Old, New, Borrowed and Blue: Fresh Takes On Conventional Concepts, PART 1
We’ve all been to a wedding. Most of us have been to our share. And it’s likely that at each of these celebrations there is a moment–potentially several– where we have a small, lingering sense of having been there before.
This happens because we have been.
Weddings, like all rites and rituals, include these standard elements that we come to expect because these are the very fibers of our cultural cloth.
Wanting to include these conventional elements in our weddings doesn’t make us unoriginal, it makes us human.
Isn’t there something fun, then, in treating these classic components as a way to express ourselves, innovate, and make our wedding more our own?
Without further ado, we’d like to share some truly fresh and inventive takes on a few classic wedding elements.
The Suspended Centerpiece
For many of us, the floral is the most important element at the center of the table, but why not play around a bit with gravity?
Alternating between centerpieces of the more traditional, “grounded” variety with suspended floral can add fullness and depth, making the overall aesthetic of a room more balanced and, well, pretty spectacular.
This approach also allows you to go big (!) without crowding, offering you more space for other details and accents.
Photos courtesy of Kent Drake Photography for HMR
An Eye-catching Alternative to Paper
A fun and aesthetically pleasing alternative to paper place cards is to display guests’ table information. An illuminated frame surrounding panels can be accented with floral, ribbon or fabric to create a prominent, fun presentation.
The same approach can also be taken with your menus. A favorite of ours is the chalkboard menu for its clean, classic look. A font that expresses your style is, of course, a must.
The absence of menus and cards can also make things at the table less busy, allowing your guests to focus on your floral (and each other).
Perusing the room looking for this information will also give them more of an opportunity to take in the room, and all of the choices you’ve made to make it so fetching.
Hopefully these glimpses have exemplified the infinite possibilities to alter the details, even if the framework of weddings is fairly abiding. Check back with us next week for Part 2, where we’ll explore some novel approaches to bouquets, canopies, and patterns.