Since ancient times, weddings in Rus' have been celebrated cheerfully, noisily, for a long time and on a grand scale. Only the tradition of a two-day celebration has survived to this day. The first day of a wedding is relatively stable; there are usually fewer issues with it than with the second.
Although in the old days the second wedding day could not be the last. According to tradition, Russian weddings continued to be celebrated for three days, but this was not the limit. The higher the class, the longer the wedding.
All necessary wedding ceremonies were carried out on the first and second days. Therefore, the third and subsequent ones were simply festive feasts.
Today, not everyone dares to celebrate the second wedding day, let alone the third. Due to lack of time, and more often - money. A wedding is a very expensive event, and not everyone can afford the lavish observance of traditions.
But if the young relatives have free time and enough money, then why not continue the holiday? Let's try to figure out how to celebrate the second wedding day, how to surprise guests and please the newlyweds.
Second wedding day traditions
In Russia, great importance was attached to the second day of the wedding . Many customs have always been associated with this day. Let's talk about where and how to spend the second wedding day according to Russian tradition.
There are many interesting traditions associated with the second wedding day that have survived to this day.
The main tradition was a joint trip to the bathhouse for newly-made husband and wife. There was an opinion that this ritual washes away the sins of the past and renews the spouses to enter family life with pure thoughts. For this purpose, they took with them new birch brooms, which, as a rule, were given by the bride.
Birch broom for the second wedding day
After this ritual, the couple returned to the house. The husband always entered first , and only then the wife. This was important - it emphasized who was in charge in their family.
On the second day, the young wife had to demonstrate to the guests and her husband’s family what kind of housewife she was . It was a humorous tradition that was used as entertainment. The girl tried to clean, sew, embroider, and her husband’s relatives tried to prevent her from doing this. All this was accompanied by jokes, cheerful laughter, jokes.
Now these traditions have already been forgotten. However, there are more modern customs that are used today . For example:
- mummers instead of the bride and groom;
- a young wife gives symbolic gifts to her husband's relatives;
- meeting guests on the second day of the wedding according to an unusual scenario;
- joint planting of a tree on the plot of the young;
- “selling” pancakes baked by the bride or mother-in-law.
The second day of the wedding will be fun and interesting if you think through and organize everything in advance. We'll tell you how to do this.
Newlyweds plant a tree on their second wedding day
Traditions
How does the second wedding day begin?
It is not much different from the first one. Young people are present at it, they shout “Bitter!”, and are seated at the main, central table. But the young people are not a bride and groom at all, but costumed guests. So, from the beginning:
- In the morning, yesterday's newlyweds must be awakened by witnesses. They bring them breakfast and make sure that they take a bath, washing off their free bachelor life, and change their clothes.
- It is not customary for yesterday's bride and groom to wear the same clothes as the day before.
- The first dirty plate in the house should be washed by the new husband, this is a tradition.
- Previously, on the morning of the second day, according to the customs of the ancestors, a sheet with blood stains was always displayed, thanks to which the groom confirmed that he took his bride innocent.
True, now this ritual has completely lost its relevance.
Banquet
If you don’t have a toastmaster, then the costumed guests should take on this role; they, still drunk from the previous day, converge at the place where the fun will continue. It will not necessarily be the same cafe or restaurant in which the celebration took place; it is useful to change the environment.
Most often, a noisy company moves to nature or to the house of one of the parents. It is quite possible that the action will continue in the house of a young family. And those, in turn, have the opportunity to show what kind of masters they are.
Gypsies in disguise greet the rest of the event participants at the door, inviting them to clean up - get a little hangover, and at the same time tell their fortunes. For which guests must pay a nominal fee.
Wedding customs on the second day
It is on this day, and not the first, that they break the plate for the happiness of the young, comparing it to a ship. There is a tradition that when a new ship is launched into the water, a plate is broken on its side. And it is believed that the number of broken pieces, the number of passengers on the family ship, the number of sons and daughters in a young family.
Another custom of this day is cutting the wedding loaf. If guests are always treated to cake on the first day, then the loaf is prepared on the second. Usually on this day the closest and dearest people stay, so the family loaf is divided among family members.
The second wedding day is considered parenting day. It gives full attention to the mothers and fathers of the newlyweds. Guests in disguise dance for them, they shout “Bitter!”, and toasts are raised to their health.
After the first table, when the guests are hung over and have eaten, everyone gets ready to go to the market. It is believed that parents were so prepared for their children’s wedding that they completely forgot about themselves, and therefore the children go to buy them clothes and shoes. A gypsy camp, guests and young mummers are traveling with them.
After returning from shopping, newlyweds must wash their parents’ feet. The daughter-in-law, in gratitude for the birth and upbringing of her husband, washes the feet of his parents, that is, her father-in-law and mother-in-law, and he, in turn, washes his mother-in-law and father-in-law.
Also, yesterday's newlyweds, and today's husband and wife, are obliged to seat their parents at their table and fill their plates with food and glasses with drinks. This is how they show them their respect.
Throughout the day, tests are carried out to find out how far the two families have managed to learn each other? At the end of the day, the main heroes of the occasion (the newlyweds and their parents) thank the guests for these two days, give them memorable gifts and invitations to the first wedding anniversary.
Preparing for the celebration
The organization of the second day from the moment of marriage should be no less thorough than the first. It is important to pay attention to all the little things and nuances so that this holiday leaves warm memories for everyone present.
You need to think through everything: clothes, menu, entertainment, place of celebration
The celebration scenario depends on the location . The second day is celebrated at home, outdoors or in a cafe. You can also use more original options - a motor ship, a sauna, an amusement park, etc.
After choosing a place, you should think about clothes for the newlyweds. Usually, they don’t buy expensive outfits on the next wedding day. The clothing chosen is simple and comfortable .
Newlyweds on their second wedding day
The menu should also undergo changes . After the abundance of the first day, light snacks are used on the second, as well as baked and steamed dishes. There must be pancakes on the table, traditionally prepared by the mother-in-law. After all, what is the name of the 2nd wedding day? According to ancient Russian custom, it is called “pancake” or “mother-in-law”.
Jokes and entertainment will help you celebrate the second day brightly and cheerfully. Think over them in advance or entrust them to the toastmaster.
Newlyweds can send out invitations in advance to those they want to see on the second day. Usually the next day a smaller number of guests are invited - only the closest relatives and friends.
Tips on organization can be seen in the video of the second wedding day.
Ready-made cool scenario for the second day of a wedding at home without a toastmaster
If you decide to celebrate your second wedding day at home, then the menu will be important. Think about it in advance so that you don’t have to order at a restaurant what you have and not what you would like.
Try to keep the dishes of the second day not too heavy on the stomach
It is best to prepare light snacks and salads at home. On the second day, it is recommended to keep everything simple and relaxed. Of course, everything at home should be decorated. You can hang balloons, ribbons, or draw a poster with wishes for the young family.
Remember the tradition of testing a new wife? This seemingly strange requirement can be made fun and memorable. The not-so-pleasant traditional task of cleaning the house will turn into a fun game if the bride sweeps the floor, showing her diligence, and the guests throw candy wrappers mixed with money at her.
In addition, you can organize a “health correction point”. To make it even more convincing, the couple dress up as a doctor and a nurse and greet guests after the stormy celebration of the previous day with a tray on which glasses with “cure” for hangover are lined up.
Drink tray for the second wedding day
Differences between a modern second wedding day and an ancient one
The second day of a wedding in Russian tradition is full of various rituals that have hardly survived in our time. Now there is no need to observe ancient rituals, but you can have fun from the heart. What is usually left over after the main celebration is placed on the table. The bride on this day does not take part in household chores, but simply has fun with the guests. To observe at least part of the traditions, you can put homemade pancakes on the newlyweds’ table, and give the bride a piece of the festive loaf to the guests. Testing household skills can be turned into fun competitions. Well, instead of a bathhouse, the newlyweds may well visit the pool or sauna.
Whether to observe ancient traditions or not is a personal matter for each couple. The main thing is that the second wedding day leaves the newlyweds with the most pleasant memories.
The idea of a good script for the 2nd day of an outdoor wedding
If the wedding is celebrated in the summer, then celebrating outdoors or in the country will be . Then a barbecue or picnic is held with funny skits, competitions, etc.
When celebrating in nature, it's easy to implement an old tradition and plant a tree
The menu for the 2nd day of an outdoor wedding should also not be very filling and difficult on the digestive system. You can cook or order snacks, make a barbecue, decorate the table with vegetable slices and salads.
There is another fun tradition that can only be implemented in nature. It's called "mother-in-law and father-in-law riding." The young wife's parents are placed in a wheelbarrow and driven along a rough road to the river, where they are unloaded directly into the water. This is the so-called one-time revenge of the son-in-law, after which he undertakes to endure and honor his mother-in-law for the rest of his life. All this is also accompanied by songs, jokes and dances.
Parents of the bride on the second wedding day
Bride's Trials
The second day of the wedding was dedicated to testing the young woman as a housewife. She had to go get water, and the cheerful guests tried to accommodate her in every possible way - they boarded up the well, turned over the buckets.
KNOWLEDGE BASE: Bride kidnapping and ransom - competition for a banquet: fun and unexpected
Another ritual was sweeping the floors. All kinds of garbage were scattered on the floor in the house, and the young woman had to carefully sweep it away. The quality of cleaning was checked by guests. The young wife was subjected to these tests in order to check her readiness for housekeeping.
After all the rituals were observed, the festive feast began. The second day was dedicated to parents. The bride asked permission to call her father-in-law and mother-in-law “dad” and “mom,” and the groom did the same. “Bitterly” was shouted on the second day for the parents who were parting with their child. This mainly concerned the girl’s parents, because Previously, the wife went to her husband's house. When the fun began, the young couple broke the plate. This was done for luck.
Fun scenario for day 2 in the village
Probably the most fun and long-lasting weddings are celebrated in villages. This is what happens today. Only there can you find such a thing as the third wedding day.
Village holidays are always noisy, bright and fun
After the traditional hangover and distribution of gifts to the in-laws by the new wife, the parents should meet the newlyweds with a loaf of bread. According to custom, it is broken off or bitten off by the bride and groom. The one who has the largest piece will be considered the main one in the house .
Another fun tradition is selling spoons. The bride brings the guests to the table, but refuses to feed them for free , saying: “Do you want okroshka, guests? Then buy spoons from me!” Guests symbolically pay for “tools of labor”, which the bride will give them in exchange for coins or banknotes.
If at the wedding there was no traditional finding out who will be born first in a young family , then the celebration of the second wedding day is the time to do this. To do this, sliders of blue and pink colors are prepared in advance, symbolizing a boy and a girl. Each of the guests votes for their option using banknotes, and then everyone calculates the results together.
Pink and blue rompers for the second wedding day
You definitely need to come up with an interesting scene, the purpose of which is to congratulate the parents on their new titles of father-in-law, mother-in-law, father-in-law and mother-in-law. In this scene, young people can ask permission to call them mom and dad.
It is necessary to prepare medals, badges and diplomas with new titles for parents in advance. You can also order inscriptions on bottles, mugs or T-shirts.
Fun competitions and a lottery are held for guests. Prizes are a must. It can be any little thing: a box of matches, a pen, a lighter, chocolate, a keychain, a refrigerator magnet, etc.
At the end of the celebration, you should thank the guests for the wonderful holiday and communication. This should also be accompanied by the tradition of presenting a hearth. As a rule, the oldest member of the family is invited for this purpose - a grandfather or grandmother, who passes a symbolically lit candle to their children - the parents of the young, and those to their own - the heroes of the occasion. The young wife solemnly undertakes to preserve this symbol of the hearth.
Candle for the second wedding day
Scenario for the second day of celebration without a toastmaster
The newlyweds, celebrating their second wedding day, do not know whether to call for help from the toastmaster, who will definitely amuse the guests, or take the event into their own hands? If the continuation of the wedding is large-scale and there are a large number of guests present, as on the first day, then the toastmaster is a good solution. Most young people spend time after marriage with their closest people, so parents or active friends can take on the role of leader. Several ideas for competitions, entertainment and tasks for the second day of a large-scale event are presented below.
As for the scenario itself, everything depends on the preferences of the young people and their imagination. This could be a simple event without a theme or a real costume show, where guests will be given details of the image upon entering, and friends of the young people will play different characters. The rustic style of celebrating a wedding looks interesting. Watch a funny video of the second day of the holiday in the village:
Meeting with guests
The meeting of wedding guests has a different character - for example, a popular scenario is with gypsies charging an entrance fee, cheerful music, dancing, and riddles for everyone who comes, which must be guessed in order to get inside. An interesting meeting of new arrivals takes place in the style of a medical examination: a doctor and nurses stand at the entrance, they check the pulse, reflexes of the guests on the second day of the wedding, and measure the temperature. If the thermometer shows below forty, those who came to the wedding are given vodka. Watch the video that illustrates this theme of the meeting of invitees:
Sale of spoons and forks
Selling spoons and forks is another option for welcoming guests on the second day. Often, cutlery is not placed on the tables during a wedding, and those who come to the celebration must buy them back - this is a replacement for the classic entrance fee. During the holiday, guests can only have forks, and when the liquid dish “from the newlyweds” is brought, promising happiness to the wedding guests, there will be no spoons at hand. You will have to pay money to try soup or other liquid food.
Sitting down at the table - making toasts
After guests have purchased the right to go inside, they are offered to buy the best place to sit - for example, next to the young people. The rest are charged a symbolic fee - 10, 50 rubles, depending on how much you give. When the wedding guests are seated, the host makes a toast, congratulating the newlyweds on their one-day wedding anniversary - it can be humorous, solemn or parting. Then those present take turns making toasts. Newlyweds at the wedding must say congratulations to their parents.
Wedding competitions and games
Competitions are an indispensable part of a wedding celebration. In order for the guests of the holiday to be satisfied and retain pleasant memories of the wedding, you need to cheer them up well. For this purpose, interesting, original competitions and fun tasks have been invented. Several game options that will delight wedding guests will leave a lasting impression:
- Sultan. A comic wedding competition for unmarried men and women. The gentlemen are given rubber bands, with which the contestants must connect the ring fingers of the women - the more girls ringed, the better. The winner of the competition is the one with the most brides.
- A long way. Guests are divided into teams, each team must form a grip - with their hands, items of clothing, sticks, cutlery - to create a longer line than the other team. The winners and heroes of the occasion are awarded prizes.
- Family captain. This wedding competition will show which of the heroes of the occasion will become the captain of the family boat. The leader draws two circles on the floor, the groom stands in the territory of one, and the bride in the other. Wedding guests are asked to choose a “side.” Where there are more people, the newlywed wins.
Family joining ceremony
Often, at a wedding, a ceremony of twinning families takes place, in which close relatives of the bride and groom take part, along with the main characters of the wedding. The ritual of the second day goes like this: his relatives stand behind the newly made spouse, and hers behind the wife. Two columns stand parallel to each other. Then the music begins to play, the relatives of the newlyweds and the newlyweds play trickle, the wedding host invites them to perform various funny tasks in mirror image to each other - pat on the shoulder, stroke the belly. At the end of the ceremony, everyone kisses and hugs.
Competition for mother-in-law and mother-in-law
For a funny competition in which mother-in-law and mother-in-law participate, you will need two jars of soap bubbles. The wedding guests go to the center of the hall, open the bubbles, and those present ask questions: how many times a month will you come to the newlyweds? How much advice will you give in a week? How much vodka will the father-in-law and father-in-law drink? The answers come by counting the number of bubbles blown.
Fortune telling for young people
The second day is not complete without fortune telling for the firstborn. A classic way to conduct a ceremony at a wedding: make two baskets (pink and blue) and place them at the entrance. Each guest who comes to congratulate the heroes of the occasion must put money in one of them. At the height of the wedding, when everyone has arrived, the amount is calculated. If the guests of the celebration put more money in the pink basket, there will be a girl, and vice versa.
Entertainment for guests
The host should entertain the wedding guests with the help of various competitions, tasks, toasts, lotteries - give gifts/souvenirs for participation. If the wedding is themed, the one who will lead the celebration can be a mummer - this will help create a special holiday atmosphere. Don’t forget about the musical accompaniment - sooner or later the guests will probably want to break into a merry dance; folk music and ditty songs will help with this at the wedding.
Outfit for the second wedding day
The good thing about the second day of the wedding celebration is that you don’t have to wear a tight suit, but you can choose simpler clothes. For example, young spouses can order matching T-shirts for the 2nd wedding day.
The appearance of the newlyweds depends on where the celebration is planned
Couples T-shirts often use the words "husband" and "wife" or something similar. You can also depict a joint photograph or arrows indicating that the newlyweds belong to each other.
What should a bride wear to her wedding on the second day? If the celebration is planned in a restaurant or cafe, you can choose a light dress in white or any other light color . It should be comfortable and not very formal. The light dress is suitable for a holiday at home or outdoors. If the choice fell on paired T-shirts, then you can wear trousers or a skirt.
Photos of T-shirts for the second wedding day
What should the groom wear? It is recommended to wear light trousers and a shirt without a tie . Don't wear jeans. It's casual wear after all.
When organizing a themed party, you should wear something appropriate to the theme, but preferably also paired. Usually combinations are selected that match the shades, or small details indicating the heroes of the occasion - ribbons, badges, etc.
Mummers on the 2nd wedding day
Not only young people, but also guests can dress up . For them, dressing up can be fun if you approach it with humor.
Costumed guests are an ancient tradition used in Russia, Ukraine and Belarus
Who do the guests dress up as? As a rule, in young people. From the very morning, the mummers should take pride of place at the head of the table. Family friends take on these roles. Usually the role of the groom is played by a girl (boyfriend), and the role of the bride is played by a young man (wedding general).
The mummers recite funny poems, sing songs and demand ransom from the guests for the newlyweds. Only after a certain amount has been collected, the real bride and groom are allowed to go out to the guests.
Costumed bride on the second wedding day
Wedding competitions on the second day
Competitions on the second day of the wedding will help to invigorate, awaken, entertain, make friends with guests after a hangover, and also test the newlyweds for professional suitability.
Mummers
A distinctive feature of the second day is the mummers. First of all, guests dress up as the bride and groom. They can come to the young spouses after the wedding night to wake them up and accompany them to the guests with jokes. The mummers sit in the place of the young couple, arranging various competitions for the newlyweds and guests.
Competition for matchmakers (parents)
This competition for the female half of parents will help distribute roles and responsibilities in relation to the young family. For the mother-in-law and mother-in-law, two sandwiches are prepared for breakfast and a coin is added to one of them. The woman who gets it will be responsible for financial assistance to the young family, and the other will raise the grandchildren.
Mistress
This competition is for a young wife and her best friend. The girls are given brooms and dustpans as props. Guests throw coins at their feet, while simultaneously pronouncing wishes to the young family. The girls try to collect as many coins as possible, and the guests interfere with them in every possible way. The duration of the competition is 60 seconds. If the bride collects more coins, she approaches the groom and kisses him, if her friend, then the bride must present her with a gift - a prize.
Enjoy Your Bath
In this competition, guests will have to take a steam bath, for which each participant is given a bath broom, a basin, a cap and mittens for the steam room, and a sheet. The more guests or teams participate in the competition, the more fun the competition will be. Guests will have to wash themselves with a washcloth and steam with a broom while listening to cheerful music. And when the music stops, you need to put on a hat and mittens, quickly wrap yourself in a sheet, sit down with a broom in the basin and scream with all your might.
Undress your friend
Competition for girls, they need to be seated on chairs arranged in one row. There are several rounds in the game. First, the presenter gives the command to find a man’s tie somewhere and leave it on his chair. The girls run to the guests and the one who puts down the tie last is eliminated from the competition. Next, girls should add a belt, boots, and a shirt to their collection.
Candy trap
The host gives the guests a bag of sweets. Everyone can take a few pieces for themselves if they wish. When all the candies have been taken away, the host announces that now everyone must tell as many funny stories related to the newlyweds as the number of candies he chose for himself. The most fun storyteller is awarded.
