I got wedding planner Mariella Kamburova to write about her top wedding planning tips if you and your future spouse are from different cultures to help you on your way.
I am an experienced wedding planner based in London, UK, and have been running my highly successful and well known business in Bulgaria since 2004.
Being the first graduate wedding planner in my country, I have been fortunate enough to plan weddings and family events for many celebrities, politicians and respected business people from all over the world. I am happy to say that my experience is an excellent source of useful tips for brides to be.
Today I’d love to share with you 7 ways how you can mix and match two different nationalities and cultures which mean differing traditions and rituals from two countries.
My passion is to find the most interesting and comparable traditions or symbolic references from two different countries and to create an extraordinary event, has always been one of the most inspiring tasks in my line of work.
If you and your hubby to be are from two different cultures, here are my tips how to create your magical and unforgettable wedding day:
1. Start with making a list of all traditions and rituals which both countries have.
In two columns, write everything you know as traditions from each country.
In column “A” you write all traditions from your country and in column “B” write all traditions of your fiancé’s country.
Putting everything together on a piece of paper will give you a complete overview and will help you to pick those traditions which you both like and will suit you most.
2. Choose as many traditions and rituals as you’d like to have, however, try to mix and match them nicely to provide a good balance.
Apart from the first dance, cutting the wedding cake and bouquet toss, there are so many other funny or even weird traditions and rituals that can be found. From waving with white napkins to welcoming the newlywed in Belgium to beating the feet of the groom in Korea, kidnapping the bride in Romania, Polterabend – smashing dishes – in Germany, orthrowing peas instead of rice over newlyweds in the Czech Republic … Every country has its own unique traditions.
However, to be interesting and enjoyable for you and your guests, avoid having two or more traditions at the same time. Spread them evenly during the day and the evening in your wedding day programme. In addition, it will be very helpful if your DJ, for instance, makes a short introductory
explanation at the start of each tradition, so that your guests will have an understanding of the tradition occurring.
3. Some countries have traditional symbols, therefore you can decide to implement these as a decorative element into your wedding.
Think about those symbols and elements in a creative way – how and where you can have them. Stationery, guest tables, the theme of the centrepieces and flowers or wedding cake… Could be a wonderful idea to implement them as special elements of your ceremony, for instance, if one of the countries is popular with wine production you may use cask wine for the altar table and have the wedding toast with glass of wine. Then, if in the other country breaking the glass is a good symbol, you can break the glasses immediately after the toast to honour the tradition.
4. Colours:
Colours are an integral part of the traditions and no doubt the colours will be a very important part of the wedding. If there are not many traditions and elements which you are willing to mix, why don’t you think about the colours of your national flags. Small ribbons for guests' favours with the colours of your flags, candles with the same colours or even the bridesmaids’ dresses are all beautiful elements with which you can personalise your wedding day.
5. Food and drinks:
You can expand the experience of the taste of both countries by using significant recipes of traditional cuisines. Two buffets with a piece of traditional food-based delights and delicious drinks will be a wonderful touch. Small bottles of traditional drinks could be great favours for your guests like liquors, whisky or port wine.
6. Entertainment:
One of the strongest and most remarkable ways to mix two cultures is in the entertainment. Dancers and/or singers during the evening, hostesses dressed in traditional clothing or attractive musical instruments for your ceremony. The waiting staff also can be included by having uniforms with traditional elements.
7. Wedding cake and guest book:
The wedding cake is one of my favourite elements of the wedding. I love to discuss the design of the cake with my clients and together to create something unique and unforgettable. The wedding cake, as a symbol of the sweet part of the marriage, is intended to be a very special element of your wedding, therefore you should pay special attention to this detail. If you’d like to have place where you display your wedding cake, you may choose to include a guest book which matches the design of the wedding cake. For instance, my clients had chosen a wedding cake with a world map on it with the idea to mark both countries with hearts and to connect them with ribbon. I suggested next to the wedding cake to place a paper world map where all their guests were able to write their well wishes for them.
Have fun with planning your wedding and remember - the best time of your life is coming up!
Thank you, Mariella
What I Wish I Had Done Differently
Stayed local. Less stress and complications. Even having a supplier in another part of London can be stressful.
Been firmer with people who interfered or bullied. Wedding planning may be stressful and hard but it should still be a fun time and a once-in-a-lifetime experience. Don’t let anyone ruin that for you.
Thought some of my decisions through before just saying yes or agreeing to something. Been firmer with suppliers I thought were rude or not up to par.
Been adamant about the stag do being at least two weeks before the wedding. Would have saved a lot of heartache.
Ignored people who were bitchy, rude or negative to me. Unfortunately, there will probably be some. Don’t let them get to you. Hold on to positive people and things. If people have a problem then it is their problem, not yours.
Had some people attend the wedding who ended up not being there on the day.
Being too polite to some suppliers initially. Had to get tougher as some treat you like a friend, which is fine, as long as they also remember that you are a customer.
Started the DIY projects earlier. Doing the menus, seating plan and favours on the same day we had to buy the orange juice and drop everything off at the venue was not fun. Especially when we had to not only design and print the menus, but also cut them out of the card. It took ages as we had to do over 50 menus and we printed two on each piece of paper. Pretty dire.
Gone shopping with my bridesmaids for their dresses and made a day of it. Some afternoon tea or champagne afterwards would have been great too.