Weddings are about new beginnings. However, they’re also about the melding of two people, their lives, and their cultures. Many couples wish to make their culture a part of their celebration. When planning a cultural wedding, it is important to learn how to combine both individuals’ cultures together in a fluid and lovely way.
Here is a look at several tasteful ways to include your culture into your wedding plans in order to both honor the religion and tradition you were raised with and to share with your guests what your culture means to you as you join your life with another.
Small Touches Make a Big Statement
Small touches can make a big statement. Ultimately, it’s up to you and your fiancé and what you want to include in the wedding, but you can often incorporate smaller touches that may make more of an impact than you think.
Your religious culture can also be reflected in small touches, such as crosses or religious figurines incorporated into the centerpieces, or through certain types of flowers in the floral arrangements that have a religious or cultural significance for the couple. Many religious wedding traditions involve flowers, including the Mexican wedding “lasso” that is placed around the couple during the ceremony, or the garlands of flowers that are exchanged by the bride and groom in the Hindu culture.
The Use of Colors and Cloth
Colors and cloth are important parts of many cultures, with symbolic meanings tied to the colors used. For example, Indian brides generally do not wear white, as white is typically reserved for funerals and mourning. Instead, many brides choose to wear red for their wedding ceremony, as the color represents new beginnings, passion, purity, and feminine power. However, this does not mean the bride has to wear a red lehenga to honor their tradition, particularly not in current times, when many Indian brides use a gold one instead to symbolize an interfaith marriage or choose a different color to suit their personal taste.
Both the bride and groom can also incorporate colors that are important to their culture in the jewelry they accessorize their outfits with. In addition to the attire worn by the bride and groom, culturally-appropriate colors and cloth also can make an appearance at the reception in the color of the tablecloths, napkins, and other decorations.
Bringing Culture Through Music
Many cultures have a preferred style of music or specific songs or hymns that are played or sung during the ceremony or reception. Many DJs who provide services for wedding receptions can play cultural music that is requested by the wedding party.
Many cultures also have specific dances that have become a wedding tradition over generations. Incorporating those dances into your celebration can provide guests with a unique experience and even give them the opportunity to learn something new. At the same time, older guest attendees who know the dances will appreciate the honoring of culture during the ceremony.
Hiring a Planner With Multicultural Experience
If you’re overwhelmed by how to include culture into your wedding, using the services of an experienced event planning professional is an important first step to getting the wedding look and feel you’re going for.
Event planners can help you look for ways to include your culture into your wedding, including use of cultural colors, symbols, or phrasing in your wedding invitations, or even in the foods prepared for your guests. They also keep you on track with the timing of printing and sending invitations, and can arrange the transportation of supplies and equipment needed for your ceremony to the venue.
Let Windows on the Water Help You Plan Your Cultural Wedding in New Jersey
Windows on the Water is more than simply a beautiful wedding venue in New Jersey. We also have experienced event planners who can help couples to determine the type of wedding and reception they want, and organize the particulars of the big event. Whether you want your wedding ceremony to be held at the venue or are planning to use the venue only for the reception, there are several wedding packages that couples can choose from, and every package we offer is able to be customized, with additional add-on services.
To schedule a tour of Windows on the Water and to speak with an event planner about your big day, call us at (609) 208-9475 or send us a message online.