September 2020 - Bridebook

Post-Quarantine Wedding Trends

After weeks of being inside, forced apart from our nearest and dearest, weddings seem like a lifetime away. And yet, the day will come when life will be full of loved ones, laughter and celebration once more. We can expect some significant effects on weddings to come later this year and into 2021.

The 2021 wedding season will not be without its challenges. With 64% of 2020 weddings expected to be pushed-back, 2021 is set to be a busy one. Couples will have to make quick decisions on dates, to get first dibs on the date they want. Guests can expect many more clashes, and midweek weddings than ever, making things a little more challenging. On the bright side, we’ll have a way to use up all of those saved holiday days…

Post-coronavirus, we can expect that weddings will be bigger, bolder, and even more full of meaning. Everyone is longing for the days of confetti, cake, and bubbly, and we have the scoop on the trends you can expect to see post-lockdown.

Digital Guests:

One thing that has come from this period of change and online socialising is the normalisation of online meeting services, such as zoom. Travel restrictions may persist for some time, and we expect two-thirds of weddings post-lockdown to have at least some guests attending virtually. For elderly relatives, as well as friends and family living in far-flung destinations, digital access will be a great way for them to still be able to attend these special moments, even if just remotely.

Courageous Fashion Choices:

After what feels like months of wearing the same pair of leggings and jumpers, everyone will be jumping at the chance to dress up and look their best. We can expect adventurous guest fashion, with brighter, more fashion-forward dresses and bolder jewellery choices.

It won’t just be guests making bold statements; we are seeing a 50% increase in the popularity of statement veils (probably thanks to Mrs. Bieber). We can expect to see many more brides making this trend their own, embroidering their veils with meaningful quotes or even initials. Alongside an increase in statement veils, we are also seeing a rise in catwalk-inspired statement sleeves and pearl-embellished dresses, seen at the likes of Dior and Chanel.

Classic Blue was announced as the Pantone colour of the year, so expect a great revival in the something blue, something borrowed tradition, featuring this beautiful shade. Think blue in newly trending hair barrettes, jewelry and even the bases of high heels!

Post-credit-crunch, boho brides were on the rise, and this trend is set to explode once more. Many 2021 brides will be going for the ethereal look, with wearable florals, and bridal crowns taking center stage.

Creative Wedding Decor:

If you thought wedding creativity had reached its peak, just you wait. With more time than ever to d think about wedding details, we can expect a move away from some more traditional elements to more creative and modern takes on decor. Some creative couples will be changing up the traditional seating charts, instead painting table lists on flower-filled glass boxes. Floral hoops have also been growing in popularity, with growing in popularity by 80% this year, alongside hanging floral decorations and flower-filled aisles.

Post quarantine, there will be a revival of the Do-it-yourself Bride and Groom. Around three-quarters of weddings will include some DIY elements, as couples cut costs where they can (and have more time on their hands!), with DIY-couples saving a combined £20million. We are looking forward to personalised table settings, wedding favours, and decor, such as photo displays.

Wedding Food Trends:

With so many couples caring more than ever about sustainability and the environment, it is no wonder that there has been a shift to a focus on menu seasonality, as well as plastic and waste reduction. With many couples aiming to create as little environmental impact as possible, the increase in zero-plastic and reduced-waste weddings could save more than 15,000 tonnes of wedding waste from ending up in landfills (that’s 100 blue whales!). From invitations made of recycled paper, vegan menus and leftover composting, we can safely assume that the sustainable wedding trend is here to stay and will explode in 2021. We imagine many couples will be donating leftover flowers to local hospitals and hospices, which hopefully will be a trend that will stick.

As for the sweet stuff, we predict a shift away from the traditional and pricy wedding cakes that often remain uneaten, to more exciting offerings. Unique grab and go dessert displays, such as doughnut walls will come into their own (there are almost 100,000 posts under the hashtag #donutwall on Instagram!).

Weddings are all about individuality and celebrating who the couple truly is. We are expecting food and drink that pay homage to the backgrounds of the couple, whether that is custom messages in fortune cookies or cocktails made with a type of Slovakian cherry liquor. More and more couples will be selecting super-personal menus, such as family favourite desserts, or cocktails named after people and places that mean something to the couple and their families.

Party Central:

After the storm of COVID, when weddings begin again, they are set to go on till the early hours. Where there is partying, there is midnight feasting. Guests can expect to be sustained with anything from sweet treat grazing tables, to late-night pasta pots to keep them dancing the night away.

Missing happy hour has become a national tragedy, and it’s coming back in a big way – think serve-yourself prosecco taps, experimental cocktails, and boozy popsicles like frozen rose, mimosas, and mojitos making their way onto a dancefloor near you.

It’s only natural that with happy hour, comes confidence in dance ability. Learning a Tiktok dance became a quarantine right of passage, and newly married couples will be eager to show off their new fancy footwork. Be prepared for some seriously questionable, but hilarious first dances.

Registry Remix:

Many couples feel that this period has put things into perspective, as well as made many questioning what gifts they can live without. Cutlery and crystal bowls are a nice memento, but lots of couples are forgoing the regular registry list, asking for experiences, not things. More will be asking for starter funds for a new home, a pet, or for their honeymoons. Charity registries will also become the norm, with more and more couples wanting to donate to a cause they feel passionate about.

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16 Green Wedding Ideas To Make Your Wedding Eco-Friendly

We love weddings. Like, really love them. (Can you tell?) But even we have to admit that they can be pretty wasteful affairs. Planning a sustainable wedding might sound daunting, but we promise it’s not as tricky as you might expect – so have a think about whether or not you can find a place for something green (and something borrowed!) alongside your something blue. Here are our top tips to get you started.

Bride walking in field wearing re-use wedding dress

Resell your wedding dress or suit

Of all the items of clothing you own, we bet that whatever you wear on your wedding day will have the most sentimental value. But if you can bear to part with it, consider selling it on or handing it down to someone else. It’s an easy way to make a little cash back while reducing your wedding’s impact.

Want 10% off when you sell your wedding dress? Head over to Stillwhite, the world’s largest second-hand wedding dress marketplace.

Opt for online invitations

Your wedding stationery is one aspect of your wedding you just can’t cut. At the end of the day, your guests need to know where to go! But there are loads of eco-friendly alternatives that don’t end up with piles of wasted paper. For example, there’s no reason that e-invites can’t be just as gorgeous as traditional stationery! Why not email your guests a link to a personalised video of you and your other half or set up an awesome wedding website?

Orsett Hall Hotel and Restaurant wedding venue

Choose a venue close to home

Having an eco-friendly wedding doesn’t necessarily mean getting married on a farm or in a field! Travel can be one of the most significant contributors to a wedding’s carbon footprint so if you want to go green, try to pick a venue that’s within easy reach of you and your guests. You might want to think about choosing somewhere that’s accessible by public transport too.

Organise a wedding coach for your guests

If lots of your guests are coming to your venue from the same place, you could organise a wedding coach to take them all there and back in one go. It’s an easy way to make sure everyone turns up on time too!

Set up carpooling

Encourage your guests to travel together where possible and help them sort out carpooling arrangements. Ask your guests to let you know if they’ll have a free spot in their car when they RSVP, then match them up with another guest in need of a lift. It’ll likely save your guests a little on fuel costs too!

Buy any clothing second-hand

Remember, it’s not just you and your other half who will be buying an outfit for the wedding. Everyone in the wedding party from the best man to the flower girl will most likely be wearing something special. A great way to be a little greener – and to save a few pennies! – is to opt for pre-loved items from a vintage boutique or charity shop. Another alternative is to explore hiring any dresses or suits needed for the wedding party. After all, they’ll probably only wear them once!

Avoid single-use items

Like your wedding invitations, little details like place cards and table numbers can quickly end up meaning mountains of paper, card and plastic left over after your big day. One easy option is to look for recyclable or biodegradable materials when choosing your designs. If you have a little more cash to spare, another idea we love is doubling up your place cards with your wedding favours so that your guests have a keepsake to take away with them, rather than something to be thrown away.

But our favourite idea? Edible place cards. Order cookies with your guests’ names written on them in icing. We can guarantee there’ll be nothing left at the end of your big day!

Make conscious jewellery choices

We know, we know – it’s hardly the most romantic thing to think about, but it’s important to be conscious of the impact your wedding and engagement rings can have on the planet and its people. Diamonds and other gems are often sourced unsustainably and unethically, as are many precious metals. To avoid participating in a potentially problematic trade, make sure to look for conflict-free materials, investigate vintage or recycled options or look into lab-grown options.

Celebrate by candlelight

Your electricity bill might be the last thing on your mind on your wedding day – and rightly so, in our opinion! – but considering energy-saving strategies is an easy way to make your big day a little more sustainable. Try turning off unnecessary lights and lighting your venue with candles instead. On top of being eco-friendly, it’ll create a gorgeous, romantic atmosphere! Just make sure you check that your venue’s happy with open flames.

Make up artist putting sustainable make up on bride to be on wedding day

Use sustainable makeup

Why not switch out some of your products for cruelty-free, zero-waste or locally produced alternatives? We’d never recommend trying something new for the first time on your wedding day so this is definitely one you’ll want to plan ahead. If you’re having your makeup done professionally, ask your makeup artist whether they use any sustainable products or quiz any makeup-loving friends on their cruelty-free recommendations.

Stay seasonal

Flowers play a big role in almost every wedding and aren’t something we’d ever recommend skipping out on! But they can have an undeniable impact on your wedding’s carbon footprint, whether that’s because of how they’re disposed of or how they’re imported. Our top tip is to prioritise flowers that are a) local and b) seasonal where possible. It’s a often fab way to save some pennies too as your flowers have less far to travel.

Vegetable and cheese tower served on table

Go veggie (or vegan!)

Whether you go completely vegan or just opt to reduce the number of meat dishes on offer, exploring eco-friendly options for your catering is an easy way to go green. And don’t worry – it’s not 2003! Going veggie doesn’t mean limiting yourself to mediocre mushroom risottos and sad stuffed peppers. Nowadays, there are loads of caterers offering fabulous vegan and veggie options. If you do still want to serve meat, try to prioritise local and organic produce where possible to decrease your wedding’s environmental impact.

Avoid flower foam

An easy eco win is to check if your florist uses flower foam in their designs. This foam is much like single-use plastic and can be harmful to humans and animals through prolonged contact, especially if it seeps into water supplies. Our advice would be to avoid flower foam where possible and look for eco-friendly alternatives.

Buy biodegradable

Buying decorations made out of biodegradable materials is an easy way to lower the environmental impact of your wedding. This is especially important when it comes to wedding staples like confetti, as well as balloons and lanterns.

Confetti is one of the biggest offenders when it comes to the environmental impact of weddings. Fortunately, there’s loads of biodegradable options out there, as well as more traditional eco-friendly options like rose petals or rice. For extra green points, you could even gather flowers from your own garden (or a friend’s) and dry the petals yourself.

And, as much as we love them, balloons and lanterns are potentially very harmful to the environment if not disposed of correctly. If you do want a lantern display, be careful to look for biodegradable materials and be careful of where you release them.

Amazing wedding decoration hired out in barn wedding venue

Hire what you can

Not only are wedding decorations often un-environmental, they’re also expensive! Why not hire your decorations? You can be sure they’ll be reused time and time again while also saving some cash yourself. Plus, hiring your decorations often means being able to afford higher quality pieces, adding a little luxury to your day!

People celebrating at wedding party with biodegradable confetti in the air

Go for gifts that keep giving!

While we always love a wedding favour, they’re not at all a necessity! Being invited to your wedding is gift enough for your guests! So why not think about making a charity donation with the money you save? If you really do want to buy favours, you could explore options that let your guests make a positive impact on the environment themselves. For example, you might gift them with a packet of seeds to grow their own flowers.

There you have it – some amazing green wedding ideas for a gorgeous, environmentally-friendly wedding!

Love Quotes to Inspire Your Wedding Vows

We have been told that love happens gradually, that falling in love is like listening to the tune of a lullaby or a slow song, tender and beautiful. We have been told that love is supposed to be there all along while you blindly engage in different pursuits.

But one day, you realize that you have been hit by love, the sudden urge to make somebody yours. The tune to your favourite song, the shade of your t-shirt, the colour of their skin; everything matches with the hues of your heart that cannot stop falling for them.

Love is bliss, and expressing it is heaven. Therefore, we bring you some romantic love quotes to let your partner know how deeply in head over heels you are smitten with them.

Beautiful Love quotes

“One word frees us of all the weight and pain of life: That word is love.” -Sophocles.

“For small creatures such as we the vastness is bearable only through love.” – Carl Sagan.

“If I had a flower for every time I thought of you… I could walk through my garden forever.” – Alfred Tennyson.

“You know when you’re in love when you can’t fall asleep because reality is finally better than your dreams.” – Dr. Seuss.

“Love is the condition in which the happiness of another person is essential to your own.” – Robert A. Heinlein, Stranger in a Strange Land.

“But the heart’s not like a box that gets filled up. It expands in size the more you love.” –’Her,’ the movie.

“There is no remedy for love, but to love more.” – Thoreau.

“There’s only one thing that cuts through all our realities, and that’s love—the bridge between all our differences.” – The L Word.

“Some love stories aren’t epic novels. Some are short stories, but that doesn’t make them any less filled with love.” – Sex and the City.

“All, everything that I understand, I understand only because I love.” – Leo Tolstoy, War, and Peace.

“Give in to love, or live in fear.” – Rent.

“Because through love, we feel the intensity of our connection to everything and everyone. And at the core, we are all the same. We’re all one.” – Loving Annabelle.

Married couple in love standing next to each other with sunset in background

Funny Love Quotes

“I love being married. It’s so great to find one special person you want to annoy for the rest of your life.” -Rita Rudner.

“Love is the same as like, except you feel sexier.” – Judith Viorst.

“Marriage is our last, best chance to grow up.” – Joseph Barth.

“Love is a two-way street constantly under construction.” – Carroll Bryant.

“Love is a snowmobile racing across the tundra, and then suddenly it flips over, pinning you underneath. At night, the ice weasels come.” – Matt Groening, The Big Book of Hell.

“All you need is love. But a little chocolate now and then doesn’t hurt.” – Charles M. Schulz.

“I love being married. It’s so great to find that one special person you want to annoy for the rest of your life.” – Rita Rudner.

“Love is something sent from heaven to worry the hell out of you.” – Dolly Parton.

“I just happened to be nowhere near your neighborhood.” – Singles.

“I’m afraid once your heart is involved, it all comes out in moron.” – Gilmore Girls.

“Falling in love is not at all the most stupid thing that people do, but gravitation cannot be held responsible for it.” – Albert Einstein.

“Real love amounts to withholding the truth, even when you’re offered the perfect opportunity to hurt someone’s feelings.” – David Sedaris.

Couple in love sitting in field laughing

Cute Love Quotes

“Love is a friendship set to music.” – Joseph Campbell.

“Love is a single soul inhabiting two bodies.” – Aristotle.

“I think I’d miss you even if we never met.” – The Wedding Date.

“When you’re a kid, you assume your parents are soulmates. My kids are going to be right about that.” – The Office.

“So excuse me forgetting but these things, I do you see, I’ve forgotten if they’re green or they’re blue. Anyway, the thing is, what I really mean yours are the sweetest eyes I’ve ever seen.” – Elton John, “Your Song.”

“Nobody has ever measured, not even poets, how much the heart can hold.”– Zelda Fitzgerald.

“Two people in love, alone, isolated from the world, that’s beautiful.” – Milan Kundera.

“True love stories never have endings.” – Richard Bach.

“The best and most beautiful things in the world cannot be seen or even touched—they must be felt with the heart.” – Helen Keller.

“Deep within us — no matter who we are — there lives a feeling of wanting to be lovable, of wanting to be the kind of person that others like to be with. And the greatest thing we can do is to let people know that they are loved and capable of loving.” – Fred Rogers

“The greatest thing you’ll ever learn is just to love and be loved in return.” – Nat King Cole, “Nature Boy” lyrics.

Cute couple in love holding hands on date at restaurant

Quotes About Marriage

“A successful marriage requires falling in love many times, always with the same person.”- Mignon McLaughlin.

“The minute I heard my first love story, I started looking for you, not knowing how blind that was. Lovers don’t finally meet somewhere. They’re in each other all along.” – Rumi

“To be fully seen by somebody, then, and be loved anyhow – this is a human offering that can border on miraculous.”– Elizabeth Gilbert, Committed: A Skeptic Makes Peace with Marriage.

“If I get married, I want to be very married.” – Audrey Hepburn.

“I love you without knowing how, or when, or from where. I love you simply, without problems or pride: I love you in this way because I do not know any other way of loving but this, in which there is no I or you, so intimate that your hand upon my chest is my hand, so intimate than when I fall asleep your eyes close.” – Pablo Neruda, 100 Love Sonnets.

“Love recognizes no barriers. It jumps hurdles, leaps fences, penetrates walls to arrive at its destination full of hope.”– Maya Angelou.

“I am nothing special, of this, I am sure. I am a common man with common thoughts, and I’ve led a common life. There are no monuments dedicated to me, and my name will soon be forgotten, but I’ve loved another with all my heart and soul, and to me, this has always been enough.”– Nicholas Sparks, The Notebook.

“If I had a flower for every time I thought of you… I could walk through my garden forever.”– Alfred Tennyson.

“Being deeply loved by someone gives you strength while loving someone deeply gives you courage.”– Lao Tzu.

“We’re all a little weird. And life is a little weird. And when we find someone whose weirdness is compatible with ours, we join up with them and fall into mutually satisfying weirdness – and call it love – true love.”– Robert Fulghum, True Love.

Married couple standing in field at sunset

Love Quotes from Literature

“Each time you happen to me all over again.” – The Age of Innocence, Edith Wharton

“Grow old along with me! The best is yet to be.” Rabbi Ben Ezra – Robert Browning.

“I’ve never had a moment’s doubt. I love you. I believe in you completely; you are my dearest one. My reason for Life.” Atonement – Ian McEwan

“Who, being loved, is poor?” —Oscar Wilde, A Woman of No Importance

“Perhaps, after all, the romance did not come into one’s life with pomp and blare, like a gay knight riding down; perhaps it crept to one’s side like an old friend through quiet ways; perhaps it revealed itself in seeming prose until some sudden shaft of illumination flung athwart its pages betrayed the rhythm and the music, perhaps… perhaps… love unfolded naturally out of a beautiful friendship, as a golden-hearted rose slipping from its green sheath.” — Lucy Maud Montgomery, Anne of Avonlea.

“To love or have loved, that is enough. Ask nothing further. There is no other pearl to be found in the dark folds of life.” —Victor Hugo, Les Misérables.

“When you love something, it loves you back in whatever way it has to love.” —John Knowles, A Separate Peace.

“A love story is not about those who lose their heart but about those who find that sullen inhabitant who, when it is stumbled upon, means the body can fool no one, can fool nothing— not the wisdom of sleep or the habit of social graces. It is a consuming of oneself and the past.” —Michael Ondaatje, The English Patient.

“We love the things we love for what they are.” —Robert Frost, Hyla Brook.

“The way her body existed only where he touched her. The rest of her was smoke.” —Arundhati Roy, The God of Small Things.

“In love, there are two things—bodies and words.” —Joyce Carol Oates.

“I have learned not to worry about love; but to honor its coming with all my heart.” —Alice Walker.

“All, everything that I understand, I understand only because I love.” —Leo Tolstoy, War, and Peace.

Couple in love sitting together on blanket

The best thing that we can do in life is love. Love should come to humans as easy as breathing. Therefore, with these famous love quotes, let your partner know how much you mean to them. Which is your favourite quote on love?

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20 Amazing Wedding Food Ideas

You have found the one whom your soul loves, and it is time for the next chapter of your story to begin!

The wedding bells bring along nervousness and euphoria, which keep adding to the album of memories. Marriage being one pious milestone the couple achieves for spending the eternity together. From kneeling with a ring to choosing the theme, from picking the right shoes to finally walking down the aisle, everything contributes to achieving your fairytale wedding.

So, to help you strike off one of the most crucial parts of your wedding checklist, we bring to you 20 amazing wedding food ideas that take care of your guests’ hunger pangs.

1. Pie Station

Pie station offering delicious pies at wedding

Everything will be alright; all you need is a pie! To amp up, your wedding menu must have a super cute pie station. A bonus tip is worth checking if your caterer can heat the pies for you. Serve slices from large pies or small pie pop-tarts, and everything will be okay if the dessert is this tasty!

2. Sushi Bar

If you and your partner are a big sushi fan, then a Sushi Bar will truly add some fun to your wedding! Serve your guests with some sushi and wine, and they will all relish the fine dine.

3. Tacos & Nachos Station

Delicious looking tacos served at tacos and nachos bar at wedding

Nothing can ever go wrong with Tacos & Nachos. So set up a spicy corner to ensure your guests don’t just cry listening to your wedding vows.

4. French Fry Cones

French fry cone with tomato ketchup dip served at wedding

On your wedding day, keep your friends close and your French Fries closer! These drool-worthy snack time companions can reasonably accompany your guests while you exchange rings.

5. Pizza Pies

Fill your wedding with positivity and pizza pies. We are sure that your guests will fall in love with this gourmet snack with the first bite. Crunchy and flavourful crust loaded with extra cheese will leave you wanting more!

6. Pizza Bar

Pizza bar serving mouth-watering pizzas at wedding

No matter what happens, pizza will always be there for you, thick and thin, in the crust we trust. So set up a Pizza Bar at your wedding and trust the game that follows!

7. Oyster Bar

Let’s bring the oceans to your feet with delicious oyster loaded bar tables. A tremendous little oyster station always tops the charts when it comes to fantastic wedding food ideas.

8. Waffle Bites

We hope that you and your partner go along like waffles and coffee. Setting up a small waffle corner to help your single guests find themselves people with similar tastes catalyzes falling in love at a wedding. It will make a great love story, and you and your partner will be dawned as the matchmakers.

9. Spanish Paella

Flavoursome Spanish paella being cooked for wedding

Spanish Paella is the perfect menu option to add to your wedding day. Don’t be surprised if all you end up doing is passing the Sangria and Paella because this one does garner all the attention!

10. Ice Cream Bar

Ice cream bar with many tasty flavours at wedding

The only thing that can make your wedding day better is an Ice Cream Bar. After all, ice cream is always a good idea. Choco-chip, vanilla, blueberry, cookies and cream, buttered pecans are our top picks amongst the never-ending options.

11. Candy Floss Station

Reminisce your childhood with your partner with these sugar-laden candies. Also, pastel pinks will amplify your decor. Set up an enchanted Candy Floss Station and make your dream wedding come true because dreams taste like candy floss!

12. Doughnut Wall

Doughnut wall holding plenty of tasty doughnuts of different flavours at wedding

The key ingredients to any successful wedding are rings, be it diamonds or doughnuts! These Doughnut walls will fortify a strong bond for your marriage and leave the guests busy helping themselves. Doughnuts are incredibly delicious with their signature bakery taste and texture.

13. Fried Asparagus

Even if you don’t care for asparagus, you will love these super crunchy and crispy Fried Asparagus. It’s cheesy, it’s crunchy, and goes well with all kinds of dinners.

14. Popcorn Station

Popcorn station serving appetising popcorn at wedding

Life is salty, but love is sweet. Your guests will help themselves with this tasty treat! Thank the popcorns for popping to celebrate your W-Day. Keep the love popping with some salty and some caramelized popcorns.

15. Churro Bites

Your guests are the cinnamon to your Churro wedding. Satiate your taste buds with these delectable options to add to your menu because these will brighten moods and enliven the evening. Get these handy bites to control your hunger pangs.

16. Bubble Tea

Bubble Tea station at wedding serving many flavoursome bubble teas of different flavours

No cup is going to be your last with a Bubble Tea station nearby. Be ready for your wedding parTEA with some delicious cups of bubble tea. Besides, chocolate cookies can complement your high-tea party really well.

17. Chocolate-covered Bacon

Chocolate-covered bacon might win the award for the most heavenly dish on the platter as you can accumulate all the best flavours in just one plate. Having a corner for chocolate-covered bacon is definitely a win-win situation for the wedding to leave a long-lasting impression on the attendees.

18. Cake Pops

Are you stressed about your wedding? Well, stressed is desserts spelled backward, and what’s better than sharing a cake pop with your better half. Sugarcoat everything with a cake corner. After all, a piece of cake is happiness with icing on top.

19. Watermelon Pops

With all these fantastic wedding food ideas listed above, you might as well include some watermelon pops for an extremely relaxed wedding. All that standing and the last minute preparations need you to sit down and relax with some watermelon pops.

20. Omelette Bar

Omelette bar at wedding with person making delicious omelettes

What’s better than cracking a joke to entertain your guests? Crack an egg, whisk it with your favourite ingredients into an omelette and top it off with your chosen seasonings! It will absolutely be a delight for your taste buds and your guests’.

Nothing brings together people like good food, and lasting impressions are given way through the palate. Spice up your wedding day with some fantastic flavors that will melt in your mouth and the wafting aroma to keep the stomachs of the guests rumbling.

These food options are our top picks to help you plan your perfect wedding. So make sure to use these wedding buffet ideas to add gorgeous looking and way tastier food options to capture enough limelight in your wedding album!

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16 Best DIY Wedding Ideas

Beautifully decorated wedding venue with white flowers

Many of you might be thinking of hiring a wedding planner to plan your wedding and get your wedding venue decorated. But Wait! There’s another fantastic way in which you can get a stylish wedding touch on your own.

Yes, you’ve read it correctly, you can do it on your own, and that’s why we’re here with the best DIY wedding decoration ideas that will truly amaze your guests.

So, if you both fall under the umbrella of budget-friendly or décor-savvy couples who want to tackle the decoration process independently, then prepare to be the best temporary wedding planner your wedding ceremony will ever see!

From Bride & Groom Bucket List to Photo Family Tree, the 16 best DIY Wedding Ideas mentioned below will genuinely embrace your wedding ceremony’s beauty.

1. Use Bridebook’s Free Wedding Planning App

Become your own wedding planner with the Bridebook app. Search for wedding venues, and all the wedding suppliers you need like caterers, photographers, florists and so much more!

Stay organised with your Wedding Checklist, manage all your guests with the Wedding Guest list tool, and manage your costs with the personalised Budget Planner. You can also invite as many collaborators as you’d like to join you on your wedding planning journey.

So what are you waiting for? Sign up and download the free Bridebook Wedding Planning App now!

2. Bride & Groom Bucket List

Similar to the guestbook, another popular and unique idea is the Bride & Groom Bucket List. It is super fun and also relatively easy to create. In this list, you can add all the things that you and your partner can do together to strengthen your love and bond.

This will be a fun and creative idea for you and your partner and will surely give you some fantastic ideas for activities to do during your wedding.

3. Ribbon Tied Chairs

Pink and blue ribbons tied to wedding chairs at beautiful beach wedding

Another unique way to add style to your wedding is by making the chairs look more impressive – tie beautiful ribbons around the back of the chairs.

Chair décor is one of the most overlooked details at the wedding, and the right embellishments or the wedding chair décor ideas will genuinely create a dramatic look for your special day.

4. Blackboard Wedding Program

While planning a wedding, it is vital to have a program so that the guests can have an idea of what will be happening in the entire wedding ceremony. For this, you can be creative enough by using a blackboard or a chalkboard to chalk out the complete wedding program.

5. Paper Lanterns

Beautiful paper lanterns hung at ceiling of barn wedding venue

Paper lanterns are beautiful enough that they will truly embrace your wedding décor.

The paper made lanterns will spark the inspiration to create your own one of a kind environment for your wedding day without breaking the bank. Paper lanterns are easy to make, which will combine lighting with table décor.

6. Self Portrait Guest Book

Ditch the photo guest book and just ask your artistic guests and relatives to draw self-portraits. You can allow space to your guests to fill it in with their amazing artwork and signatures, and the coloured Sharpies add to the fun.

7. Hanging Flowers

Lovely pink, white and yellow hanging flowers hung from ceiling of wedding venue above the wedding chairs

The hanging flowers or the flower chandeliers work amazingly to add beauty to your wedding. Wedding trends may come and go, but the trend of hanging flowers will remain the same.

Hanging flowers of different colors or the flower chandeliers will surely give your wedding a garden-fresh feel that your guests will truly love.

8. Pineapple Vase Centrepieces

With so many ideas of centrepieces, you can ditch all of them and give a try to the most trendy Pineapple Vase Centrepiece.

Hallowed pineapples will make a perfect and eye-catching Whimsical Pineapple vase that will truly capture your guests’ interest. The Pineapple Vase Centrepieces will look the best with the tropical flower blends.

9. Custom Balloons

Blue and white custom balloons near the ceiling of wedding venue

The colorful custom balloons will liven up your wedding event and will surely give a fantastic look to your wedding.

The various sizes, shapes, and colors of custom balloons are available easily online. You can get customized according to your need with cute pictures or cheeky slogans.

10. Bow Tie Napkins

Bow Tie Napkins are truly loved by all, and they give a cute and unique touch to the wedding décor ideas.

Instead of placing the napkins generally on the table, you can create a bow-tie shape of the napkins that will embrace the beauty of the table and will indeed prove to be a great tablescape at your wedding.

11. Flower Walls

White flower wall with married couple standing in front of flower wall

Floral Floral on the wall, they are the prettiest of them all! Flowers are a crucial part of the wedding, and right from the dainty wedding elements to the boisterous decorations, the presence of flowers embraces the entire wedding look.

A plethora of colorful flowers bunched together into a wall will look surreal and will take your wedding pictures to the next level.

12. Giant Paper Flowers

The giant paper flowers look amazing when they are part of a backdrop installation. Make a lot of giant paper flowers of different colors, and then combine all of them to be a part of the backdrop installation. This will give an eye-popping look to your wedding decoration.

13. Woodland Floral Centrepieces

Woodland floral centrepiece at wedding table

As said earlier that flowers are an essential part without which the wedding décor is incomplete. So here we are with another flower décor idea that involves Woodland Inspired Floral Centrepieces.

If you plan a rustic themed wedding, you can ditch the flower vases and display flowers in old tree logs that will give a unique touch of earthy vibes to your wedding.

14. Blanket Wedding Aisle

Your grand entrance right down the aisle is one of the most unique and special moments during your wedding.

There are amazing aisle runners out there, but you can be creative enough by using colourful blankets as an innovative alternative to aisle runners. It will surely fit perfectly in any of the wedding themes.

15. Customised Lawn Games

To add some kind of fun and spark to your wedding, you can arrange some customised lawn games for your guests to keep your guests engaged. With the best wedding lawn games, you can keep guests of all ages entertained at an outdoor wedding.

So, if you have a large lawn to work with, then it may be fun to set up multiple games so that everyone who wants to play can get a chance.

16. Photo Family Tree

Last but not least, a photo family tree is a great way to enhance the look of your wedding décor.

For this, you just need pictures of your family and your couple’s photos, some decoration elements like ribbons, lights, and maybe even a tree. And then you can decorate the tree and hang the pictures on it with ribbon. This will look pretty amazing.

So, how did you find these fantastic DIY Wedding Decoration Ideas? Aren’t they amazing? These DIY wedding ideas are budget-friendly, and they will let you create a whole new stylish look at your wedding without costing you much.

So what are you waiting for? Just grab the required items that you will need and start preparing for creating an excellent DIY wedding decoration.

Looking for some more wedding inspiration? Why not check out some of our other wedding articles:

Still looking for that incredible wedding venue for you and your partner? Have a browse of thousands of the best wedding venues all over the UK:

Sell your business back to success: why getting 2022 bookings now will secure your future success

This year has been an impossibly hard one for the wedding industry, but our industry is a resilient one. With 86% of 2020 wedding bookings now falling into 2021, Bridebook predicts that 2022 will be the biggest bumper year in wedding industry history. It is time for you to save your business, by focusing your marketing efforts on the future. Bridebook has developed a 4 step strategy to help you sell your business back to success and to make it through 2020.

STEP 1: Decide on a realistic timescale for a return of meaningful weddings.

The first step is for you, to decide when you think you’ll be able to sell ‘meaningful’ weddings again. By this, we mean weddings in a more ‘normal’ state: more guests, more flexibility and most importantly, more room for profit.

A survey in the UK Wedding Venues Slack Group showed that 60% of venues would suggest March 2021 as the very earliest for the return of meaningful weddings. You need to be considering what this means for your business in terms of potential loss and then get creative with your short term venue & marketing.

How can you support your business and bring in revenue now? Here are a few of our short term recommendations:

Host 30 person weddings, as long as there’s a return on investment (ROI): The Government update of 9th September limits social gatherings, indoors and outdoors, to 6 people only. Whilst this may feel like a step back, the good news is that this does not include weddings, which can go ahead with receptions of 30 people. Venues have been battling huge challenges of couples wanting refunds, only to go and host bigger receptions at home or in the pub. Couples who wanted refunds are already starting to request receptions for 30, now that their plans have been made ‘illegal’. Venues need to use this update to their maximum advantage, and market all availability for 30 person receptions to keep revenue, even if small ROI, coming in.
Got accommodation? Host families or small groups of friends as a B&B or holiday venue. A great example of this is how Hedsor House has flipped their marketing to being a ‘luxury country retreat’ and offering takeover of the venue to families, friends or couples.
Lights, camera, ACTION! Could your beautiful, unique, quirky venue be used for filming?! There are many location agencies (eg Lavish Locations & Shoot Factory) that promote venues to location agencies and then take a commission.
Get your chefs cooking up a storm – why not turn your venue into a temporary restaurant? Quantock Lakes have launched “Kitchen at Quantock Lakes” – allowing them to welcome new guests and most importantly, bring in new revenue.

Whilst we wait for meaningful weddings to return, we also highly recommend doing a cost-cutting exercise for your venue. Are there any ‘less necessary’ overheads you can forgo for the time being? Spending the time going back through your books and cutting even a few overheads (e.g. phone bills) could mean assuring keeping a team member, paying an electricity bill and saving your business.

STEP 2: Focus your attention 2022

The second step is to focus your mind on 2022 (and beyond). The lack of news from the Government is keeping our attention focused on the here and now. Not helped by the combination of the old and new CMA guidance, which is forcing venues into a myriad of legal issues. To avoid putting your head in the sand and digging yourself into a worse cash position, start focusing on 2022 and its revenue-generating potential.

Bridebook statistics prove that the future is much more secure and has the potential to save your business:

17,500 couples have signed up to Bridebook since the beginning of August (+15% YOY) clearly showing that the business for 2022 & beyond is readily available for you to secure.
Roughly 50% of these users are planning their wedding in 2022 or later.
For the users who have put 2021 as their wedding year, 60% are planning to have their wedding in the second half of the year.
57% of all enquiries sent since the beginning of August are for 2022 or later.

Couples are ready to pay deposits and secure their future wedding dates now. Deposits taken for future bookings gives you money in the bank and keeps your business tick over.

What actions can you take immediately to support 2020 revenue generation…?

STEP 3: Take action and turn 2022 into a bumper year for your business.

The third step to consider is how to start marketing your 2022 (and beyond) to ensure that it is your best year yet. 2022 is likely to be the year that saves the wedding industry – so how can you make the most of it?

Review your existing 2022 calendar – get a strong view on your availability – what dates, months, seasons are currently available for bookings? Use this knowledge to frame your marketing efforts. E.g. if you have a large amount of Autumn and Winter dates available, how can you use imagery to highlight these dates specifically?
Challenge yourself with the number of weddings you can host. Which days can you host weddings on – can you do more?
- For example, if you usually only host 2 weddings per week, see if you can host 3, or even 4.
- Stretch yourself to make the maximum amount of revenue during this undoubtedly busy year – this is your opportunity to recover your losses.
Set clear KPIs and goals for you and your team, to ensure you are motivated to hit sales targets for 2022 & beyond.
Focus on marketing your high value, priority dates first. Get the peak season dates sold first, as these deposits will do more to support your business in the short term.
- Selling all your Saturdays in July and August for 2022 would give your venue security for that year, and also cash flow to get you through these hard times now.
If your venue only has a summer license – can you re-address this? Can you start doing events in the shoulder season, or winter, to increase your opportunity for revenue?
- Local councils may be more flexible with licensing, so it is worth asking.
Don’t forget to push sales into your ‘off-days’, and use your pricing strategy to support you.
- Similarly to above, you can use your dynamic pricing to push your mid-week dates, just as you can with your seasonal dates. E.g. “That Friday is booked, but the day before is free and is £XX less.”
Make the time to review your Pricing Strategy – pricing is your most powerful lever for revenue growth.
- Ensure your prices are dynamic, so you can increase your volume of sales significantly, and achieve a higher marginal price on each of these additional weddings.
- For example, you should have very different prices for your Saturday in August, than a Tuesday in February.
- You can use your dynamic pricing to fill your remaining dates & support your sales tactics. E.g. “Our September dates are busy but we have space in October and they are £XX less.
Review and optimise your Terms & Conditions for future bookings, to support healthy cash flow in the short term.
- Securing upfront deposits and booking fees for weddings in 2021/2 will be vastly easier than finding the equivalent cost savings in 2020.
- We have seen one venue make very smart amendments to their T&Cs so that the couple is “purchasing an option to use the facilities at VENUE “exclusively” of any other guests”. This has protected them during COVID. Couples are able to change the date but not liable for a refund.
Instead of using discounts for future sales, use upgrades (only if you need to!).
- Upgrades impact your cost of sales, whereas discounts directly hit your net profit. Giving a free late-night extension worth £1000 has a vastly smaller financial impact to a £1000 discount.
Get creative with your marketing: how can you stand out from the crowd? Every venue will be jumping aboard the 2022 sales push, so you need to go above & beyond. Here are some things to think about:
- Open day appointments/wedding fairs: how can you host these safely? Or virtually?
- Styled shoots: couples love to get inspiration for their own weddings through editorial pieces. Who can you partner with? Make sure to share it like mad after!
- Winter weddings: can you use any weddings from this Christmas in your marketing, to support sales for the 2021/22 festive seasons?
- Special Offers: how can you make booking far in advance irresistible to couples – what can you offer them?
Reach out to your Bridebook Venue Expert and become a VenuePro member today.
- VenuePro is the most powerful marketing tool available in our industry, with three options available to suit your venue.
- If you’d like a free consultation with one of our VenuePro Experts, please leave your details HERE.

STEP 4: Don’t forget 2023

We foresee 2022 as the bumper year to recover the wedding industry. Whilst you should be prioritising filling your 2022 calendar, we also highly recommend being prepared for the end of 2021 AND 2023 as they have the potential to be extremely busy as well.

You need to have your pricing strategy for 2023 in place sooner rather than later, so you do not lose out on potential business.

By putting Bridebook’s 4 Step strategy into action, you will be able to recover from 2020 and save your business. As our industry continues to go through such difficult times, remember that things will get better. Our industry is a resilient one, and people will never stop getting married – we just have to make it through the storm.

Bridebook are here to help our wonderful community as much as possible, so don’t hesitate to reach out. Our brilliant team of Venue Consultants would be delighted to chat with any venue wanting to learn how we can support you with our premium platform, VenuePro – just leave your details HERE.

We also highly encourage all venues to join the conversation. We have over 1000 venue professionals using the UK Wedding Venues Slack Group to communicate with each other every single day. Join for free now and make the most of valuable and supportive business advice and knowledge.

Stay strong, you got this. 💪

CMA Guidance – Time to stay strong and look ahead

9th October 2020: CMA News Update

I (Hamish Shephard, CEO & Founder of Bridebook) would like to share a very important update on the CMA guidance on refunds for wedding venues and suppliers. Details of the CMA’s agreement with Bijou Weddings have been released and the outcome gives extremely valuable insight on what is deemed as fair and reasonable by the CMA. Here is the key information:

THE CMA concluded the fair and reasonable amount Bijou could retain was up to 37.2% from weddings affected by COVID from 24th March 2020:

The CMA allowed retained costs to include proportions of planning costs, staff costs, venue repair and renewal, and cleaning or gardening amongst others.
This gives much further clarity to the CMA’s most recent guidance of 7th September, which has been regularly misinterpreted as a directive for full refunds.

The CMA’s breakdown is explained here:

The CEO of the CMA, Andrea Coscelli, confirmed the CMA’s confidence in the Bijou settlement as a benchmark for the industry in September. “It is good news that Bijou has agreed to offer fairer levels of refunds to its customers, and we encourage other firms in the industry to follow suit“

Another key part of the Bijou agreement was that the CMA confirmed that “Bijou will not have to give refunds to people who have already received, or are going to receive, their money back through their insurance.” This again puts pressure on the insurers to honour and payout on their insurance contracts.

We know discussion on refunds has been an incredibly tense and challenging topic for wedding businesses and couples over recent months, and hope this insight aids in reaching fair and amicable outcomes for both parties.

At Bridebook, we strongly encourage that the optimal outcome for all parties is postponement, rather than cancellation, in the majority of cases. This allows couples and businesses to not forgo incurred costs, for businesses to retain this future business, and all parties to enjoy the celebration at a later date.

We believe this insight into the CMA’s opinion will help give ongoing business confidence to wedding companies, give existing couples increasing confidence in their venue and suppliers, and adds needed pressure on the insurers.

I know these times are incredibly tough. The rollercoaster seems to never end, and the end is not yet in sight. But stay strong. We will get there.

2021 and 2022 will be incredibly busy wedding years. The COVID backlog of weddings will ensure the rapid recovery of our industry, the reflourishing of our wonderful businesses and the joy of hundreds of thousands of couples. Bridebook and I are dedicated to ensuring everyone gets there. This week, I have been on BBC News live and BBC Radio 4 live fighting for our industry and will continue to do so.

If I or the Bridebook team can help you in any way or you’d like to discuss anything further, please email [email protected].

The latest official guidance from the CMA can always be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/cma-covid-19-response#updates-from-the-cma

Stay strong,

Hamish Shephard

7th September 2020: CMA News Update

Wedding professionals, particularly venues, have been one of the most hard hit and under supported groups of businesses through the COVID-19 pandemic. Our industry, usually so full of joy and love, has been plagued by financial and emotional stress as weddings are postponed and cancelled. And sadly, the majority of venues are still sitting empty through our industry’s peak season

On 7th September 2020, the Competition & Markets Authority (CMA) updated their guidance on refunds and cancellations of wedding services due to the pandemic. The outcomes of this for wedding venue professionals are:

There will likely be an increase in requests for historic refunds / settlements from previous couples
The CMA want the venue to split the consumed costs with the couple, so be aware of this
We expect venues will be having even more difficult discussions with couples, as they have the CMA guidance on their side

As always, we recommend that venues remain firm and fair: do the absolute best for your couples whilst protecting your business. Also, do remember that whilst these guidelines are presented by the CMA to encourage reasonable and fair behaviour, the final determination of individual scenarios would only be given by a judge via a court escalation. For more information on this please read Explanation of CMA Guidance on Weddings & Refunds.

This guidance may not be what we wanted to read, but now more than ever, we must hold our heads high and continue to support each other. We must look to the brighter future to get through the ongoing difficult times we face.

How can you support influencing CMA advice, as a venue?

When the CMA first released their guidance on business refunds due to the pandemic, the Association of British Wedding Businesses’ Venues Committee members were impacted as venue owners, along with much of the wider industry with customer refund claims and threats of action from the CMA. They considered the guidance to be unbalanced and unfair, so formed the Wedding Venues Support Group (WVSG) to mount a legal challenge on the CMA. Over 170 venues have joined the Company and pledged over £60,000, used to instruct solicitors and deliver Target One, outlined in this flyer.

In light of the new CMA guidance, the WVSG are continuing their mission and are asking more venues to join this industry wide wedding venue initiative, as a united front. You can join as a member and pledge to support their fund HERE. New members will receive the full benefits of Target One legal advice and defences, and their subscriptions will be used to fund (for the benefit of all Members) Target Two, a Wedding Industry Standard Contract based on Counsel’s expert opinion, designed to be authoritative and CMA proof. If you have any questions, please email the team at [email protected].

Keep looking ahead – the future is brighter!

Keeping your head up and pushing to fill the diary with bookings for 2022 and beyond is the only way to keep afloat through these tricky times. The new CMA guidelines mean venues may need to issue a higher number of refunds, so continuing to bring in new revenue to support your cash flow is crucial. The end of 2021 and 2022 are going to be the busiest years for weddings in history, so now is the time to be securing that business as early as possible. After all, the pandemic has not stopped couples getting engaged; Bridebook has seen 17,500 new couples sign up since the beginning of August, which is up 15% YOY!

The Government update of 9th September limits social gatherings, indoors and outdoors, to 6 people only. Whilst this may feel like a step back, the good news is that this does not include weddings, which can go ahead with receptions of 30 people. Venues have been battling huge challenges of couples wanting refunds, only to go and host bigger receptions at home or in the pub. Couples who wanted refunds are already starting to request receptions for 30, now that their plans have been made ‘illegal’. Venues need to use this update to their maximum advantage, and market all availability for 30 person receptions to keep revenue coming in.

There are many ways to support your revenue stream to get through the storm. We highly recommend optimising your Terms & Conditions to promote a healthy cash flow. For example, securing upfront deposits & booking fees for future weddings will be much easier than trying to find the equivalent cost savings this year.

Secondly, make sure you take the time to review your Pricing Strategy. Pricing is your single biggest lever for revenue growth as a venue, so ensure you are being dynamic. For example, you should have very different prices for your Saturday in August, than a Tuesday in February – you need to be thinking how you can use your dynamic pricing to support your sales. Hamish Shephard, Bridebook CEO & Founder will be hosting a virtual Masterclass on creating a pricing strategy and using it to recover your business, so watch this space!

Finally, in order to be securing those new bookings, you need to get your venue in front of couples. This is not the time to drop your venue marketing – quite the opposite! Make sure you keep up your social media, website content and keep any online profiles up to date. If you are a VenuePro member, make sure you keep your Account Manager informed of any Special Offers you are promoting so we can push them to our community. If you are not a VenuePro member and would like to see how we can boost your marketing, please leave your details HERE. For advice on how to make the most of your social platforms, how to build content, the benefits of video tours and more, see our articles & videos here.

We are stronger together.

Our community is like no other; we are so lucky to be surrounded by genuinely caring, fun and resilient individuals in the wedding industry. Whilst coronavirus has caused terrible times for our industry, the one positive has been wedding venues coming closer together, which continues to be crucial during these turbulent times. The UK Wedding Venues Slack Group has been an incredible source of support for its 1000+ members, and we invite any venue who is not yet a member to join. A recent survey showed that 87% members would recommend the group to a friend, so what are you waiting for! We have been uplifted seeing venues coming together in all sorts of ways; whether it is to offer advice on a tricky situation, share personal experiences or just to jump on a video call with a glass of wine to de-stress.

Whilst the updated CMA guidelines are not what our industry was hoping for, we urge our venue community to not feel defeated. By working together, continuing to push for support from the Government and maintaining a view for the future, we will get through this.

15 Wedding Decoration Ideas

Whether you’re newly engaged or only a few weeks from your big day, we’re sure you’re imagining what your big day will look like. And that means thinking about decorations! Now, there are thousands of wedding decoration ideas to choose from that transform your venue into a real show-stopper. Here’s fifteen of our favourites to get you started.

Wedding fairy lights and ceiling drapes decorations that have transformed beautiful barn wedding venue

1. Fairylights

Everyone loves fairylights – and for good reason! They’re an easy way to add a little atmosphere to your big day. Your venue will look even more enchanting, lit up with twinkling fairylights in jam jars or along the walls. You could even string them through trees to create an enchanted forest feel.

2. Floral Arches

Whether you go for a more rustic arch that’s full of greenery and wildflowers or an elaborate floral sculpture which is overflowing with fresh blossoms, flower arches make for a fantastic focal point at your wedding ceremony or reception. In our opinion, more is more when it comes to flowers!

Pink flowers wedding chair decorations on white chairs for stunning beach wedding outdoors

3. Chair Decorations

It’s easy to overlook but we promise, giving a little thought to how you’ll decorate your chairs makes a big difference to the overall look and feel of your ceremony. As they say, the devil’s in the details! Whether you’re stuck with ugly plastic seating or you’ve brought in some gorgeous antique chairs, adding ribbons, fabric or flowers is a great way to take your wedding decorations to the next level.

4. Photo Walls

While you and your partner are at the centre of your wedding, it’s also about your two families coming together. Pay tribute to your loved ones with a gallery wall displaying photographs of your nearest and dearest. You could even give your guests polaroid cameras and add to the wall during your reception!

Candles wedding decorations as centrepiece of wedding table

5. Candles

Candles are a classic way to add a little atmosphere to any wedding ceremony or reception, no matter what your chosen style or theme. The options are endless, from tealights and votives to pillar and taper candles. Whether you use them as table centerpieces or dot them around your venue, your guests will be enchanted. And if you choose fragranced candles, they’ll even add a signature scent to your wedding!

6. Mirror Decals

Why not put a twist on traditional wedding signs by opting for mirror decals instead? They’re fast becoming one of the most popular wedding decoration trends, with gorgeous calligraphy popping up on ornate framed mirrors across the country. And everyone loves a mirror selfie – so they make for great photo ops too!

Wedding chalkboard sign next to wedding aisle at outdoor wedding

7. Chalkboards

Take a leaf out of your favourite coffee shop’s book and add a chalkboard to your wedding venue. Chalkboards are a super easy, DIY wedding decoration idea – and they’re functional too! You can use them to welcome your guests, direct them to their seats or display your menu.

8. Giant Letters

These have been popping up at weddings more and more over the last few years – and they’re definitely here to stay! Whether you keep things simple with you and your partner’s initials or spell out a special message, giant letters are a fab way to personalise your big day. If you’re going for a more modern wedding, tarnished metal and exposed bulbs will give your decorations an industrial feel, while those of you having rustic barn weddings might want to consider distressed wood instead. You can even position the letters so that they define different areas – for example, separating the dance floor from a quieter area.

9. Table Lamps

An easy way to add atmosphere to any room? Turn off the overhead lights. Opting for the soft, diffused light of table lamps instead will instantly take your wedding venue to the next level. We especially love table lamps for intimate weddings – their warm glow creates a gorgeously cosy feel.

10. Bespoke Table Plans

Yes, they’re a necessity – but that doesn’t mean your table plan has to be strictly functional! After all, all your guests will stop and look at it – so get creative and make it part of your wedding decorations. If you’ve opted for bespoke wedding stationery, why not see if your designer will make you a table plan that ties in with it? Or roll your sleeves up and get DIYing!

11. Ceiling Drapes

Instantly transform any venue with ceiling drapes. Whatever your wedding colours, you’ll be able to find a fabric to match. For a formal wedding, you might want to go for an elegant brilliant white, while soft linens are perfect for a more relaxed, rustic vibe. Or opt for brightly coloured fabrics to create a joyful atmosphere and lift your guests’ spirits!

12. Flower Walls

Flowers are a must at any wedding – so why not take things one step further with a whole flower wall? Focus on flowers that tie in with your wedding colours to keep things cohesive and create a fab focal point for your venue. Your guests will be completely wowed by the extravagant display – and it’s a fantastic spot for photographs too!

Wooden wedding sign outdoors showing wedding guests where wedding is

13. Signage

We’re sure you’ll need at least one sign at your wedding (even if it’s just for the loos!) so why not spend a little time making them decorations that tie in with your wedding theme? You’ll need a few practical signs to let people know where to go – try mixing in some extra signs printed with cute sayings and funny expressions to keep things fun!

14. Neon Signs

A quick scroll through Instagram is proof enough that neon signs are here to stay! Whether you dot lots of smaller ones around your venue or place one statement piece in a key location, there are countless ways to incorporate neon signs into your wedding decorations.

15. Coloured Glassware

To take your tablescapes to the next level, consider coloured glassware. You can find coloured glassware to suit all wedding styles and themes, from glamourous vintage pieces to sleek modern designs.You could even choose glassware in your wedding colours to tie everything together.

There you go – fifteen fabulous wedding decoration ideas to transform your wedding venue. So what are you waiting for? Hit the shops or get DIYing and make your wedding venue a showstopper!