Wednesday, September 25, 2013

A ring for her and him

The engagement ring tradition for the bride has been with us for many years. And some brides have made a real meal of it.

When Elizabeth Taylor said ‘I do’ for the first time, her engagement ring cost $10,000. By the time she walked down the aisle for the third time, it cost $50,000. Her eighth and last engagement ring wasn’t even mentioned. It was her $2 million dollar wedding that had everyone talking.

With weddings being such a lucrative business, and the engagement ring such a memorable tradition,  great effort was made around 1926 to encourage the groom likewise to start sporting a diamond or two on his right hand.

Despite all the marketing employed, the campaign failed to interest the engaged groom. It was enough for the bride to know that she belonged to him, without his having to remember that he belonged to her.

Interestingly enough, it was Napoleon who had the best idea when it came to engagement rings. Instead of giving her a ring with just one diamond, he gave Josephine a ring with two gems - a diamond to symbolise her, and a blue sapphire to symbolise him.

The setting was known as ‘you and me’, in case Josephine ever forgot.

While in its own time, Napoleon not being particularly rich, the ring had little monetary value, when it was sold recently at an auction, it sold at $949,000.

Here's how it looks.

Thursday, September 19, 2013

Most Famous Bride of them All

Brides spend a lot of time wondering how they can make a spectacular wedding entrance.

Sometimes it's the way they arrive.

One bride, copying Lady Godiva's famous ride, decided to arrive on horseback, riding side-saddle on her favourite horse.

Unlike Lady Godiva, this bride was fully clothed in a traditional wedding gown of white satin and lace.

But is the story of Lady Godiva, which this bride was copying, really true?

Well, once upon a time, back in 1043, there lived a couple by the name of Leofric, Earl of Mercia, and his good wife, Lady Godiva. Very powerful and very rich, the couple were noted for their generosity to religious establishments.

Not satisfied with this, however, Lady Godiva constantly nagged Leofric about the heavy taxes he imposed on Coventry, asking them to be reduced.

Becoming totally exasperated, he decided to shut her up once and for all by suggesting that he would reduce the taxes if she rode naked through the crowded marketplace.

Undeterred, the lady did just that, her long hair, however, covering everything but her legs.

True to his word, Leofric freed the town from all taxes, except one. No doubt being a little bit peeved, he continued to demand taxes on horses.

And while I've never heard of it, here is a movie poster of the film, 'Lady Godiva', starring Maureen O'Hara.