Pugster Shoe Charm Bracelet
(Dance Wedding Dangle Jewelry Beaded)

Wedding Shoes

Shoes don't sound a particularly likely topic for ancient customs and superstitions - most people probably just think of them as one more part of the wedding outfit to buy. If so then they might be surprised at how often the humble shoe, sandal or slipper features in wedding traditions around the world.

The Honeymoon Car

The most well-known custom is probably that of tying shoes to the back of the honeymoon car. Although this still appears in movies it is probably less common than it used to be in the real world. The tradition is thought to derive from the middle ages and to be an attempt to ward off evil spirits.

One theory is that demons didn't like the smell of humans - so a bundle of smelly old shoes would certainly put them off! Another theory is that the shoes would make a loud clattering noise that would scare away evil.

Association

Shoes are often used in an attempt to bring good luck through a form of associative magic. It was practice in some places for the bride to have a coin (eg a "silver sixpence") or bill taped inside the bridal shoe in a belief that it would bring wealth. For the less financially oriented more general lucky symbols such as herbs and four leaf clovers were worn in the shoe.

A similar belief is that an old shoe would retain some of the attributes of its previous wearer. Thus used shoes could - in the days when such things were expensive to replace - be a lucky wedding charm. Similarly the exchange of footwear between bride and groom may have represented symbolically the union between them.

Today the shoes themselves are often used as chamrs, for instance small silver shoes on the wedding cake.

Power

Although the idea makes us uncomfortable today, shoes were once used as symbols of the subjugation of the woman to her husband. This was represented symbolically in various ways such as the groom standing on the bride's shoes during the ceremony. Another tradition has the groom touching the bride's forehead with his shoe.