SAME TRADITION, NEW LOOK
WEDDING TEA CEREMONY MELBOURNE
In today’s world, there is an emphasis on treasuring one’s heritage and keeping in touch with one’s roots and culture. If you or your fiancé are from Asian lineage, then you probably know of the wedding tea ceremony. The tea ceremony is an integral part of oriental wedding customs and has existed for millennia, which is why we specialise in delivering beautiful and luxurious tea ceremonies as a service for weddings. We understand how significant and prominent this is for Asian culture and communities to be intertwined with tradition and values.
What’s the significance of a wedding tea ceremony?
The Asian tea ceremony is an integral part of traditional oriental weddings that have been in practice for over 2000 years. Although weddings are now very modernised, the cultural experience has been preserved to this day and is still highly treasured. The service is a momentous occasion for couples to show their gratitude and appreciation towards their parents for their love and care. In turn, parents get a chance to give gifts and words of blessing to couples as they start a new life. The bride and groom will also serve tea to other family members and relatives as they are officially welcomed into the extended family.
Why use Tea?
In a customary Asian wedding, the tea itself bears great cultural significance in Chinese, Vietnamese, Japanese, Laos, Timorese, Taiwanese, Malaysian and Singaporean cultures. The wedding tea ceremony is a standout as the most valued occasion. The bride and the groom serve tea to both of their families as a sign of unity. It's an image of virtue, steadiness, and fruitfulness. The virtue of tea implies that the adoration is pure and respectable; the steadiness of tea remains for loyal love; the ripeness of tea implies that the new couple will have numerous children. The tea ceremony is a beautiful symbol of love and peace and thus, this tradition has been preserved over centuries and is carried out to date.
When and where does the Chinese tea ceremony take place?
The Tea ceremony is usually hosted on an auspicious date before or on the day of the wedding.
Traditionally, there are usually two ceremonies where one is conducted at the bride’s home with her parents in the early morning, after which she is picked up by the groom and goes to his parent’s house to repeat the process. Nowadays, there is also the option of contemporary tea ceremonies, where couples have a combined ceremony for both sides of the family and can be held anywhere, like in a park, hotel, venue, or even in the foyer during the cocktail hour just before the reception.
What do you need to prepare for the ceremony?
• Traditional Gowns
• Altar and backdrops
• Tables and Chairs
• Candles and Incense
• Tea and Tea set
• Fruits, Food or Gift trays
• Floral arrangements
• Jewellery & Red Pocket
• Entry Floral Arch
• Firecrackers
• Ceremony program
• Dedicate a spokesperson to guide the ceremony
What Decoration and Setup do I need?
From a simple at-home ceremony to a lavishly decorated affair, there are heaps of options to create your tea ceremony space. We specialise in setting this all up for you, so remember to view our range of products and services.
The most important part of the tea ceremony decorations is the lettering that represents the Chinese symbol 囍" (pronounced shuāngxǐ, 双喜) which stand for joy and happiness or ‘song hỷ’ in Vietnamese. These are often referred to as the double happiness symbols. Dragon and phoenix images are also very popular and commonly used.
Next comes the altar ornaments which consist of golden candles and incense holders. Furthermore, when decorating the home setting, red and gold are colours of good luck. Hence, gift trays, table cloths and cushions have these beautiful colours and symbols.
The general rule for setting up furniture is that those family members receiving tea should sit in chairs facing the couple, the bride should be on the left and the groom on the right.
And of course, it doesn’t have to stop there, for that celebratory atmosphere and wow factor to entertain guests, some couples hire lion dancers, drums, gongs and even super exciting firecrackers! (Just be sure to have all the right permits first, of course!)
Stress-free, Easy and Convenient you say?
A few families shy away from the tea ceremony due to reasons related to expense, time, and effort. This is partly true as the entire process can be quite stressful on a day when there are so many rare items to source, and you have so much to do.
The reality is that crafting and conducting a wedding tea ceremony is not something that you need to manage all by yourself and you don’t have to place the pressure on your parents with it either.
We have crafted a multitude of options for you to choose from based on your preference. Whether you want a DIY option or the Deluxe option where we come and do it all for you, as long as it’s a tea ceremony in Melbourne we’ve got you covered!
View our range here.
