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Yuletide Bride
I can’t really think about June without relating it to brides, but a lot of people like getting married around the holidays. Is there anything more festive and enduringly charming than a Winter Wonderland Wedding?
The great thing about a wedding in the wintertime is that you’re likely to get a better turnout because people won’t be away on their summer vacations. Another great thing is that winter is considered off season for wedding venues and vendors, so you will probably be able to book your favorite locale and get more out of your budget for planning the event. Your long-distance guests will also be able to get a better deal on nice rooms unless you’re planning to get married at a ski resort.
Winter Wedding Theme Ideas
Although many brides like to schedule their wedding ceremonies for Summer and Spring, a Winter wedding can be stunning, memorable and even a bit more affordable. If you have decided to get married when the snow is falling and everyone is celebrating the holidays, then here are some questions to answer for a winter themed wedding:
What to wear at the winter wedding?
Bride
It is usually anticipated that a bride will wear a long silk gown for the wedding. Most wedding gowns are designed to be worn in warmer weather. A wedding gown suitable for a winter wedding could involve more capes, shrugs, wraps, and coats to protect the bride from cool temperatures.
If you are actually going with a holiday theme, there are a variety of glamorous looks that incorporate rich red velvet and white faux-fur trim. The bridesmaids could be in deep greens or reds with holiday swag.
Groom
A traditional black tuxedo with white or champaign vest and bowtie is always appropriate, but incorporating holiday colors into the boutonniere and for groomsmen’s tuxedos is definitely an option.
If you’re going for a fun, kitschy wedding, you can find a Santa-style tuxedo for the groom and gaily embroidered suits for the groomsmen to give them that elfy look.
What to serve at the reception?
To get a winter feel for your wedding cake, decorate with sugar sculptures, silver embellishments, or snowflake patterns. Holiday-themed wedding cakes can be tiered to resemble a Christmas tree or feature more subtle touches with decorations in red, green or gold fondant.
Special treats can include spiced wine, eggnog or hot chocolate. Roasted chestnuts, sugar plums and even fruitcake hors d’oeuvres can start the festivities.
For entrees, there are a variety of comfort foods that can warm up a winter wedding. For a touch of class, you could try a Beef Braciola, Cornish Hens or Butternut Squash stuffed with Wild Rice for Vegan guests. For less formal weddings, you might consider a Baked Potato toppings bar or any number of a variety of savory stews.
Even though it is delicious, nutritious and seasonal, you’ll probably want to pass on venison if you’re having a Christmas-themed wedding or somebody might get the idea that Santa’s sleigh team is missing a member or two.
If you’re doing a Bad Santa Wedding, that might be exactly the vibe you’re going for. If that’s the case, you can serve venison steaks with a side of Elf Chow. If you prefer a rowdy wedding to a formal affair, there are a number of irreverent dishes you can indulge in.
What flowers to use?
White and silver flowers are perfect for winter theme weddings. To celebrate the season, red and green can be used as well. Berry shades of red and purple are also considered an appropriate holiday color pallette.
Some options for white flowers are crocus, football mums, lilies, stephanotis and definitely roses.
Silver flowers include baby blue eucalyptus, dusty miller and silver-dollar eucalyptus.
For less expensive flowers, there are roses, tulips, and ornamental berries, which grow during the winter season. Your florist will have excellent suggestions for appropriate flowers to use.
What décors fit the winter wedding theme?
Branches seem to be the order of the day for winter weddings. White frosted trees or bundles of bare, white branches decked with fairy lights give an enchanted winter feeling to your wedding and reception area.
If you’re focusing on a holiday-themed wedding, any Christmas decorations like Christmas tree, mistletoe, etc. will do. Evergreen garland can be used on handrails, balconies, stairways and as room dividers for queuing guests through the banquet line. Holly can serve as an accent piece on candlesticks, centerpieces or anyplace in the room that’s suffering a lack of attention and pizazz.
Add some lighting effects around the room using tall white candles arranged on mirrors. Candles floating in a punch bowl or in a water feature create an ethereal effect.
Vendors
In order to make your special day go without a hitch, you’re going to need the help of a number of skilled professionals.
Officiant
If you’re having your wedding in a church or other house of worship, the officiant will typically be the pastor, priest, rabbi, imam or whatever is applicable. If you’re having your wedding at your venue, you might still have a member of the clergy perform the service or you might have another licensed professional such as a Judge, a Justice of the Peace, a Court Clerk or a Notary Public.
In a pinch, you might have a friend who has the ability to become a temporary officiant. You’ll need to get in touch with your County Clerk to determine the requirements for qualifying as a temporary officiant.
If this isn’t legally an option in your locale, there are plenty of qualified individuals who wouldn’t mind making a couple of extra bucks serving as your officiant. Some of the more open-minded ones won’t be opposed to theme-based regalia such as dressing as St. Nicholas, Ded Moroz or even the Grinch.
Caterer
If your venue is not a banquet hall, hotel or resort, you may need to enlist the aid of an independent caterer. Caterers are experienced in providing a variety of food for groups of different sizes.
If budgeting is an issue, you may have a friend or relative who can head a kitchen of willing volunteers. These handy helpers should not be members of the wedding party. Weddings are stressful enough without having to serve double-duty on the big day. If you’re in the Church Hall, there may be a corps of the congregation who typically man the kitchen for fundraisers, potlucks and holiday get-togethers.
Whether or not you hire a caterer, please be sure to be extra kind to your food service staff. It’s hard work laying out dinner for dozens or even hundreds of people in a timely fashion. No point in souring what should be a happy day by taking the kitchen help and waitstaff for granted.
Florist
Florists will have excellent suggestions for appropriate wedding bouquets, boutonnieres, centerpieces and other floral touches. They will also be able to tell you if any of the flora you plan to include will be unavailable during the time of your wedding. They will typically have resources to get them shipped, but you’ll need to plan ahead and contact your florist early enough to prevent any availability issues.
Planner
If you have hired a planner, they will have a working relationship with all of the previously mentioned wedding professionals and will be able to coordinate all of these for you. These people are detail-oriented and experienced at planning events of any size and level of formality.
If you choose not to hire a planner, you may elect to form a committee of the bridal party. If you have a friend or relative among that number who is very organized and not easily flustered, you will definitely want to offer him or her the job of heading the committee to ensure that your wedding goes well.
Venues
Apart from the typical church hall, fire company, restaurant or country club, you might pick a ski resort, a private club or a historic mansion to be your choice when you want a winter wedding atmosphere. If you want a small wedding with very few people invited, a house or inn with a fireplace can make the ceremony feel intimate.
If the weather cooperates, you might even enjoy a decorative blanket of snow outside and on the window sills. If your wedding takes place without snow but will still be cold, make sure that the venue is adequately heated. This isn’t a problem for most locations, but fire halls and other large open spaces will take a while to get warm enough to host a wedding or reception comfortably.
Guests
So, what are you going to do about the wedding guests? If they’re coming a long way or if you’re planning on having an open bar, you’re going to want to show some consideration for their comfort and safety.
If there’s some concern about unsafe weather conditions such as ice, it may be a good idea to book a block of rooms in the same hotel. If the hotel is your venue, then there’s no need to go outside at all. Dresses and suits, as well as elbows, hips and ankles, will all be safe from Old Man Winter.
That being said, all of your friends and relatives being together in relatively close quarters can lead to a giant case of Uncomfortable Thanksgiving Dinner-itis. Laying out room assignments can be as nerve-wracking as picking who sits at which tables at the wedding itself.
Guests, like fish, begin to smell after three days. ~Benjamin Franklin
Depending on what part of the country you’re getting married in, the weather might require you to keep it all indoors. Depending on the weather to cooperate is a losing proposition unless you’re in the desert and you know it’s going to be hot and sunny year ’round.
If everybody is going to be cooped up in a hotel together, you’re going to want a hotel with a lot of amenities to keep people distracted and happy so they can focus on your wedding instead of family feuds or generation gap issues.
Whether you’re just having guests in for the wedding and reception or planning a large-scale stayover, taking their safety and comfort into consideration is important wedding etiquette.
A good conscience is a continual Christmas. ~Benjamin Franklin
A winter wedding can help make the holidays that much more joyous. Having family and friends together for the holidays is always a thing to look forward to. It will be all the more so if you happen to be tying the knot for Christmas.