Photo: The Apartment Photography
Holiday weddings are wonderful for a myriad of reasons–people have already requested time off of work, it’s a lovely time to take a vacay, and they’re a great way to get the family together all in one place! Plus, they can be particularly attractive if you play your [holiday] cards right. What do we mean? Well, there’s a fine line between a holiday-themed wedding and a wedding that takes place during the holiday season, and trust us when we say, you want the latter. “Why?” you may ask. Your wedding should be about exactly that–your wedding. You’re not throwing a holiday party. But, that doesn’t mean you can’t tap into the festive feeling in the air at that time of year to help set the mood. We’ve rounded up some gorg holiday wedding ideas that are festive without being too literal.
Photo: Endless Exposures
The biggest faux pas that we see when it comes to holiday weddings is an overtly “holiday” color palette. We’re talking bright green, fire engine red, royal blue, crisp white, and silver. Instead, focus on colors that occur naturally during the holiday season like muted sage, plum, rich evergreen, deep merlot, and even some warm marigold touches. Here are some winter wedding color palettes that don’t scream holidays but still evoke that festive vibe.
Photo/Palette: Pinterest via ZJ
Photo/Palette: Swell and Stone
Photo/Palette: Tracey Bureau via Pinterest
Photo: Elisa Bricker
Incorporating plaid into your wedding design is a great way to bring out those warm feels. Visually, plaid feels like snuggling up under a warm blanket in front of a fire with the one you love–the perfect vibe for a wedding. Now, we’re not saying you need to rock a full-on kilt for your big day (although we would absolutely love that), there are smaller ways to incorporate plaid, like in your invitation suites or other paper goods like your escort cards, menus, and wedding programs. Or, you could use plaid as accents in your linens like napkins, table runners, etc.
Photo: Pinterest via Caroline Rose
Photo: Nico and Lala
Photo: Leila brewster
Photo: Amanda Wei Photography
While we’re talking fabrics, velvet also has a holiday feel to it and the rich texture really lends itself to weddings. Whether it’s a blazer, slippers for getting ready, a velvet bow tie, or loafers for the groom, you really can’t go wrong with velvet shoes for a winter wedding.
Photo/Shoes: Christian Louboutin
Photo/Bowtie: NZ Embroidery Embassy via Etsy
Photo/Shoes: Sam Edleman
Photo: Bayla Vietnam Destination Wedding Planner
We can’t stress enough how WORTH IT floral installations are, especially at a holiday wedding. Sure, they’re absolutely gorgeous, but they’re so much more than just good-looking. They’re an experience in themselves. Not only will they enhance your own wedding photos, but, during cocktail hour your guests can use the installation for their own holiday photo op as well.
Photo: Mary Lennox
Photo: Party Slate
Photo: Hart Floral Design
Photo: Wedding Forward
Nothing says holidays like a beautifully set table, so for a holiday wedding, you NEED to go all out with your tablescape. We’re talking linens, on linens, on linens, every type of glassware you can imagine, layer the most ornate china you can find, deck it out with some insane floral arrangements, and throw in some winter fruits for good measure. And please remember, you can never have too many candles. Go with the deeper, richest colors in your palette for your tablescape–the warmer and more inviting, the better.
Photo: Pinterest via Squarespace
Photo: Nikos Gogas
Photo: Mywedding.com
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