companies like Embleholics.
Is That All?
Certainly not! List of all the things you can experience and see on military weddings is very very long. It’s too little space for us to mention everything here. Instead, we will just give you a brief list of other things you’ll most likely witness when attending a military wedding.
- Cutting a wedding cake with a sword, saber, or some other type of styled blade. Regular kitchen knives are out of the question.
- Lots of patriotic elements present at the wedding, from raising the flag to singing the national anthem.
- A ‘’table of honor’’ especially served for military members and positioned very close to the newlyweds.
- Bride’s dress can have sewed military name tag, stating her new family name.
And the list goes on and on…
Filed Under: Weddings
