Wednesday, August 22, 2012

A Celtic Wedding!

Enjoy this lovely post from guest blogger Evelyn Reimer. And if you'd like to find out more about how to incorporate your favorite Celtic wedding traditions together with your wedding music, make sure to view "The Bride's Guide to Musicians: Live Wedding Music Made Easy and Affordable", published by Hal Leonard Books and available as a Kindle edition, too!


So you're finally starting to plan your wedding, and you are of an Irish, Scottish or otherwise Celtic background. It's very important to you to carry the traditions of your ancestors into your nuptial celebration, so how can you incorporate Celtic themes in your wedding ceremony and reception?

The Ceremony Location
Generally, a modern Celtic background is associated with Christianity, although there are some exceptions to that rule since the Celtics began in the days when paganism was popular. However, you most likely want to have a traditional ceremony in a church as many of the Celtic cultures feel that this is the appropriate place for a wedding. The exact rules are going to depend upon your church, as Celtic people can be any of a number of Christian denominations. When you are a pagan, try out some traditional pagan customs in an outdoor ceremony.

Handfasting
The Celtic handfasting is a tradition that comes out of the pagan times, when the Celtic culture was well and alive before the beginning of Christianity. Therefore, some churches may very well prohibit this tradition. However, if you are not having a ceremony in a church or if your church permits this practice, consider adding a Celtic handfasting to your ceremony. A ribbon or other such type of implement is used to tie together the hands of the bride and the groom. There are not many rules when it comes to handfastings, and couples have a lot of say here. They often choose to jump over a broom, which is also a tradition in African culture, or leap over a small fire to close out the ceremony.

The Food
How can you weave Celtic food into the reception menu line-up? Well, first check to see if your caterer has any suggestions or is even able to provide such cuisine. If you feel very strongly about having Celtic food at your reception, you must ask the reception hall about this before you book and put down a deposit. Some foods that are generally consider Celtic include Irish coffee, Irish soda bread, shepherds pie and corned beef and cabbage. Even if you can't have any of these for an entree, you may be able to have them for cocktail hour. If you're having a more casual and small reception, maybe some family members can do the cooking for you. Another idea is to locate Celtic caterers near you.

Celtic Music
Incorporating Celtic music into your ceremony and reception is one sure way to really enhance the vibe. At a church, you may be limited to the type of music you can use. However, if not-and for the reception-call different musicians in your area and search for reputable musicians online. You want to find musicians who truly understand and appreciate the sounds of the Celtic culture.

Some weddings tend to venture outside of the box, yet so many others are sticking with tradition. Incorporating these Celtic elements into your wedding shows love and respect for your ancestors' traditions that you plan to carry on into the new generation.

Evelyn Reimer writes about Irish culture, event planning & finding the best life insurance quotes.

Interested in being a guest blogger on this blog? Contact me for more info.

photo credit: MightyBoyBrian via photo pin cc

Friday, August 3, 2012

Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About the Celtic Harp

My good friend, Eliseo Mauas Pinto, has just published a wonderful free e-book, simply entitled The Celtic Harp. Eliseo describes it as, More than a compilation of useful information for all those interested in the magical world of the Celtic harp, this book is almost a labour of love..."

Download your free edition of The Celtic Harp here. Eiseo Mauas Pinto is also a gifted Celtic harper in his own right. Visit his wonderful blog for more information.