“Being a woman should be your supreme achievement and not your deepest fear. Celebrate womanhood, fuel yourself with self-confidence and let that fuel empower you to soar towards your dreams” –Mani Mukhija
Much like any other country in the world, the Philippines has its own set of customs and traditions that would call for a major celebration.
One of such occasions is a girl’s eighteenth birthday. Unlike any other birthdays celebrated, a girl’s eighteenth birthday is often tinged with a bit of grandeur insomuch that little girls as early as ten would be planning for debut party early on. Debut parties are often regarded as a girl’s ultimate dream occasion—second only to her wedding day. Similar to the Spanish quinceañera where the birthday girl who just turned fifteen is celebrated, Philippine debuts celebrate the debutante’s entrance to adulthood. The party thrown in her honor officially symbolizes her first official step towards claiming adult responsibilities. In fact, the occasion is often regarded with much anticipation considering that for most girls, this celebration is what they have been dreaming of since they were little girls. After all, in the Philippines, girls do not simply just walk into adulthood; they hold a celebratory rite of passage for it in the form of eighteenth debut birthday celebrations. And thus, rituals known as the birthday girl’s celebratory eighteens were born.
Typically, debut parties in the Philippines consist of a program that would include a girl’s precious eighteens. Regardless of what debut theme a debutante may chose, her program would still invariably include her 18 treasures, 18 roses and 18 candles as it is quite rare for a debut program to be without it. These are the classics after all. However, more and more debutantes are introducing their own modern spins to their debut program with each comparatively unique to that of the others. As a debutante, selecting the perfect set of rituals for your big day is a pivotal task in the planning stage if you want to have a truly distinct and memorable debut party. However, what kind of debut rituals should you incorporate into your party? And what is involved? Asking these questions is paramount to selecting the best rituals for you.
Let us start with the classic rituals—the staples for every debut birthday party. Here are some of the 18th birthday traditions you may want to include:
Eighteen Roses
It is said that among the flowers, only the rose symbolizes deep love and affection. In this regard, the debutante’s eighteen roses are meant to symbolize her readiness for love and romance. Typically, the debutante’s eighteen roses would consist of her eighteen closest male friends. Each would hand her a rose before they dance with her. Each rose gets his turn with the first rose typically being the debutante’s father and the last for someone she considers special. If you find it difficult to choose songs for each dance, here is a sample playlist that you can use.
Eighteen candles
A debutante’s eighteen candles are meant to symbolize her road to a bright future. Each candle is meant to represent sagely wisdom coming from the debutante’s closest friends and relatives. Typically, the eighteen candles consist of eighteen women who will each be given lit candles and would take turns in giving their speeches. Usually, their speeches should contain an advice for the debutante and if they so wish, anecdotes from the time they had together with the debutante. These eighteen women should play a significant role in the debutante’s life and as the tradition goes, the mother is usually the first one to give a speech and the last one is saved for the debutante’s best friend.
Eighteen treasures
Treasures are meant to symbolize the instruments pivotal to the debutante’s journey towards womanhood. With this in mind, the debutante is to choose eight individuals who will then take turns in showing their gift to the debutante. Their presentation of the gift is often accompanied by a speech as to why they chose it and what significance their gift has in the debutante’s life. The eighteen treasures can either be a member of either gender but the debutante must be careful to choose those individuals she either looks up to, holds in high regard or are simply close to her.
Eighteen shots
A modern introduction to the eighteen rituals, the eighteen shots is meant to symbolize an expression of goodwill and honor to the debutante. Akin to making a toast, it is usually done by selecting eighteen individuals who will wish the debutante well, give a short speech and drink the shot in her honor. While the debutante may choose whomever for this segment of her program, she should be careful to choose only those individuals who are old enough to drink a shot. While we are at that, the toast need not be accompanied by an alcoholic shot exclusively. If you wish, you can mix it up by swapping tequila shots for snifters or champagne instead.
Eighteen blue bills
The eighteen blue bills is yet another modern introduction to the eighteen traditions which more and more debutante’s have incorporated to their program. The eighteen blue bills is meant to symbolize a woman’s stability and independence and typically consists of the debutante’s godparents and grandparents. Similar to the Filipino wedding tradition, “money dance, this part of the program asks participants to pin a one-thousand peso bill to the debutante’s gown in exchange for a dance. This ceremony is somewhat inspired by the tradition of godparents providing for their godchild much like they do on birthdays and other special occasions.
Tips that can be a big help for your Special Day.. 
