Finding your Wedding Style…The Series…. RUSTIC

Blog, Cakes, Chair Covers, Venue Styling

Finding your Wedding Style…The Series…. RUSTIC

The Rustic wedding style has been one that has been around for a while and instantly brings up images of wood, string, lace & Gypsophila in little jam jars. But there is so much more you can do with the style so I thought I would give you some ideas of how you can do Rustic in a different way.

Wedding Chair Styling

How you dress your chairs for a Rustic themed Wedding effectively comes down to the style of chairs used by your venue. The style of chair should always be considered before choosing your chair coverings.

Chivari, Cross-back & Cheltenham chairs are lovely left untouched, but can benefit from a little styling, which brings another dimension to your ceremony and Wedding Breakfast and there are many different ways they can be dressed (take a look at our Instagram account or our portfolio for some ideas)

A hint of lace, pure Hessian or the new coloured Hessian are a lovely way to add a dash of colour to your setting, while keeping true to your Rustic aesthetic.

If your venue’s chairs are in need of covers, the inclusion of a Rustic style sash brings your theme right back to the forefront, just like the pictures below

The Rustic Wedding Cake

This is obviously my favourite part.. I could waffle on for pages about the options available on how to bring your Rustic vibe through to your cake.

The full Naked Cake is the first born in the Rustic cake world. Oozing with fruit of flowers…or both…this is the opittamy of the Rustic ethos. (Read the blog post here)

However, the favourite child of most Rustic lead couples appears to be the Semi Naked style, which features the simple lines of the Naked cake, but is more forgiving when it comes to being on display. The same floral or fruit based decorations can be used on a Semi Naked cake, so you have the best of both worlds.

If the idea of a Naked or Semi Naked cake makes you squirm, but the thought of an iced cake fills you with the same dread, then the Buttercream coated style could be the one for you. Not as traditional as an iced cake, but with a more ‘finished’ look, the Buttercream dressed cake is ideal, as it can still be dressed with flowers, to bring the natural nature of the Rustic theme to your cake and can be another link between your flowers, your cake and your venue. Our Moon Arch cake backdrop is the perfect accompaniment to any cake style, but it sits especially well with a Rustic themed wedding when dressed with fresh or faux foliage & flowers to match those in your wedding scheme.

Obviously any good marriage is built on a foundation of compromise, so if you want the all natural, but your partner is all about the icing…. Have both!

An iced layer, with Semi Naked upper tiers is a marriage made in heaven & keeps all parties happy

Table Decorations for your Wedding Venue

The simplest way to achieve a Rustic look for your tables is to collect, or buy, pretty glass jars, readily available from popular high street shops or online. Filling them with posies of flowers, sprays of Gypsophila or candles and putting them in groups gives a balance to the centre piece, allowing some element of DIY to the planning of your day.

Set on log slices, decorated with lace, string, or a simple paint effect, this is the ultimate in the Rustic look. Using brown kraft paper luggage labels as place cards & table stationery just adds to the detailing.

If you’re looking for something with a little more polish and a lot less wood, changing the jars to glass cylinders with floating candles, single architectural blooms and a mirror in place of the log slice, gives an elegant twist to the simplistic style.

Sparkle can also play a role in any Wedding, even one with a Rustic heart. We lovingly call this style of Rustic, with a hint of bling, “Glamourous Woodland”, as it has a theme based in nature, but with an element of all things shiny.

Crystal mixed with wooden accents, luscious florals and textural foliage brings the woodland inside, channeling your inner Will & Kate.

Table Runners & Top Table Dressings

Having table runners on guest tables and some form of dressing on the Top table, helps to break up vast expanses of white cloth on the tables, but also adds another layer of texture to the room.

Rustic runners can be purely Hessian, or finished with lace for softness, while using the same coloured Hessian as on the chairs brings a pop of colour to the tables and helps to lift the table centres too. The effect of this look can be stunning when the combination is right.

Your Top table shouldn’t be overlooked when styling your Wedding Breakfast, as it gives a cohesive look to the room and it is also a focus for your photographer – there will be many photos of you sitting at the top table so you want it to look good.

Options would be bunting, which drapes across the front of the table, centred where the Happy Couple sit. Generic bunting is available and relatively cheap, although a bespoke piece can be purchased from companies offering a printing service, which adds a special personalisation to the dressing. This is something that you can use again and again, getting out as decoration for your anniversary and special family occasions!

The same style of runners used on the guest tables can be used to decorate the front edge of the Top table, as a background for any floral pieces.

However, this style doesn’t disguise the table linen that well so it is worth considering what overall look you are after.

If lace features in your wedding aesthetic, a full lace swag to dress the Top table adds a softness to the dressing. Hessian swagging doesn’t look great if I’m honest, definitely one to avoid.

Additional Decor ideas for your wedding

I’m often asked by lots of couples if I think they’ve ‘missed’ anything in making their venue look its best.

One of the things I always mention to my couples to take any wedding to the next level, includes SIGNAGE. Wedding Signage is a lovely way to welcome guests to your day, giving them an idea of the timings so they know when they can expect to eat (no one likes a ‘hangry’ guest), where you’d like them to sit and also a way to include people who, for whatever reason, are unable to join you on your special day. Again, your signage is an item that you can keep and treasure forever as a memory of your wedding day.

For a Rustic wedding, wooden signs with foliage, crates for table plans (so many options here too) and extra candle holders or pots of flowers in areas that are used for the wedding, but aren’t necessarily key areas, are all small, but effective detailing that your guests will love. These small details all add up to bring your wedding together and also make beautiful spots for your photographer to snap. These little corners of your day are memories that can easily be forgotten but as soon as you see the picture, it brings it all back.

Top tips & hints

Some words of advice to help you avoid the pitfalls of the Rustic style wedding would be:

1.Try to keep the ‘we’re collecting jars’ to a small circle of family & friends, or you could end up with more jars than Sainsbury’s. This also relates to the new trend of using your favourite tipple as centerpieces. You may like Gin or Jack, but unless you want the recycling centre to think you’ve got a major problem, keep the shout out for saving unusual bottles low key.

2. The use of Gypsophila in weddings is HUGE! From table centres to Bridesmaids bouquets & buttonholes, it seems a relatively cheap way to bring flowers into your wedding. But… achieving the fullness of a Gypsophila bouquet or posy for filling jars is quite a skill, so my advice would be to ask a professional florist to tackle these for you. They have access to the freshest, best quality blooms too & have the knowledge to make this simple style look a million dollars.

My final word of advice would be to not get overwhelmed by all of this! Reach out to your suppliers to how they can bring to life what you have in your head and if you need someone to help you get it out of your head and into real life, why not book a consultation with us and we can help you bring together the ideas into something that will work for your wedding and your budget.

Iced and Spliced by Cakey Wakey Wedding Suppliers Nottingham, Derby. Leicester

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3 things to consider when covering the chairs for your Wedding

Blog, Chair Covers

3 things to consider when covering the chairs for your Wedding

The world of chair covers is a bit of a minefield.

Do you opt for the stretchy kind, that are meant to fit almost any chair? Or do you pick a custom fit, linen style that doesn’t need to be fixed under the feet of the chair to secure them?

This guide will hopefully help you dodge some bullets in the crazy world of chair coverings.

1. Spandex/Lycra

These are the stretchy ‘one size fits all’ covers.

What you need to look into when picking your style of cover is the actual chair you’re covering.

Size is important to the fit of the Spandex cover. Despite them stretching to any size, attention should be paid to how they actually fit your Venue’s chairs.

By this, I mean is there a ‘slope’ formed between the back of the chair & the seat? More common on a chair with a high back, this happens when the Spandex cover is stretched to its maximum, over-extending the cover. It can be uncomfortable for your guests to sit on as the ‘slope’ pushes them forward.

There’s also a greater risk of the covers springing from the feet of the chair when they’re moved.

Other problems arise when the spandex covers are too big for the chairs if the Venue has a smaller style of chair. Being too big can be due to the covers being over stretched previously on larger chairs, as mentioned before. If there isn’t enough chair to stretch the cover properly, the covers can resemble Nora Batty’s stockings, not a pretty sight!

2. Polycotton/Linen Covers

As the name suggests, these covers are made from a mix of fabrics, & hang to the floor, meaning they don’t need to be attached to the feet of the chair.

These covers have a more luxurious look, as they are thicker material than their Spandex cousins, which means the colour of the chairs padding is disguised better. I don’t know why, but lots of venues do tend to have chairs with horrendous patterns on them, which can be visible through thinner cloth.

This type of cover is better if made to measure for the chairs at your venue, so be sure to ask your cover supplier if they are a custom fit.

The Linen style covers form a perfect backdrop to any style of sash dressings.

3. No covers at all?

If you’re lucky, your Venue will have chairs that look fabulous & don’t need covering at all. Yippee!

This chair style is usually the lovely ‘Chivari’ or ‘Cheltenham’ style, which can come in a range of colours.

Or if your Venue is one of the upcoming ‘Urban Chic’ type of places, the chairs may be more of an eclectic mix.

These chairs don’t need covering at all, unless you really aren’t a fan of them, or the seat pad colour clashes badly with your theme.

However, you can make them look more of a styling point of your room, by having them ‘dressed’ with sashes.

This is ideal for adding your colour to the room & for softening the chairs a little too.

Opinion of a Venue Stylist

I’m often asked ‘how do you tie bows like that?’ The answer is simple….. practice, & lots of it!

Over the past 6 years, which was when we added the chair dressing service to our business, we’ve tied thousands of sashes in lots of different ways.

Our service stands out from others in how we design the look of the chair dressings. From unusual bow styles to multiple sashes, the options are endless.

We love to use buckles & brooches to add points of interest, textures & a hint of opulence to our dressings, creating a wow factor as your guests enter your Ceremony or Wedding Breakfast room.

One last piece of advice.

The old adage ‘if it’s too good to be true, it probably is’ is true in most cases, but especially when it comes to Weddings.

If you’re asking a company about chair covers & their cost is a lot lower than other companies, ask the cheaper company what sort of cover you get for that price. Is it Spandex or a ‘proper’ cover?

You will find companies will tell you they have covers to fit the chairs at your venue, but won’t tell you they’re Spandex, unless you ask.

It’s too late to correct that mistake when you discover this on the day of your wedding. You only get one chance to impress your guests, & if your socks aren’t knocked off, theirs won’t be either!

If you’re interested in more information about our chair dressing service, or any of our other services too, we offer an exemplary service for a very reasonable price so please feel free to contact us in the contact form below or take a look at our portfolio for some ideas by clicking here.