Wedding gift for bride

Just ten years ago, black couples planning o get married were hard-pressed to find e resources they needed to help them create a unique ceremony that reflected their African heritage. There was little information in either books, magazines or online about what goes into an Afrocentric ceremony or where to hire African-inspired tailors and designers. Even Essence magazine, long the arbiter of contemporary style and culture that celebrates the African Diaspora, had very little information about black heritage wedding ceremonies.

Then in 1994, Essences former lifestyle editor Harriette Cole wrote her groundbreaking Jumping the Broom: The African-American Wedding Planner. The first book on the subject, Jumping the Broom remains a best-seller. The book offers ideas to create a very stylish and modern wedding, while unselfconsciously incorporating Afrocentric flourishes. Plans are underway to release a 10th anniversary edition next year.

Now Therez Fleetwood, the wedding gown designer whose work was featured prominently in Jumping the Broom, adds her own book to the growing list of rifles on Afrocentric wedding style. The Afrocentric Bride: A Style Guide (Amber Books, May 2003, $16.95, ISBN 0-972-75191-2) acknowledges the growth in demand for approaches that unabashedly blend African with American culture.

"Most mainstream bridal magazines don't cater to this niche" observes Fleetwood. "It is as if it doesn't exist." Filled with information about wedding gowns and garb from African-influenced to contemporary and traditional, as well as rips about makeup, wedding lingerie accessories, men's wedding attire and more, her guide is a valuable source for today's brides and wedding consultants.

Fleetwood, whose ethnic-flavor fashions have appeared both in Essence and In Style Weddings and also featured in museum exhibits, lets brides-to-be know what to expect when working with a designer on a custom-made gown. The colorful guide offers tips on outfitting the bride, groom and entire wedding party in garments made of luxurious fabrics--Guinea brocade, ashoke, kente--in rich colors in gold and white, royal purple, white, orange.

This is the place for the African-inspired bride to find modern interpretations of ancient garb from Egypt, as well as contemporary designs with understated African references. "Most often people think that Afrocentric wedding attire is based on traditional West African silhouettes" says Fleetwood. "This is so untrue. Brides have more choices."

Fleetwood's own custom designs range from a sweeping traditional African bubah with ashoke cloth to a gown with kente patchwork quilt skirt that brings to mind a modern take on an antebellum ball gown. For do-it-yourselfers, she offers tips on working with such design elements as cowrie shells, imported African fabrics, quilting and embroidery techniques. Hers is a fine addition to any collection on wedding celebrations.

And thanks to pioneering authors like Cole and others who followed her, Afrocentric-style weddings are now commonplace, both in big cities and small towns. Some couples may opt for a full-blown African ceremony with all the trimmings--traditional garb with headdress, rituals, drummers and food over the course of several days. Some might choose a simple affair that uses black caterers and other suppliers.

Regardless, African American couples want their big day to reflect their heritage and incorporate discreet Afrocentric touches, such as a broom jumping ceremony, libation or tuxedos with kente cloth accents.

Instead of feeling compelled to choose between an American model and an African one, many blend cultures and take aspects from each. Some couples are more likely to create their own vows and promises that will one day become part of their family's cultural memory.

A Bridal Bibliography

The bounty of books and information about our African, Caribbean and African American wedding heritage makes it easy for couples to make individual choices. Here are some wedding resources to help round out your planning and help bring all the elements together.

* African-American Wedding Readings (E P Dutton, January 1998, ASIN 0-525-94403-6), edited by Tamara Nikuradse, is filled with heartfelt passages perfect for any wedding ceremony.

* Going to the Chapek From Traditional to African-Inspired, and Everything in Between: The Ultimate Wedding Guide for Today's Black Couple (Putnam Pub Group, January 1999, ASIN 0-399-14463-3) by the editors of Signature Bride magazine helps couples evaluate their own unique style and create a personalized wedding celebration that suits it.

* Jumping the Broom: The African-American Wedding Planner and Jumping the Broom Wedding Workbook: A Step-By-Step Write-In Guide for Planning the Perfect African-American Wedding by Harriette Cole (Henry Holt, February 1996, ASIN 0-805-04212-1).

* The Nubian Wedding Book: Words and Rituals to Celebrate and Plan an African-American Wedding (Three Rivers Press, March 1998, ISBN 0-609-80185-6) by Ingrid Sturgis is a comprehensive wedding planning guide with details about ceremonies, vows, toasts, wedding prayers, libations and recipes, as well as anecdotes and suggestions for Afrocentric gift giving. T13is book will be republished next year.

* Put Soul in Your Bridal Shower: The African American Bridal Shower Book (Picasso Publications Inc., Picasso Publications Inc., August 2000, ISBN 1-552-79039-8) by Tonya D. Evans offers fun suggestions for wedding showers.

* With These Words I ... Thee Wed: Contemporary Wedding Vows for Today's Couples (Adams Media Corporation, February 1989, ISBN 1-558-50980-1) by Barbara Eklof is a classic, filled with a sampling of words appropriate for any wedding, including renewals, holiday weddings and even remarriage.

* "I Do" ... Weddings: Guide to Starting Your Own Wedding Consulting Business (Wedding Day Inc., April 1999, ISBN 0-967-08630-2) by Mayai N. Chatman-Whitfield is a handbook for wedding consulting businesses.

RELATED ARTICLE: New Black romance fiction celebrates marriage.

The growing emphasis on Afrocentrism in weddings is not just a desire to connect with and continue tradition in the wedding ceremony. It is, many believe, part of a deeper trend in African America toward affirming committed relationships, in celebrating marriage.

"The mainstream market positions us and our relationships one way--and not always positively," says Linda Gill, vice president and publisher of BET Books, which released quite successfully Wedding Bells by Gwynne Forster, Francine Craft and Niqui Stanhope (BET Books, June 2000, ISBN 1-583-14112-X), three novellas about weddings. "We want African American writers to tell our own stories. Arabesque fiction always ends with commitment, so books for brides are a natural extension of our mission to show positive relationships."

All three BET imprints now include committed relationship themes: Arabesque, whose focus is love and romance; Sepia, which is for mainstream fiction; and New Spirit, the inspirational line. Says Gill, "Successful, loving relationship always hit home with African American readers."--I.S.

RELATED ARTICLE: A house built on practical advice.

Tony Rose's Amber Books celebrates its fifth anniversary, providing self-help and how-to titles for African Americans, spiced with celebrity profiles

When Tony Rose recently learned that he was to be named Independent Black Publisher of the Year by BlackBoard, an African American bestsellers list, he was ecstatic. It validated his decision five years ago to leave the music business after 20 years, to start Amber Books Publishing, recently renamed Amber Communications Group Inc. The publisher and CEO has seen his book publishing business grow to more than 25 published titles.

Rose says he started by tapping into a nonfiction market desperate for practical, no-frills information, and created a niche in self-help, how-to and celebrity profile titles for the African American market.

"We put out books that nobody else did--books for urban African-Americans," says Rose. "I know the worth, quality and numbers of the African-American market because of the music industry."

While in the music industry, Rose, who is originally from Boston, cut hundreds of music deals with the companies like Atlantic, Sony and Virgin Records, and worked with such acts as The Funkadelics, Bootsy Collins and The Main Ingredient. Today, he runs his publishing business the way he did his music business, attending to details from the ground up.

Rose started selling books by visiting beauty salons and record stores, as well as bookstores, libraries, book expos, block parties and conferences. Eventually, he amassed a database of 150,000 contacts and is known for his "37 cents promotion" to that broad mailing list. In 2000, he launched a Website, that he says now receives nearly 3,000 book orders a month.