Forget 12-piece bands, bridal clothes, and rings of gold. It's traditions like bagpipes, kilts, and Claddagh rings that keep Irish eyes smiling during the wedding festivities. Following, the traditions that have made their way over from the old country and into Irish American wedding celebrations:

The Claddagh Ring: Named after Claddagh, a fishing village in Galway (in western Ireland), the Claddagh ring has been handed down from mother to daughter and is used as betrothal and wedding rings. It is worn with the crowns facing inward, toward the wrist, on betrothal, and outward, toward the nail, to symbolize marriage. A famous Irish ballad has been written about the Claddagh ring: "The Old Claddagh Ring, It was my grandmother's, She wore it her lifetime and gave it to me." Today, it is still used as a wedding ring and it is considered improper for a person to buy it for him or herself; it must be given as a gift.

Strange Superstitions: In the 18th and 19th centuries, the Irish believed that if the sun shone on the bride, it would bring good luck to the couple. It was also lucky to hear a cuckoo on the wedding morning or to see three magpies. After the wedding ceremony, it was important that a man and not a woman be the first to wish joy to the new bride.

The Honeymoon: The word for honey is "meala" in Irish. The word for honeymoon is "mi na meala," the month of honey, and refers to how the bride and groom spend that period of time. Irish monks first produced the fermented honey brew called mead for medicinal purposes, then found it could make well people feel even better. Following the wedding, a sufficient amount of mead was given to the bride and groom, along with special goblets, so they could share the unique brew for one full moon after their wedding -- and thus the term honeymoon was coined. It was believed that this delicate yet potent drink was the best way to ensure a good beginning for a new marriage, and it was also believed to endow powers of virility and fertility.

Charming Tradition: Since Irish men were known for getting cold feet on their wedding day, once the bride and groom were in the church, the guests would lock the door to keep the groom inside to make sure he went through with the ceremony.

End of the Wedding Toast: The wedding party gathers around the bride and groom. All fill their glasses with mead and the newly wedded couple recites an Irish toast: "Friends and relatives, so fond and dear, 'tis our greatest pleasure to have you here. When many years this day has passed, fondest memories will always last. So we drink a cup of Irish mead and ask God's blessing in your hour of need." The guests respond: "On this special day, our wish to you, the goodness of the old, the best of the new. God bless you both who drink this mead, may it always fill your every need."

Bagpipes and Kilts: Lots of big Irish families have family members that are in pipe bands. So it's not unusual for them to hook up at a wedding and pipe the couple into the mass or at dinner. Popular tunes are the Highland Fling and the Stack of Barley, as well as jigs, reels, and hornpipes. Not only do they sound good, they look good too. Most pipers wear Celtic kilts -- plaid skirts that their ancestors wore in medieval times. The Irish weren't allowed to wear them during British rule, so it seems they slip them on for practically every special occasion, maybe in an effort to make up for lost time.

Food and Drink: The traditional Irish menu -- Irish soda bread, corned beef, and cabbage -- is perhaps not something you'd typically crave, but when cooked right and served up at a big wedding fete (not to mention it all gets washed down with plenty of whiskey and Guinness Stout), it's positively delicious.

You can incorporate these traditions into your wedding with just a few simple modifications. Instead of hiring a complete band of pipers, get one to play at certain points during the wedding -- maybe outside the ceremony as people enter and leave. Instead of mead, drink your favorite champagne but recite the Irish toast. Use Claddagh rings for wedding bands -- and be sure to take a look at some of the modern takes on the Claddagh (coming up this week in Fabulous Finds!).

Also, don't forget that one way to celebrate your love of all things Irish is to honeymoon in Ireland -- it's gorgeous, and oh-so-romantic. If you are interested in more specifics about any of these traditions or travel to Ireland, contact the Irish Tourist Board at 212/418-0800.

-- Karen Bressler

Irish Toasts

May the road rise to meet you,
May the wind be ever at your back,
May the sun shine warm upon your face,
The rain fall soft upon your fields,
And until we meet again,
May God hold you in the hollow of his hand.

Every Irish grandmother has that little prayer framed at her back door (at my granny's house, it's right next to the idealized picture of John F. Kennedy). A less solemn variation, invariably used as a toast, adds the final line: "And may you be in Heaven a half hour before the devil knows you're dead."

Besides that well-known blessing, there is a wealth of possible toasts and readings for weddings in Irish folklore, poetry, and literature. Check the works of William Butler Yeats for some tender love poetry ("A Poet to His Beloved," "Her Praise," and "The Indian to His Love" are lovely), and James Joyce's story "The Dead" from "The Dubliners," for a beautiful insight into the healing powers of marital love. "A Celtic Miscellany," a book published by Penguin that you'll find at the library, is a vast collection of ancient Celtic writings, mythology, humor, and poetry. Be forewarned though -- most Catholic churches discourage secular (non-Biblical) readings in a wedding mass, so you may be reciting these at the rehearsal dinner or reception. (In time-honored Irish tradition, most recitations work better with a glass in hand, anyway.)

Some traditional blessings/toasts, which have come down through years mixed, muddled, and reborn (so feel free to mix, muddle, and rewrite to fit your occasion), are:

• May your hearts be as warm as your hearthstone.
• May God sleep on your pillow.
• May God be with you and bless you.
• May you see your children's children.
• May you be poor in misfortune, rich in blessings.
• May you know nothing but happiness from this day forward.
• A generation of children on the children of your children.
• If you're lucky enough to be Irish, You're lucky enough.

Then, of course, there are those oh-so healthy, popular witticisms linking death and marriage:

• If it's praise you want, die; If it's criticism you want, get married!
• What's the difference between an Irish wake and an Irish wedding? One less drunk.

A little more romantic are some old Celtic epigrams and poetry:

• There's my darling merry star, flower of the parish of Llangeinwen; beneath her foot the grass no more bends than does a rock beneath a bird's foot.
• Slender and exquisite like the birch tree, of shape as sweet as the fine clover, of color as fair as a summer morning, she is the type of the glory of all lands.
• Lovely is the sun's smile as it rises in its full brilliance, lovely are the moon's smiles at night, more lovely is my darling's cheek.
• The moon is pretty on the waves, the stars are pretty on a bright night, but neither stars nor moon are half so pretty as my darling.
• Though I had a share in the lands of India, the silks of Persia, the gold of Peru, I prefer the lad I love, and shall stand true to him . . . . To the Slender Lad I will trust myself, mother, and to tell you true; I shall leave wealth to misers, and trust myself to him who is the flower of the shire, with his white face and his yellow hair, and in his cheeks are two roses -- happy is the girl who sleeps the night in his arms.

There's some good news for the sentimental Irish bride, groom, or wedding guest: If you feel a little tear in your eye, a little lump in your throat, and a little too shy or emotional to give an eloquent speech or recitation, you can always fall back on the always-appropriate "Slainte!" ("To your health" in Gaelic.) If you're lucky enough to be Irish, chances are you don't need a poet to speak for you -- you've got that Blarney-blessed tongue in you for a reason. Use it in good health.

-- Ann Shields