Garden Wedding: Nigerian Influenced Autumn Wedding At Delaware Center For Horticulture

Choosing a garden theme wedding location was a matter of sentimental nostalgia for Ayo and Seun, both Nigerian natives who grew up surrounded by flowers and plants. So, they were extremely delighted to come across Wilmington’s Delaware Center for Horticulture when scouting sites to host their autumn wedding, as its thriving foliage, reed filled water features, and winding gardens answered their need for an outdoor theme wedding location that captured the essence of their home country. Choosing a garden theme wedding location also helped some of the guests who had come from Nigeria to feel at home.

For this garden wedding, motif and themes changed between the ceremony and the reception celebration. For the ceremony, the couple wore classic American wedding clothing. Ayo chose a strapless white Private Label by G mermaid wedding gown tailored from satin with an intricately embroidered bodice. Ayo was particularly fond of her mermaid wedding dress because it “had an actual fishtail pattern on the train.” Adding to the classic white wedding aesthetics was a white fingertip-length veil. Accessories included a delicate tiara, silver chandelier earrings - each sporting five dangling pearls, and a stylish thick silver chain necklace.

For the reception, the garden wedding motif and themes took a decidedly Nigerian turn. The couple changed into elaborate gold-and-brown Nigerian bridal outfits ordered from Nigeria especially for their wedding. Ayo’s tiara and veil were replaced with a headwrap, called a gele, while Seun donned a cap, called a fila. At this point, drum-heavy Yoruba music filled the air as the newlyweds danced their way into the reception. Also in line with Nigerian wedding custom, prominent members of the couple’s families also danced their way to their tables as they were announced by the DJ.

Amid the wedding reception tables covered with white linen and sheltered under large white canopies, Seun’s mother and aunt, both dressed in colorful Nigerian garb, threw their hands into the air and started singing in spontaneous celebration. The contrast between their native dress styles and the chic wedding reception decor emphasized that this was, indeed, a multicultural garden wedding party. Fall wedding table decoration included small clear glass vases filled with ferns, red hypericum berries, and ornamental grasses serving as reception table centerpieces.

Among the garden wedding decorations, the single most pronounced visual statement came from the wedding cake. The three-tier confection featured a trifecta of cake flavors: rum, carrot, and vanilla. The clean finish of the base white fondant icing gave way to distinguishing styling cues. Repeating whorled S-stroke patterns representing a stylized infinity symbol added texture that fit well with the lavish embroidery of the bride’s wedding gown. In keeping with the garden wedding motif and themes, a trail of fresh blossoms that included white and red zinnias ran diagonally across the three tiers from top to bottom to decorate the cake as well, with a single large white zinnia blossom up top.