Zulu, Xhosa, Tswana and 2 More Traditional Wedding Dresses Mzansi Loved, Sa Designer Breaks Down Cost

• South African women who choose to have traditional weddings are spoilt for choice when it comes to what dress to wear
• Among the many cultures in South Africa, brides could be Zulu, Xhosa, Tswana or Pedi, and all these women have unique attires
• Briefly News spoke to a professional wedding dressmaker, Amanda from Ammy designs, who provided insight into the traditional wedding dress fabrics and more

Traditional weddings are a beautiful sight in the different cultures in South Africa with unique aesthetics. Some brides went viral on social media for their traditional wedding dress looks ranging from Zulu to Xhosa.

A 29 year older fashion designer, Ammy, spoke to Briefly News about some of the aspects that go into picking a dress. The dressmaker with five years of experience explained the difference in fabrics for Xhosa wedding dresses, like the umbhaco, compared to other materials for Tswana dresses, like the seshoeshoe.

2 Mzansi women wear Xhosa wedding dresses in different styles

SA lady modernises Xhosa wedding

Ammy explains that the wedding dress done by @n.i.m_couture on Instagram is a more modern interpretation of the traditional Xhosa dress.

Ammy explained that traditional Xhosa wedding dresses are made with a specific fabric called umbhaco. The picture in the clip is made with more modern material, duchess satin, which the fashion guru says is for elegant dresses and is R45 per meter.

According to Ammy, what makes the dress traditional is the binding at the bottom which are stripes and beads typical of Xhosa design. The Met Museum explains that the lines in Xhosa fabric are meant to be artistic expressions.

White woman rocks typical traditional Xhosa dress at wedding

Ammy explained that more traditional material for Xhosa dresses could be seen with the bride, who wore a completely traditional wedding ensemble. The bride wore a full-length gown with a shawl on her shoulder also made of umbhaco. Ammy says the material costs R80 per meter, and this bride was covered head to toe, as previously reported by Briefly News. The bride also wore iduku, a signal that one is married, according to Gold Resturant.

The fashion designer explained that the Xhosa traditional type of dress takes much longer to make than its more modern version. Ammy said:

"Working with it is very hard, it needs a lot of time. Once you stitch it, you cannot undo, there will be damage. I like it because it lasts a lifetime."

Ammy describes umbhaco as a tough cotton material with a little stretch that can be tricky to work with. See the dress below:

Zulu modern bride wears Gert Johan Coetzee

Gert Johan Coetzee created a wedding dress for a traditional Zulu wedding. A video showed a bride in a body-con-like dress with tulle flaring at the bottom. Ammy said the fabric is amani which is R70 per meter. The designer says it is for classic, sophisticated creations. She said:

"They used amani because the dress is tight fitting, so it stretches for a perfect fit."

She said that the material is used to achieve a bodycon effect, evident in the Mermaid-style wedding dress. The Zulu traditional element was captured on the beads, acting as a statement necklace to accompany the dress.