WEDDING

Ring Bearer Pillow – A Complete Guide on How to Choose One

Ring bearer pillow guide

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The ring bearer pillow is a small but significant component of your wedding ceremony. When choosing the right pillow for your ring bearer, it’s important to understand all its aspects, from the designs and fabrics to its suitability and alternatives.

In this article, we’ve got all the information you need to know about ring bearer pillow before you go ahead and buy one. Let’s take a look.

Why is the Ring Bearer Pillow Important?

Ring bearer pillow

Weddings are happy events that leave behind cheerful moments to cherish for a lifetime. The pillow highlights the crucial role the rings hold in a wedding ceremony. It emphasizes the two main ingredients leading to the wedding: commitment and true love.

Ring bearer pillows are a tradition that began in medieval times with a slight variation according to the region. In Victorian weddings, ring bearers (also called pageboys), carried the pillow alongside a prayer book and bride’s train. Egyptian and Roman weddings included ornamental pillows that held precious jewels while Northern Europeans substituted swords for pillows, with the ring at their tips.

This is the tradition that most contemporary weddings seek to maintain as it makes the wedding interesting and shows the value placed on the rings. As a focal point, the pillow should be unique, aesthetic, and creative just like the wedding banquet, the bride’s gown, bridal party and wedding cake.

Factors to Consider When Selecting a Bearer Pillow

When shopping for the perfect ring bearer pillow for your wedding, it’s important to take the following factors into consideration:

  • Pillow Fabric – Go for smooth and strong fabric that won’t tear or have loose threads since these could cling to the rings.
  • Pillow Color – Select a flattering color that will complement that of the rings and make them stand out.
  • Pillow Appearance – Make sure you go for a pillow that will securely hold the rings in place. If the material is slippery, you modify it by adding ribbons to attach the rings.

Ring Bearer Pillow Alternatives to Consider

Most traditional ring bearer pillows are plain and made of satin or silk. However, you can break from this long-held tradition by embracing an alternative to make your wedding captivating. Here are some unique ideas for alternatives to ring bearer pillows:

Personalized Ring Pillows – Your names or initials can be artistically embedded on them.

Monogrammed ring bearer pillow

Monogrammed ring bearer pillow by Tulito. See it here.

Ring Chest– Purposely designed to avoid tying or sewing the rings to a pillow.

Treasure chest ring bearer box

Treasure chest ring bearer box by Turtle Crossing Arts. See it here.

Ring Bearer Briefcase – It’s personalized and looks like a special agent’s briefcase.

Ring bearer security box

Ring bearer security briefcase by AZ Reusables. See it here.

Themed Object – Replace the pillow with an item that matches your wedding theme such as shells if it is a beach wedding or rings dangling in a horseshoe if it’s a western one.

Seashell ring holder

Seashell ring holder by Buy Magnificient. See it here.

 Ring Box – There’s a variety to choose from and they are attractively decorated and personalized.

Personalized ring bearer box

Personalized ring bearer pillow box by We Wood Love Too. See it here.

Ring Dish – These can be customized by inscribing a message on them. They’ll creatively serve rings and can be used as a jewelry holder later.

Wooden wedding ring dish

Wooden wedding ring dish by Best Wedding Décor. See it here.

Ring Holder – These come in unique shapes and sizes, made from various materials. This one is ceramic.

Ring holder

Ceramic ring holder by Sweet Clementines Co. See it here.

Pocket Watch Ring Holder – This pocket watch style ring holder is a classic vintage piece designed to carry both rings. It can be easily and safely placed in an inside pocket and is easy to carry around.   

Pocket watch ring holder

Custom pocket watch style ring holder by Love and Luxe Handmade. See it here.

Some other alternatives to ring bearer pillow include:

Your Pet – Your pet can carry the rings for you, attached to its collar. You could also place a safe flower necklace on the pet with the rings well secured to it.

Pet ring bearer

A Wild Animal – If you want to go wild, you can choose an actual ‘bear’ to be the ring ‘bearer’, like this couple did. But it’s best to do this with care, or it could turn out ugly like this couple who had an owl as their ring bearer. The owl ended up attacking the best man.

Handmade Signs – You can decide to have the ring bearer wear the handmade sign. Some writings on these signs are ‘It’s really happening’, ‘Your bride has arrived’, ‘Here she comes’, ‘You think I’m cute’, and ‘Just wait till you see her’.

What Size Should a Ring Bearer Pillow Be?

Original pillows were square-shaped and measured 8 inches by 8 inches. You can go for the same size, a 9-inch square or a slightly smaller one depending on the age of your ring bearer.

How to Use a Ring Bearer Pillow

The main function of the ring bearer’s pillow is to carry the rings, but sometimes the ring bearer is too young to be responsible for something as valuable as your wedding rings. In this case, the pillow becomes a symbolic item, which carries false rings while a trusted adult carries the real ones.

If you want to carry the real rings on the pillow, here’s how to go about it:

  • Secure the rings with the ribbon tendrils so that they don’t fall off.
  • The bearer should carefully balance the pillow on his palms in front of his chest and not hold it by the edges. This is something important to rehearse before the wedding day.
  • For a ring bearer who is younger and gets distracted easily, sew an elastic strap on the lower part of the pillow. He can slip his wrist in the strap to prevent the pillow from dropping when he loses grip.
  • The ring bearer carries the pillow behind the bridal party up to the altar where he hands it over to the officiant or keeps it in a specific place until the rings are called for.

Wrapping Up

Since the highlight of any wedding is the exchange of rings, choosing the right ring bearer pillow is extremely important. There are numerous alternatives for pillows so you don’t have to worry about going ahead with the traditional options. Take a little time to do your research and you’re sure to find one you love and that suits your wedding perfectly.