January is usually the month of resolutions—those promises we make to ourselves, and hope to stick to—resulting in better versions of who we were last year, or even in the last decade. For those heading down the January path towards salvation from fried, fat, and even food…best of luck with all of that, and we do mean it, but we aren’t going to offer any advice on that topic just yet. Instead, for our monthly theme, we are going for a form of escapism sprinkled with a bit of planning. Something that would conjure up images acting as the antithesis to the cold, gray winter. And that topic would be…weddings!
Many of us are already counting down the days until summer arrives, with all of her glorious sun, sand, surf, and parties—the undisputed top-notch party being a raucous, yet beautifully appointed wedding.
June is the month that traditionally boasts the most weddings. Just six months away—the minimum amount of time most experts would say one could rationally expect to plan a full-scale shindig. Like most long-standing customs, the plethora of weddings in June has both practical and mystical reasoning. The name of the month has Juno, the Roman Goddess of marriage as its namesake. Somewhere along the line, hopeful couples figured they would stack the deck and get married in the month honoring the otherworldly being who really championed the practice—perhaps hoping she would bestow a blessing of lifelong happiness upon them. (Statistical figures were not available to corroborate the idea.)
On the practical side of things, June marriage made sense in the Middle Ages as that’s right about the time of year when many people took their yearly bath—a fresh smelling bride and groom would certainly make the wedding night more pleasant, no? There’s also the very romantic reason, again from way back in the day, that June weddings meant spring babies, (considered lucky) which also meant that the wife would be back up and fully functioning, ready to help harvest the fields in fall. Although, based on the average of exactly planned pregnancies, especially in the olden days, this latter reason likely may not have always worked out so well.
Thankfully, a modern couple need not worry about pleasing a Goddess, or being harvest-ready when picking a wedding date. And thanks to the advent of modern plumbing, cleanliness is readily available at all times of the year. So for couples on the shore, June is really just the official start of wedding season. If you happen to be one of those couples, you’re most likely just starting into the frenzied state of the planning process. If you’re an engaged couple—perhaps newly so after the holidays – congrats! Hopefully you find our articles helpful.
For the next six weeks, (as it turns out, there’s such an abundance of wedding-appropriate information, the features will carry into February), we will sit down with photographers, cake makers, dress specialists, and restaurateurs. We will uncover hidden gems—perfect outdoor locations you couldn’t find anywhere else but the Eastern Shore. That’s the thing—weddings here don’t have to be on the beach, but there are miles and miles of white sandy options, just in case. We will also talk to wedding officiants, and people who fought hard just to be able to get married. And much more.
We hope you enjoy our coverage of Down the Aisle—Eastern Shore Style. Even if you’re not engaged, or about to get hitched, it’s another way to think of white—forget snow, think of the beauty of weddings! And many of these locations are fantastic settings for other parties too. You get the picture. Join us, as we explore how the shore does the “I do’s.”
By the way, if you are a prospective bride or groom, contact us at info@shorebread.com. We may tell your story!
Photos by Jillian McGrath Photography.
