Parties, parties, parties, I have parties on the brain. I just landed in Los Angeles, and am super pumped up for the Lover.ly Launch party tomorrow in sunny Manhattan Beach. So, while I was putting together tomorrow’s super fabulous Indian wedding feature, I couldn’t take my eyes off this lady-like bridal shower.  I hope that one of my friends gets engaged right away so I can throw a party just like this one.  Hats, gloves, and food filled the afternoon and I love the game that they played.  For anyone Mahrani hosting a shower {baby or bridal} put the Maharani of the hour in the hot seat by asking her tough-y questions about her Maharaja! After a few bottles of bubbly, it will be hard to contain the all the laughter!

We will be back tomorrow with the rest of the this awesome Atlanta Indian Wedding.  See you then Maharanis!

Any Gujurati bride, or any Indian bride having a Garba for that matter, is in luck because this one by Tara Sharma Photography is sending the cute meter off the charts! This adorable bride mastered the delicate balance of looking completely striking and timeless all at the same time.    I am in love with her yellow lengha, gold necklace and swept up bun.  Finished with a yellow flower, I can’t think of a better way to wear your hair for a Garba.

More Indian wedding inspiration coming right up!

I am a traditional girl at heart, so what makes Indian weddings so delightfully fun to me are the plethora of the tradition, customs, and parties that come along with it. The wedding celebration officially kicks off with the tikka ceremony, (also called the Sagai) and is held a week-ish before the wedding. Jade Studio Productions was on hand to capture Divya and Gaurva’s beautiful tikka, that took place at the Fairmont Hotel, in San Jose, California.

So here is what happens in the tikka ceremony. The Maharanis side visits the grooms side and bring beautifully wrapped gifts and the items for the tikka. The bride’s father applies 'tikka' to his son-in-law's forehead and gives him his blessings and some money. In return for the father’s blessing, the bride’s family receives baskets of seven dried fruits: almonds, cashew nuts, chuahara, coconut pieces, raisins, khurman (dried apricots) and phoolmakhana. For modern Indian brides, it is common to combine the tikka ceremony and the engagement. First, the bride to be is draped with an ornate chunni. She is then presented with jewelry, which her mother and sister-in-law help her wear. Next, a tiny dot of mehndi is applied to the bride’s palm for good luck, and the ceremony ends with the exchange of rings.

Everyone at the party offers their congratulations to the couple feeding them sweets! It’s official…there will be an Indian wedding!

More on the way!

I absolutely love themes for parties, not costume parties, but theme parties. And, according to Martha, they just happen to be totally in style these days.  There are so many fun Indian ones to choose from….Rajasthani, Mughal, lotus flowers…anything can be turned into a charming theme.  The one thing aside from movies (and weddings!) the one thing that Indian people love is food, so this Bombay Street Food theme was an awesome choice for this garba….

Images by Studio 9      

More from Shetal Vyas, owner Number 29 Events:

Guests were transported to a surprise location for the garba party via chartered busses through dirt roads! Once they arrived they walked a path that lead them to a covered pavilion area set with tiki huts to serve Bombay style street food and shaved ice cones throughout the night. They enjoyed Indian cultural festivities of Garba/Raas. The evening ended with some very special performances by the bride and grooms friends and families. The inspiration was the rainforest with it’s vibrant colors and sounds!  To add to the natural surroundings, it actually rained all night, so we felt like we were in a Bollywood movie.  We could not have prayed for a better natural setting!

More yummy-ness on the way!

Today’s featured wedding is going to start off a little differently than we normally do things around here. Just to mix it up we are going to start with the bride & groom’s Maiya ceremony.  We almost never feature them on the site, but I simply couldn’t wait to share charming, homemade décor idea that one of Jennifer’s bridesmaids came up with. Priya, the brains behind this creativity, made all the rice decorations for the event!  It’s a traditional, Indian DIY idea that is a modern twist on Rangoli.  

Adorable, isn’t it?!   This can be done very simply in any bright color combo using food dye and some imagination.  Whether you are using it for your Mehdni, Sangeet, or Haldi, this idea will be a hit.  Plus, the rice can be made a week in advance and layed out a day ahead of time, weather permitting of course!

So, for all our readers who didn't know….The Maiya ceremony is a traditional pre wedding Indian wedding ceremony where the bride and groom are blessed with a mixture of turmeric powder and yogurt to give them glowing skin for their wedding day.

Coming up tomorrow their irresistibly sweet ceremony photographs, by Cosmin Danila, and many more ideas for you Indian wedding!