Traditional Wedding: Nhlanhla & Phindile
Steeped in tradition, history, Nhlanhla and Phindile’s fairytale concluded with a traditional wedding at Nhlanhla’s home. The pictures below demonstrate the order of proceedings of the day.
Gathered in wait for the ceremony, Nhlanhla and Phindile’s guests looked beautiful in their traditional wedding attire. With colourful beads and different prints, attire signifies so much.
The first part of the ceremony began with the carrying of the chest. This is a cultural representation of Phindile moving into Nhlanhla’s home, which then becomes known as her and Nhlanhla’s marital home.
Beautiful bride, Phindile, then arrived. This took place while guests chanted and sang. Thus began the ceremony, which started off with speeches, followed by more praise and some traditional dancing. After this, the families exchanged gifts – another significant cultural practice.
A sweet element of the day was that the bride washed and cleaned her new husband, and then tucks him into bed (a makeshift bed outside, of course). After this, all of the bridesmaids and her family hit him with sticks and he tries to escape! This has everyone in smiles and laughter.
After this, Phindile handed a pot (called “ukhamba”) of traditional beer to Nhlanhla, so that he could drink from his new wife’s hand. I like the sound of this culture!
Phindile then changed her traditional attire into more modern clothing and I took some lovely photos of them.
To see how this couple’s journey started, click here to see their engagement shoot and here for their wedding day at The duBoirs wedding venue. For some fun, check out their sunrise sunshine “trash the dress” shoot here!
