The Red Wedding Dress Tradition “Wearing red wedding dresses has been a Chinese wedding tradition since the Ming Dynasty over 650 years ago,” explains Qiao. “In Chinese culture, the bride wears a red wedding dress such as a Qun Kwa or a cheongsam on her wedding day to celebrate the joy and happiness of the marriage.”
Both white and black represent mourning in Chinese culture. “You should also avoid red, as that is reserved for the bride,” explains Katherine Hoggard of Events by Katherine. “Good colors are pink, peach, purple, orange and yellow.” You'll also want to dress modestly with your shoulders, chest and thighs covered.
It is Chinese tradition for the bride to wear a red dress, called a qipao and to cover her face with a red veil on the wedding day. In Chinese culture, red symbolizes happiness, prosperity and good luck. Today, modern weddings call for the bride to wear a white bridal gown, and third ball gown throughout the evening.
China. At Chinese weddings, the colors red, gold (or yellow), and green are considered the luckiest. Red is the most favored color as it is thought to ward off evil, bring happiness, and bring good luck.
Traditionally, on the wedding day, the bride wore a red dress and covered her face with a red veil. Red symbolizes good luck, happiness, and prosperity. Because most marriages were arranged, the first time the bride and groom usually met would be on their wedding day, when he came to pick her up.
The most common question asked is what do you wear to a Chinese wedding. It's safe to say don't wear red. Most brides will have several outfit changes, with red being one of the dresses, if not the main one. Guests should avoid wearing red because this could be seen as upstaging the bride or competing for attention.
However, under the influence of Western culture and globalization, most Chinese brides nowadays wear white wedding dresses and a white veil, an imitation of Western Christian weddings, instead of the red wedding dresses and honggaitou. A Chinese bride wearing honggaitou to cover her face and a red wedding cheongsam.
As a symbol of joy, celebration, vitality, success and good fortune, red is the luckiest color in Chinese culture. It's famously used in important events such as weddings and festivals like Chinese New Year. You'll see everything from red lanterns lining the streets to red outfits and red letters pasted on doors.
Double Happiness (simplified Chinese: 双喜; traditional Chinese: 雙喜; pinyin: shuāngxǐ) sometimes translated as Double Happy, is a Chinese traditional ornament design, commonly used as a decoration symbol of marriage.
The double happiness symbol, "囍" (pronounced shuāngxǐ, 双喜) in Chinese is comprised of 喜喜 – two copies of the Chinese character 喜 (pronounced xǐ), which means joy and happiness. It's commonly used as a Chinese wedding symbol to represent double the joy and happiness for the newlyweds as they begin their marriage.
In traditional Chinese weddings, the groom's side is supposed to pay for the wedding. But in the States, the bride's family is expected to pay.
In American culture, usually, the bride's family covers the majority of the expenses. However, in Chinese wedding culture, it is the complete opposite–the groom's family is expected to pay for most of the wedding expenses.
In Asian cultures, engagement and wedding rings are not as common or significant in comparison to Western traditions. Men often do not wear wedding rings at all, and women have started to wear wedding rings only quite recently compared to Christian-influenced countries.
Multiple dresses
But in China, brides wear up to five dresses. While two or possibly three dresses may have been standard in previous decades, this number has increased in recent years.
Chinese tradition
Traditionally, Chinese brides change their wedding dress at least three times during their wedding. The first dress is worn for a traditional tea ceremony with the groom's family. It's usually simple and respectful for the in-laws, nothing too elaborate.
Pink: The color pink represents innocence, a child-like personality, freshness, purity, love, good health, and good life. It can also be worn to show a more flirtatious personality.
Lilies are a popular choice among many people. They represent strength and are sometimes gifted as a blessing for the couple's first child to be a son. Orchids are also favored at weddings. They are the symbol of happiness, love, wealth, and health.
Number 9 is also a very lucky number, especially for weddings. The number “9” 's pronunciation is the same as the Chinese word “久“ which means “long-lasting”. That's why some people prefer to have their weddings on the 9th, 19th or 29th to hope for an enduring marriage.
A few of those symbols include: The wedding ring or band. Double hearts. Butterflies.
Purple – the Color of Love
While someone from the West would say that purple is the color of royalty, luxury, ambition, and nobility, things are pretty different in China. Here, purple symbolizes love and it is used just how red is used in the West. Purple also represents strength and spiritual awareness.
The color “red” can easily catch our attention, so it is used as a signal of danger or emergency. “Red” can be associated with the exuberant scene of bustle and excitement. As we know, “red” is a symbol of vitality and excitement unique to the Chinese.
Pink In Chinese. Pink is considered to be a shade of red. Thus holds all the same meanings of good fortune and joy.
Traditionally, the standard amount of money to put in a red envelope is at least equal to the cost of your meal at the Chinese wedding banquet.
As we said earlier, we advise steering clear from wearing white unless the couple says otherwise. If it's a black-and-white dress with a hint of white or ivory, then that should be okay. If you're unsure, you can also check in with friends and family—and even the couple—if the color is appropriate.
The red veil seen in traditional Chinese weddings is similar to the white veil worn in Christian weddings. Traditionally, it was meant to symbolise modesty and to cover the bride's face until later in the bridal chamber where the groom will take it off.