Guyanese (Muslim) Wedding, East Orange, NJ, 1989

The evening before her wedding, Halimah, a Shia Muslim from Guyana, is having her hands and feet decorated with henna. The bridegroom Abbas will arrive with family and friends, bringing her wedding outfit, but the couple will not see each other.

Katrina Thomas's notes: I photographed the henna evening for a Muslim bride from Guyana, who will marry a bridegroom from Tanzania. They fell in love and were not matched. On this evening, he visits her house and they share a cup, but do not see each other. The following day, they will be married separately in a mosque, after which they will come together at a party given by one of his relatives. She will wear a western wedding dress and carry a bouquet. At this party, they will exchange rings and share wedding cake.