• On Good Things Utah this morning – Outdated wedding ‘rules’ you can throw out the window. Consider this your permission to ignore these wedding day traditions. Wedding traditions and etiquette evolve over time as cultural norms change. Things that were popular when your parents or grandparents tied the knot may not make much sense to the couples and guests of today. Sometimes these old rules have a way of sticking around long after they’re relevant. That’s why we asked etiquette experts and wedding planners which outdated wedding rules we no longer need to follow. Here’s what they told us:
    • Out: The bride must wear white.
      • Queen Victoria is often credited for popularizing the white wedding dress after she wore one at her 1840 nuptials to Prince Albert. Before that, “Wedding dresses in Europe actually came in all sorts of colors,” etiquette expert Nick Leighton, co-host of the “Were You Raised By Wolves” podcast, told HuffPost. These days, white may still be the most common color choice for brides, but really anything goes: pink, gold, blue, floral and even black are all perfectly lovely. “So feel free to wear whatever color you like on your wedding day,” Leighton said.
    • Out: The bridal party should wear matching attire.
      • The days of bridesmaids needing to wear the same (and often unattractive) dress is over. According to etiquette expert Thomas P. Farley, also known as Mister Manners, this tradition is actually “a holdover from an ancient fear that spirits — or marauders — would come to the wedding and seek out the bride,” he said. “At the time, bride and bridesmaids all dressed alike, and the sameness of their outfits was believed to confuse potential evil-doers,” Farley said. Now couples can have their bridal parties dress however they please. That often means allowing them to wear outfits in different colors or styles that fit their individual budgets and body types. “Coordinating color may instead be the plan — or coordinating hemlines or fabrics,” Farley said. “Alternatively, attendants may be instructed to wear whatever makes them happiest. Creativity and freedom now reign.”
    • Out: The wedding party should be divided by gender.
      • It used to be customary for a bride to have female bridesmaids and for a groom to have male groomsmen. But this is no longer the case. Now “anyone can have any role at a wedding, regardless of gender,” Leighton said. That means plenty of bridesmen, groomsmaids and flower boys are walking down the aisle these days. “If Julia Roberts and Dermot Mulroney had filmed ‘My Best Friend’s Wedding’ today, chances are good that Jules would have been an attendant for Michael rather than for his bride — Jules’ nemesis-until-she-isn’t, Kimmy,” Farley said. “And why not? Scrounging for attendants of the same gender when you have one or more super-close friends of the opposite gender is absurd, and now, gratefully, no longer a societally expected norm.” We hope you tune in for this Hot Topic and so much more this morning on a Thursday edition of Good Things Utah.