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La Quinceañera
A Quinceañera is a big event in every fifteen year old girl's life. As beautiful as it is, it takes alot of time to plan out. In this web page we will give you an idea of what a Quinceañera is,the things you need to do to have a memorable Quinceañera, and how it has changed over the years.

What is a Quinceañera

A Quinceañera is a celebration of a girls fifteenth birthday.  It is a special occasion because it is when a girl becomes a woman. Hispanic girls all over the world celebrate this occasion. The difference between a Quinceañera and any other birthday party is that it is fancier and you invite more people. The first thing you do is go to church the day of your Quinceañera. You invite your closest relatives like aunts, uncles, parents, godparents, grandparents, brothers, sisters, cousin, and close friends. The priest talks to you about becoming a woman. Once the spiritual ceremony is over you move on to the social part of the Quinceañera. At this time your many invited guests come to celebrate your becoming a woman. This is where you celebrate by having a band play live music and dance all night.

How To Set It Up

The Quinceañera will take a lot of time & effort to plan it out. Because of this you should plan it at least a few months ahead of time.  First you will need to invite the guests of course, but remember to invite your closest relatives to the church only. This is more of a family event. At the hall of course you can invite all the people you want as long as you can afford to rent the extra tables and chairs. You also have to consider if you can afford the extra food. This brings me to my next topic. What will you serve at the hall? You might want to ask a few people that have experienced this event on what you should serve. You also have to pick the Chambelanes and Damas. These are the people that will be doing the dances in your Quinceañera with you. You are going to have to pick the dances you, your chambelanes and your damas are going to perform. You will also have to pick the church and hall at which this event will be held. Some other things you will need to do are pick the decorations which your mother can help you with. The type of decorations you will need are flowers, streamers, banners, table cloths, and if you want to, little treats that will be at each table. You will also have to think about what type of music you are going to play. For example, are you going to have a band or are you going to have a DJ? You could always have both, just think about what order you are going to put them in. The most important thing you will need is to pick out your dress. The traditional color has always been pink, but now a days the girls are choosing other colors. Most of these colors are light, but this is your special day so choose the color you like best. Hopefully, this will help you better organize your Quinceañera.

How It Has Changed

Over the years the Quinceañera has changed. Now there are other options. Decades ago it used to symbolize that a girl was a woman and was ready for marriage. Back then a woman was nothing. Women were only good for having children. We also used to have plenty of duties to fulfill. If you were in second or third grade you were old enough to watch your younger brothers and sisters. You even were married at the age of sixteen or you became a priestess! Nowadays a Quinceañera symbolizes that you are ready to date. You can now choose between a Quinceañera or a car. That is how it has changed. Overtime hopefully there will be more choices.

Sample Resources

Quinceañera boutique

Quinceañera party favor

Quinceañera dresses

 

This information comes from:
http://www.hpl.lib.tx.us/youth/cinco_quince.html