Kerala is known for splendid things like the backwaters, the beaches, ‘the lungi’ and the gold worn by the malayalee brides 😀 . I am sure that most of you would have at least heard or seen the amount of gold jewelry the Kerala bride wears. The tradition of wearing gold during weddings started during olden times daunting the south Indian bridal necklaces. Even after the introduction of modern designs, the traditional Kerala gold jewelry has its never-fading charm and beauty.
As a proud native of ‘lungiland’ I thought of sharing my experiences too 😛 Like any Malayalee bride I too never had a choice to wear single piece jewelry during the wedding (we wear the diamond set too along with the heavy gold jewelry 😛 ) During the wedding shopping I was very clear and particular that I will buy only Kerala traditional jewelry and not a single piece from the modern designs. In today’s bridal section I will share a couple of traditional bridal necklaces of Kerala you could choose from 😀
Mulla Mottu (Jasmine buds) Necklace:
This traditional necklace has a number of small gold petals across the necklace. It comes both in gold and also in a combination of gold and stones studded. I had the plain gold one and I wore it as long chain in the last row.
Lakshmi Mala (Necklace) :
Like the name, Lakshmi necklace have a number of coins across the necklace with the idol of goddess Lakshmi encrypted on each coin. My mother in law gifted me a nice traditional Lakshmi necklace 😀
Palakka mala (Necklace):
The Palakka Necklace is another traditional bridal necklace of Kerala. It is originally a combination of emerald and ruby. But the modern palakka mala comes in more designs and fashion.
Nagapada thali:
Nagapada thali is similar to palakka mala, just that the shape of the small pendants are different, Now a days the color and designs are getting widely modernized. I bought a Nagapada thali and skipped the palakka mala as they look almost similar.
Manga mala (Necklace)
The manga mala consist of small paisely shaped pendants in the necklace.
Kaasu mala:
In kaasu mala you will find lots gold coins are neatly arranged across the necklace.
Pathakam:
Pathakkam is a chain with pendant, This is usually used as the first necklace in the layer in the wedding jewelry. The pendant will be stones studded or pure gold pendant.
Poothali:
Poothali is another traditional necklace of Kerala.
Karimanimala
Karimanimala is a combination of gold and black beads. It’s almost similar to the north Indian mangalsutras.
And finally find the not so clear pic of my wedding jewelry 😛 😛
These are some of the traditional South Indian bridal necklaces used by the Kerala bride, there are jewelry items too. I will include the traditional earrings and bangles in my coming blog posts. And as usual anything you wanna add share do not forget to comment or mail us at [email protected]
I love all the neck pieces!!
thank you Manasi 🙂
Gorgeous Necklace’s!
thank you 🙂
I too like all of them! such lovely pieces!
same here 😉
Such beautiful designs! I am loving the Lakshmi Mala..Simply Gorgeous 🙂
I too love Lakshmi mala a lot 😀 😀
beautiful… i love the manga mala… its been in my list for long. i have to plan for it seriously now.
Go for it 😀 You get a lot of designs in manga maala.
Such gorgeous pieces, wish I could have them all, awesome compilation 😀
hahaha 😀 they are gorgeous 🙂
Wow…these necklaces are soooo pretty…loved them all…:-)
Thank you Rashmi 🙂
Oh my Gosshhh! so insanely pretty <3
I swear they are gorgeous!
wow..soo pretty..i love the red one from the top..so pretty..
The red one is damn good 😛
love all the jewelry.. I too own mullu mottu, kaasu mala & maanga maala.. because my in laws side r from paalakad,
Thanks Harine 🙂 Even I love the kaasu mala 😀
Wow… you have some gorgeous jewelery on for your wedding… I have always been enticed by south indian gold jewelery… Thanks a lot for sharing this … now I knw exactly what I want for my wedding..the kaasu mala ;). Lovely blog by the way..
Do check out my blog sometime…
Manali
THanks manali. I am so glad we could help you. We always love reading what our readers think of us 🙂 Do not forget to send me a pic of what you get for the wedding 😀 Sure will visit your blog. We love fashion tooo 😀
Ur post made me nostalgic. I spent my childhood in Thrissur, Kerala…Right from childhood I used to get carried away by the amount of gold Malayali brides used to wear. Thankfully my Mom got made some Malayali jewellery back then from Kalyan jewellers. Thanks Mom. 🙂