The blingier the better

Even the cake had bling! And a Manchester United flag, the groom’s team.

“So what do I wear, then?” I asked Nazia as I examined the invitation to her Mehndi and wedding. “Oh bright and blingy – in fact the blingier the better, Asian weddings are VERY blingy!” she said. I don’t need that kind of prompting twice!

It was definitely a new experience, starting with the Mehndi, a girls’ get-together with the bride, where there’s eating, (non-alcoholic) drinking, great merriment and lots of henna, which was painted in intricate patterns on hands and feet.

I know Nazia from my running club, she came along as a new runner and went from hardly being able to run at all to doing her first 10km. Nazia always wears the hijab, so I was amazed to be greeted by the stunning young lady with luxuriant hair wearing a green sparkly saree, very bling, but in a classy way. It was a privilege to spend time with Nazia, her sisters, friends and relatives and of course Kate, Helen and Ghizala, from Eccleshill Road Runners.

For the wedding itself, I bought what I was assured was very ‘in’ from one of the many bling establishments on the road between Leeds and Bradford. A red jumpsuit with a green lace coat? Seriously? Very different, very bright, but not very blingy, so I sewed on sequins, beads and jewels, though it seems more ended up on the carpet, sofa and cat, with quite a few blocking the vacuum cleaner.

Nazia again looked stunning, her white jewel-encrusted dress and veil were magnificent. The bride and groom were installed on thrones to greet their guests, it was all very relaxed, very colourful with a certain amount of bling and rather wonderful.

But it will be back to normal running on Friday when Nazia joins us for probably the last time before she moves down to that there London where Imran lives and works. He’s promised he’ll try running with her – so long as she has a go at his sport, cycling!

Photo note

While we took lots of photos, Nazia requested that none of the couple nor their families be posted on social media. Just take it from me, they all looked fantastic!