Wedding Dresses, Bridesmaid Dresses, Flower Girl, Gowns, Tuxedos, MN

Caribbean weddings surely do borrow from popular U.S. wedding customs.  However, Caribbean heritage draws from African and European tradition, which means they have some customs of their own.   Caribbean weddings have many unique elements.

One popular tradition is for the bride and groom to don their very finest clothes, and walk from the home to the church.  The point of this tradition is to announce and proclaim the wedding celebration.   Community members line the streets, and they admire the couple as they stroll by.  Since guests are usually invited by way of word-of-mouth, it isn’t surprising that Caribbean weddings are open to whomever shows up, invited or not!

Ceremonies combine elements from Catholic, Mayan, and African traditions.  It is traditional that the bride’s father or parents take the bride down the aisle.   Surprisingly, Island weddings don’t have a best man.   The ceremony is capped off with a reception, often punctuated by beautiful steel-drum island music.

The gifts at a Caribbean wedding often include hand-make quilts and furniture.  Caribbean wedding presents are often hand-made, the gifts reflecting the gorgeous handiwork of talented island artisans.

When attending a reception dinner in the Caribbean islands, be prepared to eat delicious curried goat or spicy chicken jerky.  Often those dishes will be punctuated with fried plantains and conch fritters.  You’ll feel the island ambiance when eating these scrumptious island treats.

A Caribbean island wedding cake is very unique; you’ll not find another like it in the world.   It’s called the “Black Cake” which has a beautiful tradition associated with it.   Mothers give their recipes to their daughters, who then are responsible for improving on the recipe in some way.  The idea is that each successive generation makes the recipe more delicious.

The cake has the same basic ingredients, no matter what: a pound of flour, brown sugar, butter, glazed cherries, currants, prunes, raisins, and 12 fresh eggs. ~ The cake has a delicious hard rum sauce, and the fruits are often left soaking in rum anywhere from 2 weeks to an entire year.

Once the wedding is over, the couple heads off on the Caribbean honeymoon.  The groom will often provide a secluded place to stay, or they may travel to a nearby island to get away.   After a week of togetherness, they return home to begin their married life together.