A Day in the Life of A Cambodian Bride

On returning from Steung Treng all the girls had their hearts set on having a bridal photo shoot like the one Sopheap had shown us from her wedding. The photos appeared to be almost cartoon-like after the amount of airbrushing and background enhancement and we all jumped at the chance to have a go. Sopheap told us that during a Khmer wedding it was not unusual for a bride to change outfits around 15 times. In Cambodia, the most part of someone’s special day is spent self-decorating. The actual wedding day starts at 4am with hair and makeup and photos with the groom. With this in mind, an enthusiastic group of female foreigners set off early for a day of titivating.

We were led into a small room filled with endless amounts of fabric, makeup, jewellery, wigs and trinkets. It was hot and cramped and exceptionally glittery. I was the first to be transformed into a Khmer bride. I had my hair tied up in a bun with a beehive style hairpiece attached to the back. It proved to be quite difficult to find a blonde hairpiece so I had to make do with the lightest brown they had. I can honestly say that I have never had a more interesting hairstyle than the one I ended up with. They covered my face in foundation and then got to work on my eyes where stickers were attached to emphasise my eyelids. They also spent a good deal of time adding prominence to my blonde eyebrows making them twice as large and dark! 

Made up

I chose a light blue/silver outfit from a picture that could not have prepared me for the real thing. An almost blinding corset covered in diamantes and sparkling gems with inbuilt curves was revealed and, once fastened into it, I was given some backside padding in an attempt to flatter my overall silhouette. My skirt consisted of a large piece of fabric that I rotated into and, with a few pricks here and there was pinned into place. Ankles, wrists, neck and even hair were bejewelled and I was ready for my picture.

I shuffled my way into the camera room and was told by the camera man, ‘Ooooh looks very nice’ before he came over to position my arms and legs in a traditional pose. After being told a few times to put my ‘chin up’ and to turn my ‘head this way,’ I finally had the shots. This, however, was not the end. I still had to wait 3 hours in my bridal outfit to wait for the other girls to have their turn so that we could have our group shot. Sitting on a stool yawning from the minimal oxygen the outfit permitted me did not feel dissimilar, I could imagine, to the wearing feeling a young Victorian girl would have as she waits for a dance at a debutants’ ball.

The tight corset taking effect

At long last, the group shot was completed and we emerged from Heng Heng’s studio looking somewhat bedraggled and in desperate need of some carbs.  

Standing pose with a temple backdrop

Cambodian brides