Yoruba Traditional Wedding Attire For Brides

 

Yoruba traditional wedding attire for brides is one of the most glamorous and extremely stylish in the Nigerian culture arguably due to its unevasive, royal and picturesque nature.

Every culture all over the world has its official way of dressing for traditional weddings and it all boils down to the kinds of fabrics they use and the way they elegantly wear it.

However, the Yoruba official cultural/traditional attire for brides is Aso-Oke  (“prestige cloth”) but in today’s society, it’s a different ball game due to trends and progression.

In Nigeria’s cultural heritage, some brides literally use lace materials, damask, silk, velvet, ankara or guinea. Nevertheless, Aso-oke will forever remain the king of all Yoruba fabrics.

Aso-Oke is used to create attires for everybody, most especially brides and grooms in the Southwest of Nigeria without excluding their families and friends. No matter what class they (the Groom and the Bride) belong in, their attire will attract every living creature.

Especially, when the brides attire is being designed with an intensive colour picked by the bride herself or her family member with the combination of the groom’s family colour allocated for the event, the blooming helps to create the effect of a pleasant  and appealing atmosphere for all attendees.

Apparently, there are certain ways of getting dressed as a bride, but in Yourba land brides are expected to wear special cloths from head to toe, which is a combination of a traditional (Aso-Oke) rapper, with either a lace blouse or Aso-oke blouse with a headgear and dazzling accessories to season the look aside the makeup thing.

For the Benefit of those who want to know the systematic steps to craft out wedding attires, as I earlier stated, a Yoruba bride getting married is expected to wear the complete traditional attire of the Yoruba people from top to down.

She wears an “Iro” (wrapper worn around the waist),”Gele” (headgear), and an “Ipele”(shawl). This fabric used for her attire is aso oke, the signature fabric of the Yoruba people. She completes the traditional wedding look with a “Buba” (short wide and loose blouse with long sleeves).

This Buba can be made from the same Aso-Oke used to make the Iro, Ipele and Gele. Alternatively, she may wear a Buba made from Lace fabric. Her jewellery will consist of earings and necklaces made of beads or gold, or a combination of both.

Many brides have their “Ileke” (beads) custom-made for the wedding. No Yoruba bride is complete without her pair of matching shoes, an accompanying bag, and her traditional hand-fan. She also needs to wear a veil over her gele.

Imperatively, history have it that, Aso-Oke is the traditional wear of  the Yoruba’s that started centuries ago predominantly among the Iseyin’s (Oyo State), Ede’s (Osun State), Okene’s (Kogi State)and some other areas in Ghana.

The primary raw materials for Aso-Oke making are majorly cotton and dye and they are either locally sourced or purchased. Aso-Oke is the cloth at is worn on special occasions  by the Yoruba’s usually for  Wedding, Engagement, chieftaincy, Festivals, naming and other important events.