Preparing for the wedding day, there was called “retreating to the cock loft” for the bride-to-be in old days. In preparation for her impending departure, the bride-to-be retreated from her ordinary routine and lived in seclusion in a separate part of the house with her best friends! During this period, girls would sing laments, mourning the bride’ s separation from her family and even cursing the go-between, the groom’ s family and even her own parents! As this extended sleep-over took place in the cock loft, the emergence of the bride on her wedding day was referred to as “coming out of the cock loft”.
However, today’ s traditional Chinese weddings are seen less of such customs but instead of “bride’ s weeping” which means that the bride will cry when she departed her parents and headed for her new home!
On the pre-wedding day, there is a custom called installing of the bridal bed. This is prepared on the part of the groom, Usually a propitious hour and a ‘good luck’ women and a ‘good luck’ man good omen meaning, which is a man or woman with many children and living mates, were selected to install the newly bought bed. In fact, this installation ceremony just included only moving the bed slightly while the actual work had done by the servants of friends! That is just the symbol for good luck and well-promising life!
Chinese tradition culture has a belief that more children, more merrier! After the bed is installed, as an omen of fertility, children were invited to the bed. Also for the same reason, there are red dates, lotus seeds, peanuts, oranges, pomegranates and other nuts and fruits scattering on the bed. Traditionally, it is part of fun and lucky omen to watch the children scrambling these nuts and fruits.
On the part of the bride, she would have her hair combing ceremony. Generally, good fortune women were invited to conduct this rite. After showering with water infused with pommels or pomegranate leaves, the bride would be blessed aloud by the good fortune woman as she sit in front of an open window with a visible moon or in front of the mirror. There are four blessings(first combing, together all your lives; second combing, harmony in your marriage; third combing, blessed with many children and grandchildren; fourth combing, blessed with longevity). After that, the bride was often served sweet pink rice ball soup, which is for the wishes of the couple a complete and sweet marriage.
For the part of the bride’ s or groom’ s friends, Chinese wedding decorations were also an important job to do! Double joy stickers would be placed everywhere for rejoicing flavor! Bright red shades are seen everywhere. A red banner would be hung across the front doors of the two household to announce the joyous event!