People come from all over the world to live in the Washington, DC area.  Some are immigrants.  Some work for embassies or for international non-profits or corporations. Some come here to study.  When it comes to cultures we live in a rich and diverse area and people do mix it up.  This is especially true when it comes to weddings. Adding meaningful cultural elements to a wedding not only personalizes this special day but also honors the past.

Handfasting, a Celtic custom

I have worked with many couples who come from different backgrounds and want to honor each of their traditions.  Debbie is from a Chinese family while Art’s family is from Thailand.  At the same time, both are very American.  They celebrated all this with three ceremonies: 1) The “white dress” ceremony complete with wedding party including ring bearers; 2) the Chinese Tea Ceremony where relatives were formally introduced and both changed clothes with the bride wearing  red; and finally 3) the Thai Water Blessing where both wore white and gold traditional garb and all 300 guests came up to anoint their hands with water.

Arras, a Latin American custom

It doesn’t have to take quite that much though to add a flavor of one’s heritage to a wedding.  Continue reading →