Tips On Wedding Decorations & Styling

Not sure where to start? We recommend by noting down a few different wedding themes that suit your own style. Maybe you’ve been inspired by other weddings you’ve been to recently or you’ve come across a few ideas on pinterest that inspired you. Whether it’s vintage or something a little more traditional, the options are endless.

Once you’ve got a few different ideas then start to think about different colours, patterns or symbols that mean something to you. Be inspired by your hobbies, books you’re reading, destinations you’ve travelled to or even nostalgic memories from childhood. Now you’re ready to start tying this all together.

To help you on your journey we have a fantastic selection of suppliers who can help you bring your wedding theme to life. Looking for wedding chair covers to hire? Or perhaps unique table centre ideas? Hiring the pros to dress your wedding venue can really add the wow factor you’re looking for! Below we have gathered some ideas that we hope will inspire you. If you already have a clean vision of what you want, then you can communicate with us and we can start sampling your ideas with local suppliers and perhaps hand craft them for you.

We can offer our personalized services for creating the atmosphere you dream of on your big day:

Starting The Wedding Decorations Plan

Wedding Flowers

Wedding flowers are an integral part of any ceremony and reception. They create the mood, accentuate the couple’s style and bring a room to life. There are a number of different ways flowers are incorporated into weddings, so let’s take a look at some.

Bridal Bouquet: Usually, flower selection starts with the bridal bouquet. These bouquets can be as simple as grabbing a few flowers together and securing them with twine or a ribbon to designing more elaborate, professional arrangements.

There are seven popular types of wedding bouquet shapes: Cascade, posy (shown below), hand-tied, round, nosegay, pomander and composite. Each has its own style, shape and arrangement.

Flower Petals: Loose petals are often carried in a basket by the flower girl, who sprinkles them down the aisle in preparation for the bride. But many wedding venues have banned throwing petals of any kind, while some have restrictions about using real petals but silk petals are acceptable. So before the couple asks their favorite little one to be a flower girl, you’ll want to confirm what can and can’t be done to help them plan accordingly.

Flower Centerpieces: When designing table decorations, flowers are almost always included because of their beauty, effectiveness and versatility. The arrangements can be a simple as a few long stems in a vase to professionally sculpted pieces. Flowers can be used in conjunction with candles, contained in terrariums, entwined around lanterns or woven into garlands that run the length of a table. They can even be accessorized with ribbon or twine to tie the look together. (More about centerpieces below.)

Hanging Flowers: A major trend in recent years hanging flowers can turn even the most sterile venue into a fairytale wonderland. Whether hung over the ceremony area or used in the reception over tables or even the dance floor, hanging flowers add another layer of beauty to the overall wedding decorations.

Other Options: Flowers can also be used as trellis or wedding arch decorations, aisle markers, chair garlands, wreaths throughout the venue, flower boxes around the dance floor or even as flourishes on the cake. And don’t forget about boutonnieres for any of the men in the wedding party or corsages for mothers and grandmothers of the bride and groom.

Keep in mind that flowers can get pricey, so we want to work with you to establish a budget at the beginning. But flowers don’t have to be expensive. If you want to get married in a garden, there is probably little need to invest in lots of flowers. If you have a smaller budgets, think about how we can incorporate more foliage (which is less expensive) to accentuate the flowers that are available. You may find that paper flowers can be a nice touch.

Before floral planning can begin, a venue for the wedding and reception must be secured. The size and overall look of the location will dictate many of the floral choices. You will also want to have selected your attire, as dress/tux/suit styles will also influence the kind of flowers that will work best.

Wedding Centerpieces

When planning wedding table decorations for the reception, the centerpiece (or centrepiece for our British friends) is the center of it all. Thus the name!

Decorating tables may sound like a simple job, but there are many elements to consider. The design of table centerpieces depends first on the kind of tables used. Long banquet-style tables often have a fabric runner down the length with multiple centerpieces strategically placed along the way. Whereas smaller tables for 6-10 guests will have their own individual table decorations.

The next consideration is not only the size of the table but also the overall size of the room. The centerpieces should be in proportion to both while still making an impact. If the venue is massive, little centerpieces will get lost. On the other hand, a more intimate space will be overwhelmed with table decorations that are too large. If the room has tall ceilings, you have some flexibility with floral recommendations as height can be added to level out the visual weight. Finding balance is the key.

To maintain position and hierarchy on the table, give the centerpiece a base. Something to build upon. This could be anything from a plate, piece of wood, basket, tray, etc.

From there, just about anything—candles, lanterns, flowers, greenery, driftwood, vases, footed glass vessels, even fruit or vegetables—can be added to create a one-of-a-kind centerpiece design.

Candlelight has such a warm glow and gives a romantic touch that’s perfect for weddings. And there are so many ways to use candles to decorate a table. Small tea lights and votives, floating candles, pillars and tapers can be mixed and matched to get the right effect.

If decorating with tapers, use non-drip to avoid any unsightly and messy wax drippings. You’ll also want to suggest going with unscented candles, as some people are sensitive to fragrance. You may also want to recommend giving candles some kind of glass protection to keep the fire away from other centerpiece elements as well as guests, especially if there are children attending.

When incorporating flowers, a vessel of some sort is needed for arranging them. An elegant black-tie wedding might call for crystal vases, where an afternoon garden wedding could incorporate simple glass jars with twine trimmings.

Wedding Cake Toppers

Wedding cake toppers are those stylish adornments placed on the very top of the cake. Back in the day, this focal point often featured little bride and groom figurines. But recently there has been a major shift from traditional stock cake figurines to customized designs. Our talented staff can design and hand craft these for you.

Wedding Seating

Unless you decided having an informal cocktail-style wedding or wedding on a boat where guests will be moving around or there will be fewer than 50 people attending the reception, you must help them plan a seating chart. It’s not always an easy task, especially if there are divorced couples, eccentric family members, or friends with overbearing personalities or controversial opinions.

But you want guests to be comfortable and enjoy the experience. So it’s worth taking the time to create seating arrangements that facilitate great conversation and avoid any unpleasant confrontations.

Wedding Seating Charts & Plans

One of the first decisions to make is where the newly married couple will sit. In the past, the bride and groom sat alone at a “sweetheart table.” But today’s couples often find this tradition isolating. If you feel this way, we will skip it and instead create a head table at the center of the room so they can be close to guests.

Once the couple’s seating is determined, begin organizing family and friends. Depending on the dynamics, parents may sit at the head table or they may be at adjacent tables. The wedding party may also sit at the head table, depending on the number of attendants (and their +1’s).

After that, there are no hard rules about what to do next. We can suggest grouping guests by how you know them (high school friends, coworkers, relatives, etc.). But it’s also nice to mix it up a bit and give guests a chance to meet someone they otherwise wouldn’t know, especially if they have common interests.

That said, no one likes to sit at a table where they know no one else, so always try to have at least one acquaintance per person at each table. And “singles” tables are passé. Integrate the couple’s single friends within the tables, just so long as they’re not the only single person at a table of married couples.

There are no right or wrong ways to create the seating plan; it all depends upon your client’s unique set of guests.

Once you know where everyone is sitting, how will they actually find their seats at the reception?

There are options. One way is to list guests’ names by table number on a printed poster or hand-write them on a chalkboard. Each person’s name can be written on individual “escort cards,” which they find at the entrance to the reception. They simply grab the card with their name on it and go to the appropriate table.

Wedding Chair Covers & Sashes

When guests arrive at their tables, they’ll likely see beautiful centerpieces and elegant dinnerware. But what about the chairs?

One aspect of wedding reception decoration that sometimes gets overlooked is the chairs. Wedding chair covers and chair sashes can turn otherwise boring, but quite necessary, furniture into statement pieces with the simple addition of fabric, ribbon and/or flowers. It’s a small detail that has a big impact.

Wedding Table Numbers

As the name suggestions, wedding table numbers are literally numbers placed on reception tables so guests can effortlessly find their assigned seats. Though they are a functional item, table numbers must be large enough to be easily visible yet be small enough so they’re not distracting. And they must look great while coordinating with the other wedding decorations on the table. While table numbers are often incorporated into the centerpieces, there’s no rule that they have to be. These also be handcrafted by our talented staff.

Wedding Table Names

While using numbers to denote specific tables may be the easiest and most popular seating location solution, it’s not the only option. Instead of recommending numbered tables, offer tables names that are meaningful to the couple. Perhaps the names are places they have lived, their favorite songs or the flowers in the centerpieces.

Wedding Menu Cards

One of the best parts of a wedding celebration (other than the “I do,” of course!) is the food. Reception fare can range from small plate hors d’oeuvres to a casual buffet or a formal multi-course dinner. Including a menu in the overall wedding decorations plans lets guests know what to expect.

Wedding menus can take a variety of forms. For a buffet, you could suggest a large sign at the beginning of the line and then have each of the choices individually labeled as well. For a seated dinner, couples may opt for printed wedding menu cards displayed on the table or put atop each place setting.

While the menu style should be simple, elegant and easy-to-read all while coordinating with the overall design aesthetic, you can help clients add some flair with how the menus are displayed.

For large menu signs next to a buffet, use a chalkboard or even have vinyl letters cut at a sign shop and adhere them to a piece of wood. For menus at the table, display them in a frame or adorn them with ribbon or foliage at each place setting.

Wedding Props

Back in the day, wedding photos were formally posed and, let’s face it, pretty boring. But no more. Today’s couples are having much more fun with their photos. And props are playing a starring role.

From simple signs and banners that say “Just Married” or “Happily Ever After” to elaborate storybook backdrops, props can not only make wedding photos more visually interesting but also more personalized for you. As with all the other wedding decorations, any props used should align with the overall wedding theme as well as match your personality and style.

Wedding Arch

A wedding archway creates a beautiful backdrop for wedding photos because of how it naturally frames the couple. Like other wedding decorations, arches can range from simple to elaborate and should align with the overall design aesthetic. They can incorporate natural wood adorned with flowers or be a simple metal frame wrapped in fabric and ribbons.

Wedding Party Favors

As the festivities are winding down, you want to have a way to say thanks to everyone for attending. Wedding souvenirs for guests are a lovely way to show appreciation while also commemorating the occasion.

Food gifts are typically inexpensive wedding favors that are not only tasty but also look nice on display when used as part of the overall reception décor. Smores kits, specialty cookies and miniature pies in a jar are delicious and appeal to any age. Package homemade granola in colorful wedding favor boxes with pretty ribbons. Gourmet coffee beans or epicurean tea blends also make for delicious gifts. And local honey is a sweet treat sure to be enjoyed .Small items for use around the home also make great party favors. Handcrafted soaps and candles are always welcome. Bottle openers are handy, and matchboxes are making a comeback. (Perhaps pair a candle and a matchbox?) Candy like these “Mint To Be Together” mints are easy wedding favors.

 Our staff has so many great unique ideas that can be handcrafted, we will lead you in right direction with some suggestions. We will have amazing personalized presents for all the guests.