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@Thank you Akkie! One can see, that weddings are very important Events, brides are dressed and made-up a lot more than e.g. here in my Country. Also the wedding guests, especially the ladies, Dress up very very much, conpared to our customs. Weddings are about the most important Events in the lives of women.........Children too, but as a social Event, the wedding surpasses all.
Very beautiful costume and jewelry...and the bride is wonderful
My goodness Eva, what a romantic picture. A worthwhile dowry. Do this headornaments stay with the bride or is it a family treasure? Fascinating.. Beautiful bride as well. The handpainting goes as much down as Mali? In Ethiopia they do not hand paint, but the highland ladies they rub their handpalms andfootsoles with henna root which is at first red and turn black after a couple of weeks. Thank you for sharing this lovely family happening.
@Ingrid, Hand and footpainting (Henna) is common in Mali, not only for marriages, for any festive occasions, in the North and in the south! I had it myself made several times there. They say, it is also protective against all kinds of evil. The headornaments - sometimes they stay with the bride, (I wrote it on the other Picture), and they wear it later on at any other wedding where they are guests, or it is borrowed from the Family. It is NOT real Gold. Any female guest to a wedding can wear this head Dress, this is not unusual. At first I thought only the bride wears this, but no, anyone, her aunts, her Cousins, if they have it, they wear it at weddings as guests too. I even have worn one, and it was not my wedding. (My wedding was in Switzerland, but my Family in Mali made a religious wedding for us with two other persons (in our place, as sort of delegates or deputies), this is custom, if the couple cannot be there. My husband and his Family wanted this, but we got also married here in the city hall and in an Islamic Centre (religiously). But we did not have this splendour with headdresses etc then, we had no Money..!
Eva, weddings in Ethiopia are also very important, and people go into debt for it and in town already since my time it was also to show off to the other possible weddings. But it also shows that family band is very strong and also to belong to the family, very important. A nice custom. So nice for you as well that your husbands family did do the full ceremony and that your color doesn.t affect the family band. Rich! So also for me eventhough I am divorced I am still considered family. So also from my side. I remain their aunt and receive the respect. Also rich!
that is nice, (not to go into debts for the wedding, but staying part of the Family). I think one can do a lot of stupid things, the Family will always try to help! This is something I sometimes miss here....I am also aunt and Cousin to many People there, and now even a Grandmother!