How many people still do the garter/bouquet toss at the wedding reception?

Question

We don't have that many eligible people, most of our friends are married.

Answer 1

I've only seen tha garter toss once and it was when I was really little. Havent seen it since. The bouquet toss is also becoming an outdated tradition as most single gals dont enjoy it and find it pretty embarrassing. The last wedding I went to did the anniversary dance when all the couples get out on the floor and time is call out, if your just dating, leave the floor, been married for less than a year, less than 5 years, less than 10 years etc. until the last couple is remaining and the bride gives her bouqet to that couple. It was really neat because these people were also celebrating their 49th anniversary on that same day and they finished out the dance alone before the bride gave her bouqet to them. Thats the best bouquet "toss" I've ever seen.

Answer 2

I'm skipping it altogether. I never liked that tradition. It always seems that the 8 year old niece of the bride catches the bouquet and the 40 year old brother of the groom catches the garter. Geez..can you say uncomfortable? The last few weddings I have gone to, they didn't do it either. If you want to stay with tradition, you can just throw the bouquet and not do the garter part. I've also seen brides do a "mock toss" to the bridesmaids during the photo session, not during the reception.

Answer 3

These days some family members get offended by the garter toss. Only because when its being done, some aren't realizing how they look to everybody else. My brother put a sign on his back saying "out to lunch..back in 30 min" Gross. I'm not a prude, but some family members were really embarassed. Especially the older ones. As for the bouquet toss. Most florists will throw in the tossing bouquet for free. As long as you place the whole order with them.

I'm getting married in June and its going to be warm. You don't want to be throwing a sweaty garter. Who would actually want to catch that.

Wait until you get your r.s.v.p.'s back then figure out how many single girls there are going to be. That should decide on wether or not you need an actual tossing bouquet.

GOOD LUCK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Answer 4

Personally I think that today Wedding Receptions are all bout the money. Yes, It is also a celebration with your family and friends in honor of your everlasting love with your partner but why the heck does it have to be so expensive?!! Also, you can get away with a non-traditional wedding and reception in this day in age. I mean is there really a law prohibiting a marriage due to elimination of the garter toss or cutting of the cake? Your reception should classify who YOU are and what YOUR budget consists of.

Answer 5

Well, I love the idea of the longest married couple that Ashley wrote about, I think that's really sweet.

I did the bouquet and garder toss at my wedding. It was so cool because I got the bouquet one month before my wedding at my aunts wedding and then my friend Eva got the bouquet at my wedding and No, it wasnt planned.

Then we did the whole sexy removing of the garder thing. There have been some weddings that have done it as a comic relief, where you put all kinds of things under the chair where the bride is sitting during the garder removal, I've seen things come out of there from a rubber chicken to really sexy lingerie. Its fun watching and being of part of those silly traditions.

althought I know a lot of people like having these fancy, formal parties. That's not what I'm about, we're about having fun, family filled weddings and the memories that last from those events are what keeps you so close together as a family even after you get married and start your own family.

Answer 6

I've been to quite a few weddings which had the bouquet and the garter tosses but it's not necessary, especially if there will not be many single people at your wedding.

Answer 7

Our DJ played Through the Years by Kenny Rogers and we did what Ashlie said -all couples who have been married less than 24 hours please leave the floor, (of course the bride and groom left) then like 1 year left, then 5 yrs, then 10, then 25, and so on till it came to one couple left, and the longest married couple got the bouquet. It was really sweet and recognized that stickin through it should be rewarded...so maybe thats an idea you could use instead of the toss!
Oh, and the garter...I kept that on and let my new husband take it off after the wedding. ;-)

Answer 8

I'm not that fond of the garter toss, so we didn't do that. I still wore a garter for my husband to take off during our wedding night but not at the reception. Since there was not a lot of single women at our reception either, I chose to dedicate my bouquet to my only living grandmother. When it was time for the toss, I explained to the guests that tradition usually dictates that the bouquet is tossed among single women and the one who catches the bouquet is thought to be the next to marry. But instead of throwing the bouquet, I decided to dedicate my bouquet to someone who has always been there for me; my Grandmother. Then I stated her name so everyone knew who she was and walked over to her and handed the bouquet to her and gave her a hug. The photographer didn't know I was planning on doing this, so he got great candid shots of this moment. Everyone was so surprised. As I looked back at my video and photographs I noticed that my grandmother cried when I gave her the bouquet because she felt so touched and honored. If I had to do it all over again, I'd dedicate my bouquet to her again.

So instead of making the few single friends you have feel uncomfortable in room full of married guests, I recommend dedicating your bouquet to someone who is special to you (mother, grandmother, aunt, sister, friend). I'm sure whoever you choose will be so appreciative that you thought of them; it's such a special way to honor someone very important in your life.

Or you could have an anniversary dance like a couple of people have already mentioned. That's a nice idea too!

Answer 9

My husband and I did both. My 10 year old son and a friends 12 year old daughter caught them. Our DJ refused to allow them to go through with the traditional ceremony because they were not of age.... We had already decided to skip it because they were so young. What we did was have an engaged couple do the ceremony instead. It was fun and everyone had a great time. The kids got to keep the bouquet and garter. Both items were bought separately for throw aways.

Answer 10

I think it's a great idea and will add more fun to your reception. I did it at my wedding- and even if you may not have guests who are eligible to play, the younger boys and girls love it! Besides, do the bride and groom really keep their bouquet and garter??