Dominican wedding

I am getting married in the Dominican Republic next year and I am planning my wedding dress now, I was thinking that it would be really nice to have a wedding gown to fit the setting in which we will be wed. I was wondering if traditional brides in the dominican wore the white wedding gowns worn by brides in the states or if they wore something different, If so could you describe it or send me a picture to my e-mail address rccj@attcanada.net . I would be very thankful to you if you could help me on this matter.

Yes one of my friends is getting married to a guy from the Dominican Republic. We were wondering how there customs are on decorating the church and the reception. Such as center pieces at the reception. If you could write back I would greatly appreciate it. Thank you, Susan

Dominican brides (those that can afford them) choose their wedding dresses from Bride's Magazine and similar US wedding magazines. If you are marrying a Dominican, you should purchase the Living in Santo Domingo book available through this web site. It has two chapters related to weddings and provides valuable insight into Dominican customs.

The white wedding dress is a western tradition, so women in these countries, including the DR, wear white, not just the US. Dominican brides wear just about any style of dress, it is a personal choice. Some copy styles from bridal magazines, others have a seamstress hand make a dress based on a pattern or picture. Pretty much the same wedding dress "guidelines" that appear on US bridal magazines apply in the DR (i.e. the more formal the wedding, the more formal the dress, and vice versa). Don't let this dictate your personal taste though. I, for one went against tradition by not wearing the typical dripping in lace, long train, ball gown dress; even though I had a very traditional and formal wedding. Instead, I wore a slim fitting silk dress (no train) with a 15 ft veil that I purchased in NYC. By the way, this was much easier to carry on the plane with me! Good luck.

Natasha

This is not so much custom. It depends on your personal taste and how much you want to spend. To give you an idea, many wedding receptions that I have been to at hotels have very elaborate floral arrangements. The setting for my reception was one of the colonial courtyards in the Colonial Zone of the capital, so the arrangements were on the simple side. The stone courtyard had two working fountains, and was surrounded with trees and flowers already, so why compete with that setting! In terms of the church (the ceremony was also held in the Colonial Zone), I had four floral arrangements, including two on the altar. Two of those arrangements were left at the church as gifts. The church people did not allow us to decorate the pews (not that I like pew decorations anyway). Aside from the flowers, we rented two mahogany chairs, more like small benches to sit on during the ceremony. This was a live saver. Hope this helps!

Natasha