Chilanga Mulilo (Icilanga mulilo) is a local Zambian tradition, practiced predominantly by people from the northern part of the country that is among the first public activities that are held leading to marriage. See here for more information as to why this ceremony is held.
It is a very traditional ceremony and as such, décor themes are normally traditionally oriented. This is however, a rather recent theme as such ceremonies were initially quite private. However, with time, certain aspects of the ceremony are no longer as private and couples have been experimenting a lot with the public aspects and having after parties that have seen the emergence of the colourful photoshoots, rustic photobooths, heavenly matching outfits and decorations for the big day. Let us walk you through our latest Chilanga Mulilo held on 22nd April at a private residence in Lusaka.
The groom’s special corner…
The star of this particular function is the groom. After the traditional aspects of the ceremony are done and the bride’s people have gone, he joins the rest of his friends and family to enjoy the rest of the celebrations. We set up this reed chair for that purpose.
The photobooth…
Chilanga Mulilo Photobooth
This is basically the face of the Chilanga Mulilo. Our rustic photo booths come decorated with various traditional items. This particular one consisted of flowers and traditional / rustic items like crates, oil lanterns, sieves, motors and pounding sticks. White stickers communicated the message of the function.
The tablescape…
Typical Chilanga Mulilo table set up
The colours for this particular event were green and white. The bride opted for white table linen and used green chitenge napkins and table runners. On the tables were an assortment of rustic and traditional décor pieces such as traditional vases (locally known as nongo), stick underplates, napkins, table numbers, small pounding sticks with motors and wooden napkin holders.
The details…
Chitenge napkins and table runners…
Wooden table numbers, centre pieces and traditional vases with pampas grass interspaced with artificial flowers gave this décor a very unique finish.
Stick underplates and chitenge runners
Pampas grass to welcome you…
Tips to help you plan…
- Pampas grass is trending currently. Be sure to include an element of this in the décor on the tables or photobooth.
- Have fun with the photo booth. Pretty much any traditional items may be used to spruce up the photo booth. Instead of a grass carpet, you can use a reed mat (mpasa). Include the chitenge that the bride, groom and/or committee wear in the décor. This gives the décor a personal touch.
- Keep the message on the photo booth simple and short. Long messages make the board look busy and may not be visible when people stand in front of it to take photos.
- If you opt for bright colours such as red, orange or yellow, be sure to minimize the bright colours so that they do not overwhelm the whole décor. Check out how we muted some bright colours – red, some more red and yellow.
