A Joyous Racket!

One of my favorite home design blogs is Design Sponge, and a couple of years ago, they featured a wedding DIY that just pulled at my minimalist heartstrings: aluminum cans spray-painted a clean, glossy white and tied together with a pretty gold satin ribbon. I loved it! Such a classy take on a tradition Americans are so used to seeing.

But what does this American tradition mean? It's funny how a very silly thing can become so commonplace that we don't even wonder about the history of it. After a long search, I discovered that the cans (often accompanied by old shoes) are meant to "ward off evil spirits" as the bride and groom leave the wedding ceremony in their "honeymoon" car. The old shoes represent leather, which was initially thought to be the main item to keep evil spirits at bay. Tin cans were added later on to make noise and call attention to the newly married couple. It is the job of the groomsmen to decorate the car halfway through the wedding ceremony, but of course, the rest of the bridal party are welcome to help. Decorating the car by hanging cans from the bumper has since grown to encapsulate decorating the entire car with festive slogans, streamers, and other fun objects.Image viaInformation via