Upstaging Christmas?
If your holiday-themed wedding plans leave you worrying that your special day will look like another tinsel-ridden Christmas party, don’t throw in the red and green towel just yet. They best thing about holiday-themed weddings is that most of the design work has already been done for you; Christmas has been celebrated for hundreds of years, providing endless traditions and motifs for any bride to build upon.
Invitations
For your invitations, choose a theme and color that will stand out from other holiday party invitations or greeting cards your guests might receive in the mail; this blue snowflake motif stays away from red-and-green and still exudes a holiday feel. Furthermore, send out your invitations a little earlier—12 weeks before your wedding at the latest—so that guests will have enough advanced notice to make your day a priority amongst other holiday plans. For a fun twist on the traditional guestbook, send plastic ornaments (they won’t break in the mail) along with your invitations. Ask each guest to write their name and a well-wish on the ornament, and then provide a tree at the reception for guests to decorate. You’ll have a stunning Christmas symbol of everyone’s support by the evening’s end.
Decorations
Styling your holiday wedding is as simple as looking at the holiday decor you already own. Put those Christmas lights to good use by illuminating the walls and ceiling of your banquet hall, and tuck name cards into pine cones as place holders at each reception table. Fresh flowers are expensive and difficult to find during winter months, so fill vases with glass baubles and beads. A sprinkling of artificial snow makes a gorgeous and charming aisle runner, and why not have your flower girl toss fistfuls of the stuff in place of rose petals as she walks to the alter? Flower-alternatives are fun and inexpensive, and a bouquet of sturdy holly will last longer than delicate peonies.
Apparel
When dressing for the season, brides have one thing working for them from the start: a white dress! To further emphasize a wintry look, search for dresses with delicate lace that mimics snowflake patterns or bead and crystal appliqués that glimmer like ice. As for the go-to winter accessory, the fur wrap, compelling faux materials and rental shops make it easy for any bride to afford and feel good about one of these luxurious pieces. A wrap is not only beautiful, but warm!—wedding dresses aren’t generally made to endure the elements, so keep an attractive wrap, shawl, or sweater on hand to stave off goose bumps.
Food
Bakers seem awfully generous with greenery, gold ribbon, or snowflake embellishments when it comes to holiday-themed wedding cakes, and I think even the stack-of-presents design is starting wear. To achieve a holiday feel without beating your cake to death with candy canes, use simple elements and colors that evoke holiday themes. This white chocolate cake is topped with red strawberries and sprinkles of snow-like powdered sugar, tied with a sheer brown ribbon. Your menu, too, is a great place for creativity. Instead of eggnog, try a signature cocktail with vanilla-flavored vodka, spiced rum, and a shaving of nutmeg. Try serving meat dishes with fresh mint sauce and savory chestnut crepes as a sophisticated side.
Remember, your holiday nuptials should still focus on you and your fiancé’s romance above all. Ask yourself: why is it important to me and my fiancé to have a holiday-themed wedding? Did you two accidentally collide while snowboarding? Find solace in each others’ company at a agonizing office holiday party? Or maybe you simply enjoy your families’ Christmas traditions, and the holidays are a convenient time to pull everyone together? Make these motivations the focus of your wedding and your celebration will shine with only minimal help from pine-scented candles.
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