One of the most memorable days of your life is your wedding day. This grand occasion requires some planning, and many decisions need to be made.  To make your planning easier, we have gathered some information on decorating ideas and money saving tips for your wedding. We are going to concentrate on the ceremony, but almost everything can be applied to the reception as well.

      Before you start your planning, visit the church or your ceremony site to find out if there are any restrictions or requirements on decorations they allow at the site.  Some churches do not allow ribbon or fabric (e.g., tulle) to be draped from pew to pew, blocking center aisle access due to fire department requirements.  Please consider the style of the church/ceremony site itself, because while some are wonderfully decorated others are more simple.  Think about how the lighting will impact your wedding.  If your church has large windows, weddings taking place in the noon hours will benefit from it because large windows will let more light in but no direct sunlight on the guests. If you decide to use candles, they would be more effective in the evening hours. If your dream is to hold your wedding outdoors, think about booking a lush landscape with plenty of room for your guests or an intimate garden for a more romantic setting.    

     When your wedding day is close to a major holiday, inquire whether the church or your wedding site will be decorated, as it may be possible to incorporate the existing decorations into the style of your wedding.  I would also recommend you to ask precisely what kind of decorations will be done, if any, during the week of your wedding.  You don't want to find out 10 days before your wedding that the church is decorated completely different from your wedding theme. 

     It's true that a wedding ceremony will usually last an hour and the guests will spend more time at the reception, but don’t forget that the ceremony site is also the place where many of pictures and video will be taken. You may want to choose the places where you are going to take most of your pictures and concentrate your best decorations on those places.

     Consider whether you can have someone to take your decorations from the church to the reception.  This could save you a considerable amount of money if there is enough time and people for the relocation.

     Decorations are no longer restricted to flowers.  In fact, there are many other options.  Don’t be afraid to experiment with new ideas!  Use small wreaths.  Try adding greenery swags with your theme ornaments attached.  Mix and match ribbons and bows with greenery.  Consider renting a single brass candle on a pole from a florist, which clamps to the pew.  This can be decorated with greenery and bows, then light the candles just prior to the procession.  Add cinnamon or perfumed sticks in flowers.  The cinnamon can also be used after the ceremony to decorate the cake table or the head table at the reception.  Floral arrangements and vibrant wreaths can be arranged to make a simple door more charming and inviting.  If you are planning ahead, using silk flowers may be the best options because the flowers won’t wilt.

  Ceremony decorations may include:

           A floral arrangement for the center of the altar.
           Bows/markers at the end of the pews.
           An arrangement for the entrance door.
           Vase with floral arrangement on either side of the bride and groom.
           An archway for the bridal party to walk through.
           Aisle runner.

   Additional ideas for decorations:

• Using tulle or shimmering organza , swag the fabric to each or every other chair starting at the front and working down the aisles (both sides) to the back of the church or last row of chairs.  Then at each pew, gather the fabric & tie it with a small rubber band, place a bow in your colors/theme on top for a unified effect.
• Instead of pew bows, use pew markers , which come in variety of shapes and colors   After ceremony they could be taken from the pew to decorate either the front of the head table and the backs of the chairs, used as accent decorations for the guest tables or placed on the gift or buffet tables as well.   
  
• To make your wedding more personal, you can decorate every second pew with your framed pictures.
  
• To add a special touch, place 2 tall topiaries by the entrance of the church or at the beginning of the aisle.
  
• You can personalize your aisle runner by adding a saying on it. For an example, “Wherever You Go, I Will Follow”, “Wherever The Road May Lead”, “I have found the one my heart loves...” or “I Promise You All My Life…”  You can do it by sewing it on or by using stencils.
  
• If you want to have elaborate aisle runner, you can use spray adhesive and glue on silk silk petals or flowers along the edges. Fresh flowers might be too fragile for that purpose.
  
• Kissing balls make an attractive addition to any entryway, foyer, arch or chandelier and are also an interesting alternative to traditional wedding bouquets. It could be carried by flower girls instead of a basket, especially if petals are not permitted.  
  
• For an outdoor ceremony you could hang pomander balls, clear or colored glass vases, galvanized pails,  lanterns or cones with flowers from shepherd hooks along your aisle.  You could also embellish the shepherd hooks with additional garland, ribbon or flowers.
• You could place potted flowers at the base of the pews, just make sure there is enough room to get down the aisle with your gown.
• If you use fresh flowers and arrange them yourself, it is best to arrange them just after the rehearsal dinner in order to maintain the vivid appearance of the decorations.  In this instance, you can ask your friends and family to help.  You can also attach flowers with greenery to our  florist ready bows which come in a variety of colors and styles to ensure that you get the color combinations you desire.

 To cut your expenses:

• You can find out if there is another wedding ceremony before or after yours and you may contact another bride to see if she wants to participate in decorating the site.
• Use help of your family members to help decorating.
• Buy flowers from wholesaler, especially if the flowers are in season.  Often out-of-season flowers are harder to find and are more expensive.
• Use pew bows for both ceremony and reception decorations.
• Decorate every other or 3rd pew or aisle chair, or alternate between bows and swag of ribbon.
• Reserve first few rows for immediate family by placing bows only on those pews.
• Get big bows for altar decorations, it's much cheaper than flower arrangements.
• Put your reception table centerpieces on columns at the church and move them to the reception.
• The altar arrangements can be placed on the head table at the reception.
• Alternate big and small bows at the pews.
• Do not use aisle runner, just have your flower girl sprinkle the petals as she walks down the aisle.
• Use less fresh flowers.  Mix in silk flowers here and there.
• Use pew cones as pew decorations during ceremony, then easily detach pew clips and re-use them during reception as centerpieces or accent decorations for your cake table, place card holders table, etc..

After the wedding, decoration can be recycled in a variety of ways. Flower arrangements don't have to be thrown away but can instead be used in your house, donated, or sent to a relative who could not be there.  Imagine the smiles your floral arrangements can bring when it arrives at a nursing home or a hospital.

       No matter what type of decorations you choose, the most important thing is to be true to yourself and the vision that you have for your wedding. Go with what you want and what reflects you both as a couple. After all, this is your wedding day and it should be as unique as your love for each other.
       We hope that these ideas and suggestions will help to plan and decorate your perfect wedding.  If you have any other ideas and want to share it with other brides, please do not hesitate to write to us at info@BalsaCircle.com and we will publish it here.

   

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