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When we brainstorm to create a Chinese wedding card, I was planning my own wedding celebration and a part of the day was the wedding tea ceremony. While jumping down the rabbit hole and getting knee deep into my heritage, I had to do a lot of research into this traditional ceremony and discover all the customs and logistics of the ceremony, which then a lightbulb switched on in my mind- “why don’t I showcase these onto a card for family and friends to send to congratulate the couple, as there’s nothing more significant than this ceremony for our culture?”. So here’s an anatomy of our Chinese wedding tea ceremony card, where we break down each illustration of a symbolic or meaningful item depicted in the card to explain what each of them are and the traditions we hold so dearly to our culture. 

 

Chinese Qun Kwa Wedding Card by Zhi Wen Design

Chinese Qi Pao Wedding Card by Zhi Wen Design

 

What is a Wedding Tea Ceremony?

A traditional Chinese wedding tea ceremony is one of the most important events prior to the wedding ceremony and reception. This intimate ceremony is usually held separately in each of the bride and groom’s family home with their families. During the event, the bride and groom serve tea to their respective families, including parents, grandparents, aunts, and uncles. The couple then receives well wishes and gifts as an act of welcoming the bride or groom (depending on which side of the family they are at), unifying both families. It is a meaningful part of the day as it’s an opportunity for the couple to acknowledge their parents who raised them and for close family members to express their happiness and best wishes to the couple.

 Chad and Mandy’s Wedding Tea Ceremony by Joshua Koh Photography

 

Double Happiness Characters

The double happiness symbol is commonly used as a Chinese wedding symbol to represent the joy and happiness for the newlyweds as they begin their marriage. It is pronounced as “shuāngxǐ, 双喜”.

Chad and Mandy’s Wedding Tea Ceremony by Joshua Koh Photography

 

Groom and Bride Traditional Wedding Attire

The bride would usually wear a red bridal attire called the Qun Kwa (裙褂). This bridal style originates from Southern China and is a two-piece jacket and skirt combination that is usually bright red and is intricately adored in embroideries of dragons “yang” and phoenixes “yin”, which symbolizes a yin-yang balance with everlasting love in marital happiness. There is another style that gained its popularity during the 1920s in Shanghai and became a popular bridal gown to wear as well. It is called the Qi Pao or cheongsam and it has a long slim fitting silhouette with a high slit on the side and a mandarin collar.

As for the groom, they would usually wear a Chang Pao Ma Guo (长袍马褂) complete with a red satin ball sash. The Chang Pao is a long robe that is a common form of daily wear during the Imperial China era. Combine with the Ma Gua, an outer jacket, the combination became a formal occasion attire. However in the modern day, grooms opt out of the Chang Pao (long robe) and end up only wearing a Ma Gua (outer jacket) over a formal black pants. As my husband is American, he fell in love with the modern Tang suit and went with it. The Chang Pao Ma Guo and Tang suit are both heavily embroidered with auspicious designs such as dragons, clouds, and the Chinese word Fu (福)) for good luck.

Chad and Mandy’s Wedding Tea Ceremony by Joshua Koh Photography

 

Wedding Biscuits

Also known as xi bing, these wedding biscuits/ pastries/ cakes are usually seen as betrothal gifts at the Chinese pre-wedding ceremony or engagement called the Guo Da Li but in our modern day and age, they have been included in the actual wedding day itself. These pastries are either filled with lotus seed paste that symbolizes fertility or red beans that symbolizes the couple’s love. Xi bings are often stamped with the the characters for “double happiness” in red. 

Wedding Xi Bing by 603 Tau Sar Piah

 

Wedding Tea Set

Bright or dark red, and stamped with the double happiness characters, the wedding tea set symbolizes good luck and happiness. The tea set often come with a set of 6 or 12 teacups with a matching red tray. The tea is infused with lotus seeds and two red dates to symbolize a fertility for the couple as “lotus” and “year”, “seed” and “child”, and “date” “early” are homophones (sound the same but have different meanings) in Chinese. In addition, the sweetness from the tea is a wish for sweet relations between the newlyweds and their families. 

Chinese Wedding Teaset by TheOrientalCreations

Chinese Tea Ceremony Traditions Explained by Wedding Chicks

 

Wedding Gifts (Angpao/ Lai See, Gold Jewelry and Gold Ingots)

The wedding gifts often presented during the Chinese wedding tea ceremony are gold jewelry, ingots and ang pao/ lai see filled with cash. 

Traditionally, gold jewelry is part of the betrothal gift given to the bride by the groom’s family but in our modern day, gold jewelry and gold ingots are gifted to both the bride and groom to symbolize both families’ well wishes for a long and happy marriage to the newlyweds. Some of the bride’s jewelry consists of the dragon and pheonix bangles. As the dragon is known as “the ruler of beasts” and the pheonix is known as “the king of birds”, they come together as the Chinese cultural symbol of “Yin and Yang”, harmony and balance. This represents well wishes for everlasting happiness and love in the marriage. Another significant piece of jewelry traditionally worn on this auspicious day is the gold pig necklace that represents prosperity, abundance and fertility. For grooms, gold ingots are a popular modern gift as they do not fancy wearing gold jewelry.

Angpao or lai see are a form of wedding gift given by the rest of the family members during the tea ceremony. These red packets have the double happiness design in gold and consists of cash. They represent well wishes from the family members to the newlyweds as the happy couple embark on their new life together. In our modern times, these cash gifts come in handy for the newlyweds as aid with the wedding funds, honeymoon expenses or even put to good use towards building their home together. 

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