Shirley and Tim – Chinese Wedding Tea Ceremony – Wedding Photographer

This beautifully vibrant wedding day started off with Shirley getting ready for the Tea Ceremony in a stunning traditional red cheongsam. Red and gold are common colours in Chinese weddings, red representing luck and gold represents wealth and happiness. Once Shirley was ready, she waited in the living room for Tim to come over. Tim arrived with his entourage but was barred at the door by Shirley’s bridesmaids… Let the door games commence! The bridesmaids had put forth a high price for Tim to pay in order to enter. Tim was able to reduce this amount by doing a number of activities to show his sincerity and love. This tradition demonstrates the bridesmaids love for the bride and their unwillingness to marry her off. Tim, with the help of his troop, had to sing some embarrassing Savage Garden songs, recite poetry, climb a tree and write lines on the pavement, among other tasks. Finally, the bridesmaids are satisfied that Tim deserves Shirley, and with a bit of haggling, time and the bridesmaids came to a final price, which the bridesmaids got to split amongst themselves. Tim and Shirley proceed to the tea ceremony with Shirley’s family, where the bride and groom served tea to the other relatives or the family. The relatives in turn will present the bride and groom with a gift, often in the form of either jewelry or money in a red packet. The tea ceremony formally introduces the bride and groom to their in-laws family and allows the bride and groom to show respect to their families. Once Shirley and Tim were done at Shirley’s parents house, they repeated the ceremony with Tim’s family.
When the ceremony was performed on both sides, Shirley started to get ready for the wedding ceremony. The ceremony took place at Cambrian College, which was beautifully decorated in red and golds, with the double happiness symbol the perfect backdrop. The photos took place at Cambrian College as well as the reception. The hall was decorated beautifully, with custom fans with the bride and grooms names on them and chopsticks as wedding favours. What an experience to be a part of this amazing day.

Photographer: Caroline Ross Photograph
Wedding Planner: Green Leaf Events https://greenleafevents.ca/
Decorators: https://www.unforgettableweddings.ca/
Location: Ceremony and Reception at Cambrian College https://www.studentcentre.cambrianstudentlife.com/
Wedding theme/motif: Traditional Chinese/Western Style Wedding; our colour scheme was Red and Gold decorations with the Chinese Double Happiness symbol prominent throughout.
Hair and Makeup : Charm Plus https://www.charmplus.ca/
Bridal gown: A Venus Bridal gown in ivory from the Angel and Tradition Collection, Model AT4558. It was a fitted, strapless sweetheart gown adorned with beaded lace appliqués. It also included an ivory satin belt finished with a beaded appliqué. It had a fitted A-line with pick-ups and a lace-up back with an extended Chapel train that was custom-made to be longer and include pick-ups to match the rest of the dress. The material consisted of lace above the waist and lush satin-Duchess satin below the waist. The dress was discovered at and ordered from Lindgren’s Bridal & Boutique. https://www.lindgrensbridalboutique.com/

Bride’s Accessories
Garter: from David’s Bridal in Scarborough, ON
Veil: from Lindgren’s Bridal & Boutique in Sudbury, ON
Shoes: from Le Chateau (silver with crystal beads)
Jewelry: Crystal teardrop earrings with a matching pendant from Bitter Sweet Jewelry at the Scarborough Town Centre
Hairpiece: from Lindgren’s Bridal & Boutique in Sudbury, ON
Chinese Dress (Cheongsam) & Matching Shoes: from Bo Bo’s in the Pacific Mall in Markham, ON
Bridal party attire: Matching jade Sorella Vita Dresses (Style #8108). It was a strapless, cocktail length bridesmaid dress in satin with a sweetheart neckline, and draped bodice with a black satin sash. The colour Jade was chosen to match the Red and Gold theme of the wedding. The dress was discovered and ordered from Lindgren’s Bridal & Boutique.
Groom’s Tux & Accessories: A black Calvin Klein two-button jacket and pants a white shirt, ivory vest and tie, and black moc-toe shoes. https://www.mooresclothing.com
Cake: Created by Lynne Van Beek, owner and chef at Sweeet! Extraordinary Cakes & Pastry. It was a three-tier cake surrounded by beautiful flowers, a golden ribbon, the double happiness symbol, and topped by two Chinese cartoon figurines wearing traditional Chinese wedding attire. The bride and groom had individual cupcakes handed out to our guests with Gold or Red Medallions of the Double Happiness Symbol on top. The cupcakes were either made of red velvet or filled with a delicious strawberry rhubarb filling.
DJ: Will Himsl
Flowers (Bouquet): from Fleurs Magiques Flowers in Chelmsford, Ontario. The bride’s and bridesmaids’ bouquets included: Cordyline leaves, red roses, cimbids, dahlia’s, and lady’s mantle. The Orchid was the main flower of the boutonnieres and corsages.https://www.fleursmagiques.com/
Centerpieces: They were made of flowers that included: ginger flower, snake grass, cordyline leaves, monstera leaves, yellow wax flowers, orchids, red roses, and lady’s mantle. They were made by Fleurs Magiques Flowers in Chelmsford, ON.
Favours: Chinese jasmine-scented wooden, hand fans stamped with “Tim & Shirley”, and a set of chopsticks in a silk-fabric case. Purchased at a store in the Pacific Mall in Markham, ON, and hand-stamped by the bride and groom