Princess Iman Attends Her Henna Party Ahead of Her Wedding

HRH Princess Iman bint Al Abdullah of Jordan, eldest daughter of King Abdullah II and Queen Rania of Jordan will wed her financier beau, Jameel Alexander Thermiotis on March 12, 2023, Sunday. 

But before the actual wedding event could take place, there are traditional events and rituals that she will do ahead of the wedding ceremony. One of these traditional rituals is a Henna Party. 

Princess Iman attends her Henna Party

Princess Iman wears something borrowed, a wedding belt of her mother 

Princess Iman looked resplendent in a white dress from fashion designer, Reema Dabour, and a beautiful belt worn by Queen Rania on her wedding day in 1993.

Queen Rania guides her daughter 

from left: Rajwa Al Saif, Queen Rania, and Princess Iman

Just like most wedding rites, a Muslim wedding also entails many rituals to prepare and purify the to-be-weds and their families ahead of the ceremony. 

The rituals vary depending on the couple's culture and branch of Islam. However, most royals in Asia follows the Henna Party, which look like an equivalent to the Bridal Shower in the western culture.

Princess Iman greeted by her female friends and relatives 

Just like the Bridal Shower, Henna Party is also attended by the bride's female friends and relatives complete with gifts and parties. However, it is more elaborate than the Bridal Shower. 

Princess Iman wears her mother's wedding belt 

Henna Party is held for most Muslim brides in Asia. It is usually celebrated a few days before the actual wedding ceremony with closest female friends and female relatives in attendance. 

Queen Rania and Princess Iman

It is called Henna Party because artists create designs on the bride's hands and feet using a henna paste. The red stain will last for several weeks. It's like getting a henna tattoo.

Princess Iman with her aunts, Princesses Aisha and Zein, her grandmother, Princess Muna, and her mother Queen Rania 

The future bride will also be perfumed with fragrant oils and presented with gifts of jewelry and silk. 

Queen Rania of Jordan and her daughter Princess Iman

Queen Rania of Jordan and Rajwa Al Saif 

Henna Party is a joyous event for the bride-to-be, an opportunity to bond with her female friends and relatives before she becomes a married woman.

Princess Iman (right) wore the wedding belt of his mother (left) Queen Rania 

The event was attended by Princess Iman's mother, Queen Rania, paternal grandmother,  Princess Muna, paternal aunts, Princess Zein and Princess Aisha, and Rajwa Al Saif, the fiancee of her older brother, Crown Prince Hussein. 

Photo credit: Queen Rania of Jordan instagram