A Look Back at the Wedding Trends That Took Over Nigeria in 2013 + Thank You from BellaNaija Weddings!

Photo: Libran Eye Photography | Makeup: Banke Meshida-Lawal of BM Pro

Hello there BellaNaija Weddings Lovers! This’ll be our last BN Weddings Trend Watch of the year! It’s a feature where we highlight what’s hot and happening in Nigerian weddings both at home and abroad. For previous editions, click here!

In fact, we predicted many wedding trends for the year in our first edition – See Here

We were spot on with some but with others, we were totally blown away! You guys rock.

***

Before that, we’d like to thank you for all your support this year!

If you’re a true fan, you know BN Weddings has come a long way. We’ve introduced 5 new features in 2013 (you can click on the feature names to see more!) In alphabetical order:

• #AsoEbiBella
• BN Bridal Beauty
• BN Bridal Shower
• BN Wedding Decor
• Munaluchi Bride Magazine on BN – Weddings and Styled shoots

We have continued with our tried and true BN Weddings features including pre-wedding shoots, BN Celebrity Weddings, BN Bridal, Our Wedding Story and more! Posting more than ever – more quality photos and in-depth explanations of culture and love.

We blew the doors open to wedding inspiration beyond the website, and created our social media accounts. We now have a combined following (all organic) of almost 100k! We’re so grateful for all your support and love over the years and we solemnly vow to get better and better next year. Remember, if you ever have feedback, we are open to suggestions on how we can improve. Feel free to e-mail us on weddings (at) bellanaija.com.

We’re always asked – are weddings free? Yes they are! Simply e-mail us and we’ll send you the next steps.

In our next rev of the website we plan to add a submissions form to the website so you don’t need to e-mail us first.

_____________________________________________________________________________

Now, back to the matter! If you remember, BN Weddings outlined our 13 Fabulous Wedding Trends for 2013 {Click to View} and they all came to pass! Now check out these 10 wedding trends rocked Nigerian weddings – at home and abroad this year.

1. Sequin and Blinged gele: Move over traditional gele, brides stood out in 2013 with sequined and embellished gele to shine on their special day and stand out from the crowd. It also became a favourite for #asoebibella!

BN Bride Bisoye glowed in her red sequin aso-oke! See her wedding HERE!

Photography: Alakija Studios | Makeup: Banke of BM Pro

See BN bride Rowena’s BN Wedding Glam HERE

2. Traditional in Nigeria, Destination for the White Wedding: Want a smaller more intimate white wedding? Take it overseas! It automatically eliminates the “lookie-loos”. You can pay for those who matter but can’t afford it.

BN couple Mariah & Kevin got married in Nigeria and in the UK! See their wedding HERE.

Photo by Konverge Media

Photo by The Atunbi Experience

3. Statement Getting-ready Wear – Bride and Bridesmaids: Say it with a t-shirt or a robe! For example, Bride Mathilda’s bridesmaids shirts show the number of years they’ve known the lovely bride, while her shirt adds all their years of friendship. Statement getting ready gear is now a must for pre wedding photo ops and video.

See BN bride Mathilda’s wedding HERE!

Mathilda’s Photos: Fotos By Fola

There were even shirts for the flower girls!

BN bride Toyosi and her bridesmaids’ bridal robes said it all! See her wedding HERE

Photography: RH Photo Arts

4. All shades of Blue suits for Groom and Groomsmen: Black will always be in, but this year grooms are giving us 50 shades of blue! From more traditional navy to bright cerulean, look no further brides, your something blue can be your groom!

See BN groom Hakeem Shagaya’s wedding HERE

See BN couple Bisoye & Lanre’s Spectacular Wedding HERE

Photography: Alakija Studios

5. Out of the Box Pre-Wedding Shoots: Studio photo shoots are so 1990s! With themes from jet planes to baking, you can make a pre wedding shoot that suits your personality through and through. The shots make an awesome keepsake – marking this special time, great for wedding programs and makes for a fun feature on BN 😉

See BN couple Beverly & Tosan’s Jet Plane Pre-Wedding Shoot HERE

Photography: RH Photo Arts

6. Stand out #asoebibella trends: sequins, velvet, knot wrapper: Akwa oche is back! But it never looked this good. Even your friends can feel special in stand out aso ebi trends – sequins, knot wrapper and velvet were some of the trends that made you look twice at a young lady in stunning aso ebi, or as we’d like to call her, an #asoebibella!

See BN bride Faith’s wedding HERE

Photo by Ade Plumptre | Aso Ebi by Kwamuhle Fabrics

See the knot wrapper tutorial HERE !

Photography: Konverge Media

7. Fun socks for the Groom and Groomsmen: Grooms and groomsmen are showing off colourful and playful socks that match the colours or theme of the wedding. Embrace print and polka dot – it’s fun!

See BN couple Ekibo & Boma’s wedding HERE

Photo by Inije

8. Sequin Second Dress: Get down and dance in a sexy sequin dress! Even at the traditional wedding! From gold to red, brides stun in sequin dresses – it doesn’t need to be heavily designed. Easy, breezy and of course, blingey.

See Lola and Peter’s wedding HERE

Photography: AkinTayoTimi for BellaNaija Weddings

See Tiwa & TeeBillz Wedding HERE

Photography: AkinTayoTimi for BellaNaija Weddings

9. Wedding Dress Back Detail: Make a statement all around – from when you enter the room to walk down the aisle, show off your toned back and killer curves with a statement back.

BN Bride Ify … wedding coming soon 😉

Makeup: Mamza Beauty | Photography: Obi Somto

Bride Shally of Style blog For Style Sake – see her wedding on her blog  HERE

Designer: Veejay Floresca | Photography: Jide Odukoya

10. Brides and Bridesmaids embracing Braids and Natural Hairstyles: Nowadays more brides and bridesmaids are embracing natural textures and hairstyles for their wedding day.

See our feature on natural Nigerian brides and bridesmaids HERE

Photography: SamAlesh Photography

***

That’s all folks!

What were your favourite wedding features in 2013?

What do you want to see from us in 2014?

Till next year –

xoxo

Uche & Ink

______________________________________________________________________________________
We love weddings as much as you do – get in touch for inquiries, inspiration & more!