Sourcing inspiration for your celebration
As we dive into the wedding season of 2024, we can’t wait to help couples to tell their love stories through thoughtful bespoke design and beautiful abundant florals. 2024 is already shaping up to be the year that couples have decided to focus on what really works for them, a true reflection of their love and lives together. They are feeling free to do away with traditions that don’t work for them and dive into elements that make their gatherings more intimate, celebratory and deliberately personal to them – like a wedding but not! Our clients’ are embracing trends that make their wedding last more than just one day, feel bold and bright and formality is taking a backseat, with the need for expressionism and playfulness taking over.
If you’re craving some inspiration here are just a few of the trends catching our eye in the global wedding scene. We’re not saying you should go for them all, but keep an open mind and consider those that spark joy or resonate with your style.
Colour: If you’ve been keeping up the buzz across the social-sphere or read our earlier blog posts, you’ll know that ‘Peach Fuzz’ is the Pantone colour of the year, and lots of our couples are embracing this warming uplifting hue , but more than that, they have been emboldened to embrace a more colourful vibrant tonal palettes overall. This doesn’t mean your celebration has to be bold and bright or overly surgery pastels. Rather, it involves incorporating dynamic colours throughout your styling from flowers and linens to stationery and glassware, adding effortless eye-catching style to your overall wedding look. Layering at its very best.
Photography: Rachel and Toni, Sean Bell and Sam Christmas
Long Wedding Weekends: Let’s face it you want to keep the celebrations going as long as possible and of course you want to spend more time with your loved ones. Couples are increasingly doing this by spreading aspects for their celebration over multiple events. By keeping the night before or day after free for gatherings and laid-back parties, the result is more time with friends and family, less pressure on your actual wedding day, and believe us when we say, even the coolest of couples gets nervous.
If you’ve already welcomed and know your guests have spent time catching up and making new connections, you can feel more at ease and know that come the wedding day, your guests will be feeling more relaxed and ready to have the best time. By hosting pre and post-wedding events, whether at your venue or at one of your favorite spots like a restaurant or bar or staying in the same accommodation all together the night before/after and hosting a pajama party, you create opportunities for guests to mingle, catch up, and form new connections. This relaxed atmosphere ensures that come the wedding day, your guests are feeling more at ease and ready to enjoy themselves to the fullest. We adore this trend because it addresses a common concern among couples – the feeling that their wedding day flies by in a blur, leaving them pulled in every direction and missing out on quality time with loved ones.
Photography: Claire Fleck and Wonderful and Strange
More creative post-meal moments: While everyone adores cake, the traditional cake cutting moment can sometimes feel a bit awkward, disrupting the dance floor or pulling guests away from the action. That’s why many couples are getting creative with their dessert options. Instead of the usual cake cutting, consider adding some flair with a fabulous champagne tower or cocktail tower for an extra dose of excitement. Of course, we’re not suggesting you forgo cake entirely – after all, we live for a good cake break around here. But if cake isn’t your go-to, there are plenty of alternatives to satisfy your sweet tooth. Why not have your caterer bring out some roaming dessert canapés or set up a stylish dessert station? Not only does this create a beautiful moment for your guests to enjoy, but it also keeps the focus squarely on the party where it belongs.
Photography: PJ Phillips Photography and Emma Lawson
Bespoke Cocktail Hour: The his and hers cocktails have been around for a while and something we are fond of because who doesn’t love a cocktail – (yeah that’s a rhetorical question by the way), but we are increasingly seeing this moment being used to highlight the couples personality and important aspect of their life – it’s all about a customised approach. Couples increasingly opt for signature drinks that reflect their personalities and love stories. Why not have your cocktail bar sponsored by your pet? Your fur baby doesn’t have to be physically present to be represented at your wedding. Or have personalised logos added to your cocktails that are engraved in your ice cubes or dissolvable designs. It’s time to get playful.
Photography: James Frost
Interactive food stations: We’ve all been to events where you try and position yourself closest to the kitchen door so you don’t miss out on the canapes but to avoid this, why not have a grazing station or an oyster station and a help yourself drink station. All set-ups that can create a really eye-catching moment for your guests and keep them satisfied, whilst you’re getting your photographs taken with your bridal party. Here’s a pro tip: make sure to carve out time to rejoin the festivities at least 15 minutes before your guests are seated to mingle and grab yourself some snacks or a drink with your favourite people all busting to hug and congratulate you – what a moment. With catering options as diverse as your love story, you can truly personalise your menu to reflect your favorite date-night food truck delights or Sunday morning deli treats. After all, your wedding menu should be a reflection of you and all the things you love.
Photography: Wonderful and Stange and Emma Lawson
Outfit Changes: More of this please, always! Many brides for instance are changing out of their beautiful gowns and into something they can boogie the night away in. Hence the emerging trends from many designers of the “mini” bridal dress. Also, just to add here, no one said that wearing white makes you the “bride”. From the moment you walk down the aisle to the end of the night, we encourage you to choose any colour of the rainbow to feel spectacular in.
Photography: Claire Fleck and Melody Joy Co
Audio guestbooks: Everything is online these days, so much so that writing in a book seems somewhat ‘old school’. Although the physical keepsake of a guestbook holds a lot of meaning to some, the downloadable immersive audio of your grandparents’ greatest love advice to your best friends not so sober love confession, is the stuff to keep you giggling for the decades to come as you play the moments back. Not to mention the set up of these types of experiences makes for great styled moments with a retro phone, flowers, candles, a table and chair for comfort..just to name a few ideas.
Photography: Victoria Photography
Sustainability: Our couples are increasingly mindful of their environmental impact, and we’re here to support their eco-conscious choices. From minimising waste to embracing locally sourced foods and sustainable floristry practices, there’s a growing commitment to using resources responsibly.
Photography: Jordan Voth, Wonderful and Strange and Rachel and Toni
Fabulous dress codes: Sadly we’re normally running around in our overalls and aprons but we are continually stunned by the epicness of guests and their outfits. You can push this further by setting creative dress codes that allow guests to really embrace occasion dressing adding an extra layer of excitement and personality to your celebration.
Photography: Lincoln Pictures and Colin Ross
Wedding Videography: While wedding videos themselves aren’t necessarily new, there’s a captivating trend emerging – epic highlight reels that capture the essence of your wedding day. Shot in film with a cinematic soundtrack, these videos seamlessly blend tear-filled speeches, guest reactions, and the buzz of your wedding day. Every moment, fashion choice, colour, and texture is beautifully woven together, creating a cinematic masterpiece that romanticizes your life for the day. It’s like stepping into the role of the main character, radiating an energy that’s simply irresistible. Trust us when we say, don’t even think about skipping on a wedding videographer.Take a look at this highlight beauty, snapped up by the incredible Handcraft Pictures team for our gorgeous Julia and Bobby who got married on the Isle of Skye last October. Every time we watch it, we get tears in our eyes and goosebumps, it is everything and more.
The list could go on and on but we need to wrap this up and hope this inspires you to step towards trends that feel aligned for you and your wedding or do something that you haven’t seen before and who knows, you might start a trend of your own.
Our team of wedding experts would be delighted to chat over any emerging trends with our clients and how we could assist in styling them for your wedding day. Reach out to us here.
