I recently helped a bride-to-be and
her mother select antiques to enhance their vintage wedding plans. They left with a car full of quirky pieces
that the bride planned to incorporate into her home after the wedding. Their visit made me start imagining a vintage
wedding setting that would be easy to design.
Here are some ideas that you can use if you want to incorporate
“something old” into your wedding.
·
Create
letterpress invitations to set the tone.
·
Layer
your table settings. Start with a plain
cream cloth, followed by large pieces of burlap that can be ruched at the corners
and top with a lacy antique tablecloth or doilies that have been stitched
together. Use mismatched white chairs or
rustic benches for seating.
·
For
your centerpieces, create height with crates turned upside down. Place milk bottles in chicken wire baskets to
hold garden bouquets. Sprinkle homemade
confetti across the cloth. You can make
confetti by cutting small hearts out of old sheet music or books that have
fallen apart. The crates and confetti
may also be used on the table for the cake display. An old store tabletop scale is a great accent
for holding homemade mints or other treats.
Seating assignments could be made from tea stained tags.
·
Wrap
your bride’s maids’ gifts in burlap tied with jute. Attach a piece of costume jewelry on the
middle of the bow. You can also add
costume jewelry to bouquets and corsages.
·
Wrap
a wire with rusty patina around the top of Ball jars, creating a handle. Add sand or pebbles in the bottom and a small
candle. Hang at various heights from
tree branches and light at twilight.
·
Hang
long lace curtains from a pergola or from a wire strung between trees to create
a wall if needed. Place a shabby chic
white buffet or harvest table in front of the curtains if desired for the
ceremony.
·
Old
doors can be used for a variety of displays.
Attach hardware at the bottom of the doors to make them free
standing. Tape family pictures all over
one door to show the bride and groom growing up. Paint blackboard paint on another door and use
chalk to write out table assignments. Attach
a light fixture at the top of a door and a shelf mid-way to hold the guest book
and pen. Three or four old doors hinged
together could form a backdrop for the ceremony instead of curtains. Doors placed on saw horses become display
tables.
·
Hang
vintage quilts over fences for color.
(Protect with a sheet underneath.)
An antique pickup with quilts in the back could also be parked off to
the side to hold gifts. Think of the
photo opportunities here!
·
Make
wedding signs using barn wood and white paint to direct your guests to the
site.
·
Set
up nostalgic lawn games for guests including croquet, bocce, or washer toss.
·
Place a vintage suitcase on a table, opened,
with the letters C,A, R, D, S cut out and attached to a ribbon strung across
the inside of the lid. You could spray
paint the outside of the suitcase a solid color if needed.
·
Set
washtubs or copper boilers full of flowers, branches, or greens around the
site.
