A royal affair

It has been a year since Britain's Prince William and the beautiful Catherine Middleton wed in the world's most watched ceremony. To mark this anniversary - and the start of the wedding season - a couple of wedding shows themed around the British royal wedding are to be held next month in Beijing at The Ritz-Carlton and boutique hotel JE Mansion.

Featuring Beijing's first on-site hotel wedding chapel, alongside a wedding planning service, The Ritz-Carlton will have a mock wedding on April 14, with a live orchestra, a priest and a choir. Eight days later, taking advantage of its huge outdoor lawn, the JE Mansion will put on an elaborate wedding fair on April 22. The highlight will be a mock fairytale wedding, during which the bride will enter the venue on a carriage and the groom will be delivered by a helicopter, with a live jazz band and after party in the evening.

From the United Kingdom to the Middle Kingdom

The idea of a royal wedding might sound funny to Westerners, but apparently there is a market for it in Beijing, noted Emily Wu from The Ritz-Carlton. For many, last year's British royal wedding was considered a rare chance to learn about British culture and was broadcast heavily on Chinese TV and microblogs such as Sina Weibo. The wedding has subsequently been promoted by Chinese travel agencies, who have launched a royal wedding route, which features Westminster Abbey, where the couple tied the knot, Buckingham Palace and other relevant places. Copies of the famous bridal dress, designed by London-based designer Sarah Burton at Alexander McQueen, can also be found on online retailers such as Taobao, with some priced as low as 600 yuan ($95). Thus those at The Ritz-Carlton are optimistic some will show up and have invited 300 people to attend. For last year's wedding fair show, they had seven orders on the site and they expect about the same this year.

Others also believe that Western weddings are taking off big time over here, with the royal wedding seen as the epitome of this. According to the China Wedding Industry Development Report released last year, a larger number of young Chinese are pouring vast sums of money into wedding expenses, which is now a multi-billion dollar industry in China. Western elements such as walking down the aisle with bridesmaids, ushers, a flower girl and a ring bearer are becoming very popular. "After living in Beijing for all these years, I've accepted the idea that many Chinese have a Western-style wedding," said British Ricky Hay, who has been in the city for five years. "It is like a woman's dream to have this perfect fairytale wedding… But I'm really against people who are not religious holding a wedding in a church," Hay added. Westminster Abbey might be off the cards for most in China then.

Fading fad

Ironically those who fancy an imitation royal wedding probably won't be able to afford it, while those who can afford this type of ceremony will probably not want it, said wedding planner Wang Huiying from the Beijing-based Big Day Company, hinting that the shows are more like a stunt. While the glamorous look is sure to stay, the trend is becoming more solemn, graceful, simple and personal, Wang noted. Having been in the business for about four years, her company mainly handles weddings that cost around 20,000 yuan, with 95 percent of customers being Chinese who have lived overseas. "Now more couples prefer their wedding ceremonies to be graceful instead of being very creative, unlike the trend three or four years ago," Wang noted. In the past Wang worked with a couple who had a Disney-themed wedding, dressing up as Mickey and Minnie Mouse. "Those kinds of weddings are more like entertainment and they are not beautiful at all," Wang said. "An ideal wedding should be graceful and the couples should feel at ease in a relaxing atmosphere."

Moreover, Western-style weddings are still not the norm in China. "We would like more Chinese people to know about traditional Western-style weddings. Although a lot of Chinese couples wear Western-style gowns, the weddings are not very similar to those in the West," said Wu from The Ritz-Carlton. "The British royal wedding featured the colors of white, blue and gold, but blue has never been popular amongst locals here," added wedding planner Li Xiaonan. Li explains how the traditional color of red still plays a big role.

Feng Wenya, who works at a media company and attended her twin sister's elaborate wedding last October, is not keen on an ostentatious ceremony. The grand royal wedding is still an "imported idea" to her. "I do not care much about the ceremony itself. As long as the two love each other, I would prefer the wedding to be simple," said Feng, who will stick to the Chinese traditions, such as toasting to the parents when she gets married.

Royally cheaper wedding

Will and Kate's big day might have set their families (and the British taxpayer) back by quite a bit, but that does not mean that a very special day cannot be created on a budget.

The schedule

You don't need to spend money on a wedding planner, but a good wedding might cost you a bit in time. Taking this year's wedding trend as an example, you will need months of preparation if you are going to create your own perfect day, advised wedding planner Wang Huiying. "You should focus on the wedding for three to four months, doing research by reading magazines, online forums and blogs from professionals, to make sure you pay enough attention to detail."

The dress

For many Chinese, white now dominates weddings, said Yang Ziqi from Chinese label Lyra, which will showcase its royal-themed wedding gowns at the JE Mansion event. "The dresses won't be too luxurious. They will focus more on the sleeves and collars and will feature pearls, silk and satin." Alternatively, you could go to a fabric market and create your own dress for a fraction of the cost.

The display

Flowers are big business in the wedding industry. Fortunately these are easy to get in local florists such as the market at Liangmaqiao or Zhushikou. A highly skilled florist could cost as much as 1,000 yuan an hour, but you can easily create a cheaper bunch with the right imagination and person at hand.

The venue

Beijing is not short of hotels and clubs with outdoor space that will cater a wedding. Prices start from 2,000 yuan, which is not bad when put in perspective.