While not every wedding has to stick to a theme, themes can be so much fun and help to maintain some level of consistency across the day. You can go as crazy or as subtle as you like with your chosen theme, whether you want a tranquil beach-themed wedding or an edgy rock and roll party. Whatever theme you pick, ensure it reflects your personality.
Below, you can find six creative wedding theme ideas that might be right up your street, from beach to rustic, casino to fairytale.
Beach-Themed Wedding
With so much beautiful coastal scenery here in the UK, it’s not surprising that many couples are choosing to get married on a beach. The smell of the sea, the feel of the sand and the sound of the waves create the perfect backdrop for your big day. Even if you aren’t getting married on a beach, you can certainly add some coastal and nautical decor to create a wonderful themed wedding.
Shells are a natural element that can be used in all sorts of fun ways, from adorning your cake to embellishing your table centrepieces. You can even use shells as name cards, writing the guest’s name inside each one. Visit the beach in advance of your big day to find the perfect shells for the job.
Driftwood is another beautiful material that can help to create a rustic feel on your wedding day. The wood can be used to line the aisle, decorate your tables or make signs that point your guests in the right direction. A driftwood table plan would be another fab idea.
Other ideas for your beach-themed wedding include tropical drinks (piña colada, bay breeze or mai tai), dried grass decor, desserts served in shells and seafood as your main course.
Casino-Themed Wedding
Perhaps you’d love to host your wedding in Las Vegas but can’t justify the cost of an abroad wedding or simply think it’s too much to organise. Bring Vegas to you instead by hosting a casino-themed wedding.
This fun and quirky theme can be embedded into your wedding day in a classy and subtle manner, so here are a few ideas to get you started.
First, you can create bespoke casino-themed invitations that perhaps look like a deck of cards, or have an ace in each corner with a heart in the middle. Etsy has tons of editable and printable templates you can use to get started.
If you’re after more Casino Royale than Vegas, then our second idea would be to create a black-tie dress code. The groom, groomsmen and even guests can dress up in smart wedding tuxedos that have a hint of white or gold to really add some Vegas glam. Bridesmaids can also wear black and white or gold to create a modern art deco vibe.
When it comes to the drinks, do away with sparkling wine and serve some high-end cocktails, like martinis or a Vesper (created by Ian Flemming, it’s three measures of gin, one measure of vodka and half a measure of Lillet Blanc).
Your wedding favours can be casino-inspired too. Create personalised poker chips with your wedding date engraved on them or order chocolate poker chips that the guests can eat.
Finally, it wouldn’t be a casino-themed wedding without a real poker table, so hire some casino games that your guests can play in the evening. Without gambling for real money, they can still have tons of fun betting with their fake poker chips.
Rock & Roll-Themed Wedding
Rock and roll is the ultimate theme for those that love punk or rock and want to organise an alternative wedding that strays away from tradition.
To make a big statement, you could choose to drive away from your wedding ceremony on a Harley Davidson instead of in a classic car. Your guests have probably never seen anything like it and the photographs would look incredible.
To ensure your outfits match the theme, consider a more gothic look. The bride can wear a white dress with a black leather jacket, or even choose a black dress. The groom can wear a black suit with a black shirt, but add to the punk look with accessories, like sunglasses or a dark red buttonhole.
You can weave other elements of rock and music into the day, such as naming your tables after different bands or your favourite albums. You could even find secondhand records and place them on each corresponding table.
Rustic-Themed Wedding
With the boom of barn weddings came the boom of rustic decor. The two go perfectly hand-in-hand, and rustic decor can even be incorporated into a marquee, tipi or beach wedding.
While a rustic-themed wedding might make you think of burlap-wrapped jam jars, or handmade wooden signs, there’s so much more to this theme. ‘Rustic’ generally refers to anything natural, organic or even boho. Think branches, foliage, flower crowns, wild flowers and fairy lights. It’s a theme that suits a more informal venue, particularly one that celebrates the outdoors.
For the bride, consider an informal wedding gown with a wild flower bouquet that is less neat and composed than a traditional bouquet. Trailing ribbons would work as a hair accessory and as a tie for the flowers, matching the colour of the bridesmaids’ dresses.
For the groom, a brown or tweed suit would be much more fitting than a traditional black or navy one. Tweed is synonymous with the country, making it the perfect match for an outdoors, rustic wedding.
Other rustic decor ideas include barrels as drinks tables, hanging flower hoops and dried flowers that decorate the cake.
Fairytale-Themed Wedding
The fairytale theme is probably the one we all thought of when we dreamed of our wedding day as children – the big, beautiful princess dress, the smartly dressed groom, a manor house or castle venue, enormous arched flower displays. There may even be a crossover into the rustic theme, with enchanted woodland, plenty of fairy lights, and natural elements like eucalyptus and moss. That’s why this theme can work so well for any venue type or style.
Take inspiration from Disney and think big! With the fairytale wedding comes opulence, so don’t worry about being too over the top. An ornate, gilded table plan wouldn’t go amiss, and neither would gold cutlery. Horses would be a welcome sight and some gorgeous flower displays would make your chosen venue look even more magical.
Your invitations are the first clue as to what your wedding theme will be, so don’t hold back on the design or the glam here. Choose luxurious thick paper, and add some metallic details, including gold, silver or copper. Either practise your own calligraphy or hire a calligrapher to write out the names on the invitations and envelopes.
Vintage-Themed Wedding
Vintage or decade-themed weddings are still as big as ever, and there are many ways you can incorporate this theme into your big day. It’s also worth noting that a vintage wedding doesn’t have to be based on a particular decade. You can apply vintage touches without having to specifically throw a 1920s or 1950s-style wedding.
Almost anything can be vintage, from the outfits you choose to the cars you ride in to the decor you dress the venue in. Official ‘vintage’ items are generally older than 20 years but younger than 100 years (which scarily means a wedding dress from the 90s is considered vintage!).
Spend your time leading up to the big day shopping at car boot sales, antique warehouses or even eBay to discover vintage finds that can be used on the day. Brides have even been known to purchase second hand, vintage wedding dresses, and these can look so beautiful, particularly when styled with vintage accessories and hair pieces.
If you do want to embrace a decade, be consistent throughout all your styling. Art deco, pearls and lace can be used throughout your outfit and decor choices to create the 1920s impression you want. Bold colours, pin up dresses and victory rolls all shout 1950s.
Whatever theme you choose to go for (or go without), making sure you’re dressed to to impress is key to making sure you are as confident as you can be on your special day. View our collection of wedding suits for your special day.
