Name That Theme: Setting the Tone for the Wedding

Roaring 20s and Gatsby. Winter wonderland. Mardi Gras. People come up with some pretty wicked themes for their weddings.

I consider myself a somewhat creative person. I’m a marketing copywriter, so I’m paid to be creative. But when it came to setting a theme for the wedding, I was at a loss. I couldn’t even think of why we’d need one in the first place. Wasn’t the theme for our wedding just…“wedding”?

We’d be having a zombie wedding if Mr. Puffer had his say. / Photo by Carey Nash Photography

So the first time someone asked me what our theme was, my answer was a blank stare. Um, huh. Guess I need a theme. Add that to my 30-page to-do list.

In the end, my theme—if you can call it that—came about holistically. And it started with the centerpieces.

I love flowers. I usually don’t know what they’re called or how to care for them, but I always pause when I see a beautiful arrangement. But as many brides discover, flowers don’t come cheap. Pretty much from the start, I knew that floral arrangements on the reception tables were out. We just didn’t have the budget for them, and I couldn’t justify giving up something more important to add decorations that were going to die in a few days.

To be honest, I’m not sure how lanterns first popped into my mind. Maybe I saw something on Pinterest. Maybe it’s because I already own several decorative lanterns. Who knows? But when I closed my eyes and pictured the reception tables, I saw metal lanterns sitting on top of antique books. Simple but sweet, and very much me.

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An inspiration photo I later found. / Image via Corey Ann Photography / Photo by Corey Ann Photography

I mentioned the idea to my mom, a crafty woman with a great aesthetic eye. She got excited and reminded me of the huge lanterns the Valley Country Club has hanging on the porch. I’d unintentionally connected our décor with our venue’s. It worked.

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Those lanterns! (Personal photo)

Slowly everything began to connect. We’d have votive candles surrounding the lanterns on each table. We added the venue’s lighting package, which means candles will be placed on all three fireplace mantles in the mansion. The fireplaces will be roaring away for our November evening wedding. And I purchased four dozen luminaries to light the walkway leading up to the mansion.

My “cheap” solution for centerpieces resulted in a wedding theme, whether I wanted one or not. Our theme is light. It’s not fancy, nor that creative, but it works for us. And once we had the theme, we were able to describe to vendors exactly how we wanted our wedding to feel: warm, friendly, and comforting.

Just like the home we’re holding our wedding in.