A wedding is often followed or accompanied by a wedding reception, at which an elaborate wedding cake is served. Western traditions include toasting the bride and groom, the newlyweds having the first dance, and cutting the cake. The bride throws her bouquet to the assembled group of all unmarried women in attendance, and the woman who catches it is supposedly going to be the next to wed. A fairly recent egalitarian equivalent has the groom throwing the bride's garter to the assembled unmarried men; the man who catches it is supposedly the  wedding is a civil or religious ceremony at which the beginning of a marriage is effected.
In most societies, a number of wedding traditions or customs have emerged around the wedding ceremony, many of which have lost their original symbolic meaning in the modern world; for example, the Western custom of the bride wearing a white dress once symbolized virginity and would not have been allowed in the second or third wedding of a widow. Some elements of the Western wedding ceremony symbolize the bride's departure from her father's control and entry into a new family with her husband. In modern Western weddings, this symbolism is largely vestigial, since husband and wife are of equal power and status.
The wedding is one of life's primeval and surprisingly unchanged rites of passage. Nearly all of the customs we observe today are merely echoes of the past. Everything from the veil, rice, flowers, and old shoes, to the bridesmaids and processionals, at one time, bore a very specific and vitally significant meaning. Today, although the original substance is often lost, we incorporate old world customs into our weddings because they are traditional and ritualistic wedding is a civil or religious ceremony at which the beginning of a marriage is celebrated
 
Ten New Wedding Ideas:
1: Artistic Impressions
Instead of using a traditional guestbook, ask guests to sign a platter with a ceramic pencil. Glaze and fire the piece and use it as a serving dish for years to come.

2: Baggage Check
Give destination-wedding guests ID tags for their luggage. Write your wedding information on one side so airlines will know where to deliver lost bags.

3: One-Stop Event
Hold your ceremony and your reception in one place. You'll save money on transporting your wedding party, and you won't have to worry about guests getting lost between venues.

4: Starring Role
Give all of your loved ones a special part in your big day—chuppah attendant, guestbook attendant, honorary attendant, personal attendant, toast-giver, and candle-lighter.

5: Family Ties
Incorporate family talent into your big day. If your aunt is a poet, ask her to read one of her works during your ceremony. Or ask your pint-sized family members to sing a sweet song.

6: Gofer It
Ask a few friends to take care of post-wedding details such as taking your dress to the cleaners, returning your husband's tux to the rental shop, and preserving your bouquet.

7: New Vows
Ask your parents to recite new vows or invite all of your married guests to reaffirm their love in unison. People will walk away from your wedding with a big reminder of the power of love.

8: Local Treats
Welcome out-of-town guests by delivering a local treat (like maple syrup for a Vermont wedding) to their hotel rooms.

9: Head-Table Treatment
Give all of your guests the head-table treatment by seating them at long banquet-style tables.

10: Child's Play
Spin Master's Mighty Beanz (think peanuts with personalities) come in three-, five-, or six-packs. Kids love to trade them, so they'll stay entertained at least through the entrée!

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