As always, my ideas are just food for thought. I see through the lens of video camera and what I gravitate towards is a direct result of that perspective. A florist or planner may have totally different ideas and perspectives. And that is the beauty of our industry. It’s a melting pot of different crafts and perspectives ensuring that there is an option for everyone
You could spend a million dollars on florals but if it doesn’t work cohesively with the space then what is the point of them? I am a firm believer that florals should be used to enhance an existing space.
Sometimes yes, that requires more. But sometimes it requires less and sometimes it even requires none. You don’t need to add in a bunch of floral displays to your wedding spaces just for the sake of adding them in, especially if you’re getting married at a venue that already has a lot of character or has a beautiful landscape.
The wedding in the gallery above is the perfect example of this. The venue, Race & Religious, was full of so much historic charcter and lucious tropical greenery. The only florals my couple incoporated were the bouquets and boutineirs. They allowed the venue to speak for it’self and be a character of it’s own.
Incorporate floral displays in a way that will allow what is already there to shine through. If your ceremony is happening in front of something that is already beautiful, maybe you don’t need florals in that spot and can allocate your budget to incredible tablescapes at the reception space and vice versa. Florals are a big expense but you can be strategic.
This might be a hot take but personally, I would splurge on the wood chairs and tables before I splurged on florals.
5. Be Tasteful with florals
In a similar vein to my last point, you can ask your wedding guests to follow a loose color palette or theme. This will absolutely bring cohesion to your wedding.
You can have fun with it! Play into the location/theme of your wedding. If you’re getting married in a tropical place the dress code could be “fiesta chic” for a bunch of fun colors and patterns, or if you’re on a ranch and want a more whimsical outdoorsy look ask for them to wear “formal farm-wear”. You can also do something as simple as “black tie neutrals”.
If cohesion is something you value, don’t feel bad for implementing a dress code. It’s your day and people can like it or lump it.
4. IMPLEMENT A GUEST DRESS CODE
The traditional bridesmaid dresses are EXPENSIVE, so that means more elevated right? Wrong. Even though they come with a high price tag they will date your wedding back to 2015 faster that you can say “chuegy”.
If you have a bridal party, give them a color/theme to follow and then let them choose their own dress/jumpsuit. Don’t be afraid to play with different styles, patterns and textures. This will give your wedding ceremony a much, MUCH more organic and relaxed feeling. Their dresses don’t need to be labeled a “bridesmaid dress” by an online retailer to be considered a bridesmaid dress.
This is also a great way to help your bridal party save some money. Not everyone has $300 to spend on a dress.
Baltic Born is a great online store where you can shop by color palette and their dresses are actually nice and size inclusive. I got my maid of honor dress for my cousin’s wedding here and it was a 20/10 experience.
3. Skip THE TRADITIONAL BRIDAL PARTY ATTIRE
If you’re having a wedding reception outside, consider going with a clear tent. This will allow so much more light to come through and I can not express enough the difference lighting makes. Good lighting immediately makes any space look more elevated.
Plus, A clear tent will also give the appearance and feeling that the space is bigger than it is.
Clear tents are a splurge for me (and not only because selfishly, I love flying my drone over top and getting a birds eye view of the dance floor.)
2. CONSIDER A CLEAR TENT
I truly think this might be one of the most effective ways you can help elevate your wedding. If its an option think about splurging on wood chairs and tables. Adding in wood tones will bring a warm and tactile element to your ceremony and reception spaces. These tones will also help bring out your florals rather than detract from them.
White chairs/tables/tablecloths can sometimes be jarring and sterile to the eye, diverting your attention to them.
Now, this isn’t a one size fits all, white chairs can absolutely look beautiful in a space. But I would encourage you to at least consider the wood chairs and tables before going with white just for the sake of being white or just because they are the cheaper option.
1. UPGRADE TO WOOD CHAIRS & TABLES
