Mahsa & Pedro Wedding | Ritz Carlton San Francisco

Mahsa and Pedro tied the knots at Ritz Carlton San Francisco and this is my first Persian ceremony wedding. In the Persian ceremony, there is a table setup called Sofreh-ye Aghd and it includes the following items (information from http://www.farsinet.com/persian_wedding/):

• Mirror
• Candelabras
  
• A tray of seven multi-colored herbs and spices "Sini-ye Aatel-O-Baatel"
  
  1. Poppy Seeds "Khash-Khaash" (to break spells and witchcraft)
  2. Wild Rice "Berenj"
  3. Angelica "Sabzi Khoshk"
  4. Salt "Namak" (to blind the evil eye)
  5. Nigella Seeds "Raziyaneh"
  6. Black Tea "Chaay"
  7. Frankincense "Kondor" (to burn the evil spirits)
• A specially baked and decorated flatbread
• A basket of decorated eggs and a basket of decorated almonds, walnuts and hazelnuts in the shell
• A basket of pomegranates and/or apples for a joyous future.
• A cup of rose water extracted from special Persian roses
• A bowl made out of crystallized sugar
• A brazier "Manghal" holding burning coals sprinkled with wild rue "Espand" a popular incense.
• A bowl of gold coins
• A scarf or shawl made out of silk or any other fine fabric
• Two sugar cones
• A cup of honey
• A needle and seven strands of colored thread
• A copy of the couple's Holy Book
• A prayer carpet/kit
• An assortment of sweets and pastries

Of coures, each items has its own meaning and blessing. At the end of the ceremony, the couple dip one pinky finger in the cup of honey and feed it to the other one to sweeten life and this is my favorite part of the ceremony. Congratulations to Mahsa and Pedro again and it was my pleasure to capture the unforgettable moments for them!

Venue: The Ritz Carlton, San Francisco
Cake: Just Cake
Makeup Stylist: FACE IT make-up by Kristin
Florist: Asiel Design
DJ: Denon & Doyle