If you're planning an outdoor wedding, most likely you chose the site for its
natural beauty and won't require as many floral arrangements to customize the
location for your own ceremony. Most of the popular outdoor venues have
special areas set aside and are visually enhanced so you don't have to worry
about providing a canopy or trellis to define the space for the actual ceremony.
And most have them have nice seating available, not just rusty folding chairs.
However, maybe you've decided, for sentimental reasons or budgetary
concerns, to get married in your own back yard. Chances are, you don't already
have a designated “wedding area” and you don't want to look like you're just
“getting married in the backyard”, now, do you?
Getting married in your own backyard requires lots of pre-planning. Not only do
you want to take care of the decorations, but you need to primp up the site, too.
Do you really want to hold your wedding in the middle of crab grass central?
Hopefully you've chosen to get married in your own backyard because it will
make a pretty and sentimental backdrop for your ceremony. After you've taken
care of the little things, like planting grass seed, chopping down trees and replanting
the flower beds, all you'll have left to worry about is the decorations!
Seriously, though, you probably chose your backyard because it's already a
pretty place to hold an intimate wedding for a few friends and family. But you
will need to dress it up a little bit, and your florist can help with that. And a
backyard wedding doesn't mean it has to be a casual affair. You can still
express your personal style through your choice of flowers and arrangements.
Only now, you have Mother Nature adding her own special touch to the beauty
of your day!
While it's important to keep the weather in mind and make alternative
arrangements in case it decides not to cooperate, you also have to be more considerate in your choice of flowers for an outdoor wedding. Some flowers
hold up better under heat and all day sunlight than others. So let your florist
know that you're planning an outdoor wedding and he'll be able to suggest
appropriate flowers that won't wilt before you say “I do”.
A Floral Arch Or Trellis – This arch will define the area where you, your groom
and your wedding officiant will stand to perform the actual ceremony.
Traditionally, it's used to represent the happy couple setting up their home
together. But you also want it so your guests have a particular area to focus
their attention. Similar to an altar or a stage.
Some religions require that the cover over your heads be some type of cloth, so
keep that in mind while you're planning.
Generally, the arch is a pretty wooden or iron trellis, woven with greenery and
vines and accented with cascades of the flowers you've chosen for your
wedding. But modern designers and florists are coming up with interesting
alternatives to define this space and make your wedding unique and exciting.
Floor Urns – Instead of the traditional arch, florists are filling tall floor urns with
elegant floral arrangements to define your ceremony space. This is a beautiful
alternative for more formal weddings.
Alternative Arch Materials – Designers are using poles or twigs, decorated
with tulle and flowers, twinkle lights and ribbons and bows. Topped off with light,
lacy fabrics and floral garlands. This is an excellent alternative for a more
bohemian or casual ceremony.
Pillars – Some designers are using stone or resin pillars to define the space.
Similar to floor urn, they're then topped off with cascading floral arrangements.
Very elegant, dramatic and perfect for a classic or retro wedding.
Table decorations – Keep table arrangements low so they won't get blown over
easily and your florist should be able to tack them to the table to make them
even sturdier. If you have a beautiful garden in your back yard, consider using
some of the flowers in your table décor and chair back decorations. However –
order these flowers from your florist. For one thing, if you pull all of the flowers
from your garden to use for your arrangements, you'll have an awfully bare
garden when you're done. Secondly, the flowers from your florist will be much
more sanitary.
Lighting – If it's to be an evening wedding, consider using lanterns in your floral
arrangements, or pretty hurricane lamps to shelter candles from the breeze.
Another very popular trend is to use Floralytes in the flower arrangements to
lighten things up a little.
Tent – Perhaps you're setting up a tent for your backyard wedding, which is
probably a very wise choice considering there's no predicting what the weather
will be. Tall floor urns, placed just outside the entrance and just inside the
entrance will help it feel less like a tent an more like an elegant venue for your
reception. Pillars are also another fabulous alternative here. Save Money –
Move your floor urns or pillars from the “wedding area” to the reception tent!
Chairs – Let's not forget seating! Guests will need a place to sit while they
witness your marriage, and then they'll need seating for the reception. To make
this look less like a “backyard wedding”, decorate the backs of each chair with a
simple bow or rent pretty colored chair covers or really glam it up and create
small floral arrangements for the back of each chair.
Accessories – Of course, you'll still want to make sure you have all the
traditional floral accessories for your outdoor wedding – bouquets for the bride
and her bridesmaids, boutonnieres for the groom and his groomsmen, flowers
for the parents, the flower girl, etc.
