As we move into autumn, we’re already growing obsessed with the thought of winter weddings. Winter is such a visual counterpoint to the long, hot summer. A certain soft calmness pervades it, created by snowy landscapes, sparkling icicles, undulating snowdrifts and icy ponds. Just think of the possibilities that winter’s aesthetic brings to wedding decor. There’s the color white, as seen on the snowy floors and ice-coated furniture of the “ice palace” in one of history’s most romantic classic movies, Dr. Zhivago. Put some pictures of that unforgettable set on your inspiration board, and you’ll soon stumble upon ideas galore for a white wedding. Beyond snow, winter provides other phenomena that give rise to gorgeous wedding decor. There’s Christmas, with its cheery motifs, vivid colors and nostalgic music. There’s the elegance conjured up by holiday parties, which leaves us daydreaming about crystals, sequins, glitter and all things shiny. Read on to discover the specifics of how winter can inspire your wedding themes. We tell you how to pull off each theme and introduce you to products from your favorite retailers — Etsy, Amazon and Michael’s included — that will help you accomplish your goal.
Creating the Best Winter Wedding Themes
Tips:
Winter provides the romance of snuggling before a fire, cuddling up in a tartan plaid blanket and watching the snowflakes (nature’s glitter) drift down from the heavens. As snowflakes dust the earth, we yearn to hibernate with a steady supply of hot chocolate, warm cookies and mulled wine. It’s the perfect setting for a wedding – and it provides a visual and sensory bounty that will easily inspire your wedding plans. Winter’s many enchantments might motivate you to create a crystalline dream with a white wedding inspired by snow. You might dress like a fairy queen, complete with sparkly crown, in a wedding inspired by icicles (nature’s bling). Or you can produce a holiday-themed fête, complete with elves on the shelves and reindeer on the roof. So many decisions – and with each decision you make, you’ll tingle with the excitement of a child on Christmas morning.
How to Attain the Best Winter Wedding Themes
Cost:
A winter-themed wedding needn’t be more expensive than any other one. Refer subtly to the holidays by creating a themed dessert bar: Include red, white and green macarons, rum balls, divinity and peppermint bark. Why not add a gingerbread house as a centerpiece and include traditional Christmas cookies as favors for your guests? For a dose of holiday-inspired nostalgia, include ornaments that fit the theme of your wedding, which you can buy in bulk to save money: Use vintage Christmas ornaments for a 1950s-themed wedding, silver ones for an icicle-inspired wedding and pearly-white ones for a snow-inspired wedding. Use nature as an inexpensive way to cut costs on your floral arrangements: You can stretch your flowers if you add filler in the form of white birch branches, pine cones, sprigs of cedar and holly berries.
Color:
Winter allows you to go deep into color and we have outlined an array of color schemes you can use to set the tone of your wedding. We love a retro palette of red, green, pink, aqua and celery green or yellow, because it injects some feminine flair to the traditional red-and-green holiday palette. There are many more ideas to choose from, ranging from tonal (all white) to dual (silver and gold or purple and silver). The colors of winter will surprise you in their variety.
Style:
Make sure the theme is universal: It’s best when it weaves its way through every aspect of the wedding, from food to decor to favors. Most importantly, choose your mood. A nature-inspired wedding will create a rustic feel, a vintage-inspired wedding will generate a lighthearted vibe, and an icicle-inspired wedding will bring forth the fanciness.
Material & Other Features:
Unlike spring and summer, winter offers an incredible array of materials and fabrics from which to pepper your wedding landscape. Velvet, wool, cashmere, pashmina, satin, sequins, crystals, metallic lamé — the list goes on and on. And we adore the textures from nature, from the tiniest acorn to the largest Christmas tree: There’s a richness there that is beyond compare.
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1 of 10 Image Credits: Etsy
Vintage Devotees
A 1950s Christmas
Get festively retro by tweaking the traditional red-and-green holiday palette: Add pink, aqua and celery green or yellow — popular mid-century colors. This one move creates a pastiche of ladylike, yet flirty, tones. Dress up the reception tables with mid-century decor, including bottle brush trees, Putz houses, vintage mercury glass ornaments, ceramic pre-lit Christmas trees and retro Bambi-style reindeer. Tablecloths covered in atomic starbursts in the color palette will amp up the retro vibe. As if plucked from a time capsule, these vintage visuals will infuse the wedding with nostalgia. Don’t forget the tunes: Play classic Christmas melodies by Bing Crosby, Dean Martin and Frank Sinatra. As a centerpiece for your dessert bar, we love this Kitschmas Wonderland Ornament Wreath, which incorporates 1950s colors and motifs — check out the pink poinsettia flower and bottle brush trees, along with the daintiest reindeer.
Specifications:
Made of ribbon, mercury glass and flocked ornaments, glitter and glue.
What Reviewers Are Saying:
This is the most beautiful wreath I have ever seen! It arrived packaged securely and the quality of the wreath exceeded my expectations. It was also a lot bigger than I thought it would be. I want another one for every season!
2 of 10 Image Credits: Etsy
Nature Lovers
Cozy Plaid and Pine Cones
You can create an elegant winter aesthetic with organic elements such as pine cones and evergreen sprigs, along with hints of red tartan plaid. A wedding cake made to look like birch bark would be perfectly at home with this naturalistic theme. Use a fireplace as a focal point (as an altar, if the placement allows it). Place traditional white or red poinsettias on your escort card table and along the aisles. Top tables with wreaths of ivy, pine cones and pomegranates around the base of glass vessels. Naturalistic touches are key: Bridesmaids can carry bouquets that feature layered greenery and pine cones. We love this understated bridal bouquet by Which Goose. It features preserved silver dollar eucalyptus greenery, dried star flowers, three pine cones and two sola wood flower roses for a naturally gorgeous arrangement.
Specifications:
This 14-inch-tall bouquet is made of preserved greenery and dried and wood flowers.
What Reviewers Are Saying:
It is adorable and beautifully arranged. It arrived in great shape.
3 of 10 Image Credits: Zazzle
Ice Queen Brides
Icy Blue and Bright White
Think about how snow and ice look against the palest blue backdrop: Gorgeous. For that reason, we love it as a winter wedding palette. With this theme, you can infuse your wedding invitations and ceremony program with pale blue and hints of silvery white. For the reception, bathe the room in pale blue uplighting. Top icy blue tablecloths with silvery white candles. Add organic touches through wooden branches bleached white and pale aqua feathers. Set the tone by sending guests these Spark Glitter Drips Silver Aqua Invitations from Zazzle. There is something vaguely fairy tale-ish about them, and we love it.
Specifications:
Made of 110-pound cardstock. The glitter details are simulated in the artwork. No actual glitter will be used in the making of this product.
What Reviewers Are Saying:
This is the second product I have ordered from here and everything has turned out amazing. I can’t say enough good things and they have terrific customer service.
4 of 10 Image Credits: Amazon
Classic Brides
Snowflake Soiree
This is the perfect wedding theme for hanging snowflake motifs everywhere — suspend them above the dance floor, put them on the cake and definitely include them on your invitations and menu. There’s almost nothing that won’t look dreamy when adorned with some shimmering snowflakes. Create a dazzling winter vibe in a palette of white and silver with the snowflake motif. Naturally, you have to sprinkle your reception room with multiple snowflake garlands, such as this one from Luck Sea. This kit includes 10 sets of glittering silver garlands in a snowflake that will cast shadows around the room as they twirl and sway.
Specifications:
These garlands come fully assembled and ready for hanging.
What Reviewers Are Saying:
These are beautiful snowflake decorations.This product is very festive for wintertime decorations. The snowflakes hang down from the ceiling and are very easy to use. The price is appropriate. I highly recommend it.
5 of 10 Image Credits: Amazon
Bedazzled Divas
Bedazzled Bash
Bring on the bling with crystal-embellished everything. This theme is inspired by icicles — or “nature’s bling,” as we like to call them. This theme is tailor-made for the over-the-top bride who isn’t shy about wearing crystal-embellished shoes and carrying a bedazzled clutch to her wedding (or to the grocery store). If you’re this kind of diva, you will definitely wear a crown with your bridal ensemble and you’ll want your decor to be as sparkly as you. For this look, you can surround the windows with twinkle lights and drape strands of crystals across your floral centerpieces. You’ll want to make the tables sparkle with this table runner with a diamanté strip and tassels. It’s the perfect blend of glitz and good taste.
Specifications:
Made of 100 percent polyester with diamante trim.
What Reviewers Are Saying:
This is the perfect table runner. It’s made of heavy material and is well-constructed. I definitely recommend it.
6 of 10 Image Credits: Etsy
Christmas Enthusiasts
Simply Red
Think: Red, red and more red. This theme is for the bride who unabashedly embraces Christmas. It’s easy, peasy because it’s simply a spin on traditional Christmas decor. You can adorn your chairs with scarlet-colored covers. The floral arrangements can be a classic Christmas blend of red roses, holly berries and greenery. Wear red lipstick and take your photo in front of a Christmas tree. Don’t forget the peppermints! These swirling motifs can be used on everything from floor decals to cookies. We especially love the idea of topping the wedding cake with this Candy Cane Fake Cake from 12 Legs Curiosities. It’s the perfect topper for a holiday celebration.
Specifications:
These faux "cakes" are made by hand with a secret recipe.
What Reviewers Are Saying:
This cake arrived quickly and was well wrapped. It's a beautiful cake. I'm a repeat customer and love this vendor. I’m very happy!
7 of 10 Image Credits: Amazon
Glamour Girls
Silver and Gold
Inspired by holiday parties and the New Year, the silver and gold theme is perfect for the glamour girl. Paint sparse, wintry branches in silver and drape them with strands of silver stars. Decorate the reception with glittering tablecloths and silver chargers. Top silver candelabras with white roses. Go for stars everywhere — especially in your hair. Throw in a disco ball. If you want to enjoy some vintage flair, add some Art Deco elements. And create a shiny backdrop to your dessert bar with these metallic fringe curtains from Sumind.
Specifications:
Made of foil that includes double-sided adhesive tape for application purposes.
What Reviewers Are Saying:
When it comes to decorating for a party, these foil curtains should be number one on your list. They are perfect for making things look bigger and fancier. Two or three of these four-packs of foil curtains thrown up on the walls will decorate an entire room immediately. After that, everything else you do is just a bonus.
8 of 10 Image Credits: Amazon
Die-Hard Romantics
Winter White Wonderland
Enchant your guests with a melange of white. This tonal palette will transform your wedding into a visually stunning tableau imbued with romance. Think: Strands of simulated pearls, faux snow and creamy white roses. White birch branches are great props or this theme. You can adorn them with white feathers, orchids and faux pearls to create dramatic white centerpieces. This is also a great theme for milk glass vases; fill them with white roses and baby's breath. And definitely cover your tables with these Fanqisi tablecloths slathered in white satin rosettes to add to the snowy landscape.
Specifications:
This is a rectangle-shaped tablecloth covered in three-dimensional satin rosettes.
What Reviewers Are Saying:
I used these for two different occasions. Both times they looked beautiful. These are the perfect rosette tablecloths. I have no complaints and would order more.
9 of 10 Image Credits: Etsy
Luxury Brides
Rich Textures
Velvet creates a lush and dramatic tablescape, as do the rich textures of winter. For this theme, your fiance can wear a velvet suit jacket and your can wear a velvet cape. Top the tables with crushed velvet tablecloths. Put luxurious velvet ribbons on invitations and anything else you can think of. And definitely include a velvet guestbook. We love this one from Lottes Papery that is stamped with foil initials. It’s so luxurious and will make for the perfect keepsake.
Specifications:
Made of velvet-like paper, paper, ribbon and foil.
What Reviewers Are Saying:
What an incredible company. The customer service I received from Liene was exceptional. Through just a short conversation we created a beautifully personalized product, that was delivered to France with no issues. I could not recommend Lottes Paper enough.
10 of 10 Image Credits: Michael's
Royal Brides
Deep Purple
Mysterious and romantic, purple is a cool color that blends well with a silver and white color palette for winter. If you think winter weddings have the potential to be more elegant than those in other seasons, then this purple-infused palette is for you. Your fiancé should definitely rock a velvet tux in purple with black lapels and black trousers for this theme. If you create a balloon arch, include white or silver balloons because all purple can be overwhelming. For your floral arrangements, pour purple acrylic “gems” from Michael’s into the bottom of clear vases, then top them with purple lilacs.
Specifications:
Made of acrylic.
What Reviewers Are Saying:
I love these gems because they have so many uses. I’ve used them on invitations, gift bags and banners, as well as for tags for gifts.
