Singaporebrides | Essentials
July 2020
12 Places To Shop For Your Guo Da Li (过大礼) Wedding Needs
Find out where you can get your Guo Da Li items and learn more about this age-old Chinese wedding tradition with our comprehensive guide.
With all the available resources around, wedding planning isn’t all too difficult for modern brides. But when it comes to the more traditional aspects of a wedding, things get a little tricky.
Chinese weddings are rife with traditions that are meant to bless the couple and their marriage, such as the Guo Da Li ceremony. As these traditions were passed down mostly by word-of-mouth through the generations, the purpose of these traditions and how to prepare for them may not be clear. To help brides better understand the Guo Da Li ceremony and prepare for it, we’ve put together a guide on everything you need to know about this ancient Chinese wedding tradition for your wedding, including where to find what you need.
What Is Guo Da Li (过大礼)?
Image by SingaporeBrides
Guo Da Li (过大礼), or the Chinese betrothal ceremony, marks the important formal meeting between both families and symbolises the groom’s sincerity towards marrying the bride and his assurance that she will be well taken care of after marriage. It is part of the traditional Chinese wedding rituals known as the Three Letters, Six Etiquettes (三书六礼), which includes the selection of an auspicious wedding date.
When Does Guo Da Li (过大礼) Take Place?
Jessica and Jun Wen’s Cosy Wedding at Arbora at Faber Peak by Knotties Frame
It usually takes place any time between two to four weeks before the wedding. During the betrothal ceremony, the groom and a matchmaker, or an elder female relative with good fortune, will present the bride’s family with a variety of gifts that represent fertility and prosperity.
What Do You Need For Guo Da Li (过大礼)?
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What you need to prepare for your Guo Da Li ceremony will depend on your dialect group. A Hokkien bride’s Guo Da Li ceremony will have a few items that are different from a Cantonese bride’s. But despite your dialect group, the items used for the ceremony should always come in pairs as a representation of good fortune.
A Guo Da Li set typically includes:
- A betrothal basket
- One pair each of dragon and phoenix candles
- A red packet bearing the bride price, or ping jin
- A can of pig trotters or a platter of roast pork
- Hard liquor or wine
- Traditional wedding cakes (喜饼)
- Oranges (usually 8, which is an even and auspicious number)
- Jewellery for the bride (四点金)
- Double happiness stickers
- A red banner to hang over the door
To make sure that you’ve prepared the correct items for your dialect group, save our Guo Da Li list below.
Hui Li (回礼), or Returning of Gifts
To show their acceptance of the marriage and gratitude for the over-generosity of the groom’s family, the bride’s family will reciprocate his generous gesture and share the good fortune by returning a portion of the gifts. This is otherwise known as Hui Li (回礼), the returning of gifts.
Angie and Kelvin’s Neon-Lit InterContinental Singapore Wedding by Antelope Studios
The bride’s dowry (嫁妆) will also be presented during the Hui Li to the groom’s family as a symbol of the wealth and prosperity of the bride’s family, and to bless the couple’s marriage with happiness and prosperity. The dowry includes items such as:
- A tea set for the wedding tea ceremony at the groom’s house
- A five-piece descendant pail set (baby bathtub, potty, washbasin, tray and mug)
- New bedsheets and duvet for the bridal bed
- A set of bed-side lamps
- A dining set consisting of a pair of chopsticks, spoons, bowls and plates
- Two pairs of red wooden clogs, wedding slippers or bedroom slippers
- A sewing basket with an even numbered rolls of colourful thread, a set of needles, pincushion and scissors
- A set of gold jewellery given by the bride’s parents
Save our Hui Li checklist to help you prepare for this important ritual.
Places To Shop For Your Guo Da Li (过大礼) Needs
There are many Guo Da Li shops located island-wide, with the majority of them situated in the Chinatown area. To save you the trouble of googling for all the available Guo Da Li shops, we’ve compiled a list of shops you can go to for your Guo Da Li needs.
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Cheok Keuw Bridal
Address: Blk 506 Jurong West St 52 #01-180 Singapore 640506
Contact Number: 6566 0311
Opening hours: 12pm-8pm -
Chop Kwong Mee Chinese Wedding Shop
Address: Blk 4 Sago Lane # 01-127 Singapore 050004
Contact Number: 6220 8442 -
Golden Happiness
Address: Katong Shopping Centre 865 Mountbatten Road #01-45 Singapore 437844
Contact Number: 9171 6463 / 9795 8499 / 6345 6988
Opening hours: (Tue-Sun) 12pm-6pm -
Jia Jia Wedding Items
Address: Blk 335 Smith street #01-226 Chinatown Complex Singapore 050335
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Le Knot
Address: 810 Geylang Road City Plaza #05-09A Singapore 409286
Contact Number: 6844 5803
Opening hours: (Mon-Sat) 12.00pm to 8.00pm; (Sun & PH) 12.00pm to 7.00pm -
Minah Departmental
Address: 140 Upper Bukit Timah Road #01-19 Beauty World Centre Singapore 588177
Contact Number: 64685870 / 98357956 -
Shuang Xi Le
Address: Square 2 #03-39 10 Sinaran Drive Singapore 307506
Contact Number: 6397 2018
Opening hours: (Mon-Sat & PH) 11.00am to 9.30pm; (Sun) 12.00pm to 9.30pm -
Sin Chye Departmental Store
Address: 144 Upper Bukit Timah Road 01-K3 Beauty World Centre Singapore 588177
Contact Number: 6469 4653 -
The Chinese Wedding Shop
Address: #01-12A Jubilee Square 61 Ang Mo Kio Avenue 8 Singapore 569814
Contact Number: 6455 9863 -
The Wedding Chamber
Address: 32 New Market Road #02-1082/1106 Singapore 050032 (Beside People’s Park OG)
Contact Number: 6532 1102
Opening hours: Mon – Sun (10am to 7pm) -
Tiong Poh
Address: 531 Upper Cross Street #02-58 Hong Lim Complex Singapore 050531
Contact Number: 6533 1407
Opening hours: (Mon-Sat) 10.30am-5pm; (Sun) 1pm-5pm -
Xiang Heng Wedding & Gifts
Address: Blk 335 Smith St #01-75/76 Chinatown Complex Singapore 050335
Contact Number: 6224 8848
25 PLACES TO FIND WEDDING XI BING IN SINGAPORE
Credits: Feature Image from Jessica and Jun Wen’s Cosy Wedding at Arbora at Faber Peak by Knotties Frame.
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