The warmer weather has finally appeared and at TLC that signals a busy summer wedding season ahead. From bo-ho inspired big days, to retro celebrations and elegant al-fresco occasions. As professional wedding planners, it’s important that we make every big day – an exclusive day. Uniquely perfect in reflecting the quirks and personality of the lucky couple. So, in a series of special summer wedding blogs, the team shares ideas for everything from summer wedding themes and entertainment. To personalising the day and inspirational ways to weather-proof your wedding (well, it is a British summer after all!). We’ll also give you insider knowledge and practical tips for organising the day you deserve. But we start with the design of your wedding, by featuring our top 10 summer wedding trends for 2024.
Here are some of the fabulous trends shaping summer weddings this year:
OVERSIZED FLORAL DESIGN
The first in our collection of the best 10 summer wedding trends for 2024 is big, bold, and beautiful. Yes, when it comes to flowers this summer, it’s time to go bold or go home.
Towering floral architecture takes table design and room décor to the next level. Whether you opt for the loose and tangled Dutch Masters feel for your floristry, set against a dark dramatic backdrop or a structured installation such as a canopy or an arching or hanging focal point, one thing is for sure, there will be no shrinking violets.
GOURMET WEDDINGS
This trend is especially suited to couples marrying the second time around, who want a smaller wedding focusing on things they really love. Hiring out a full restaurant for the reception is becoming a huge trend, with the focus being on elevated gourmet experiences, and even Michelin Star dining.
Rather than being a sideshow or afterthought, the food in this instance takes centre stage. It becomes an intrinsic element of the day, shaping the entire celebration. And it gives an opportunity to be inspiration in the presentation too. A hallmark of a TLC wedding.
CITRUS CENTREPIECES
Nothing honours the summer season more than the freshest pairing of fruit and florals in your table décor. Citrus fruit especially adds a fragrant dimension and a pop of zesty colour to your scheme. Depending on your wedding colourways for 2024, any seasonal bounty will work. Think outside of the fruit basket: peaches, kumquat, even pineapples if you’re feeling the full tropical inspiration.
Nestle the fruit among the flower arrangements or use it as a cute punctuation to your name cards or napkin holders.
CHAMPAGNE TOWERS
Bring in a retro classic and make your toast drinks a dazzling centrepiece with a towering monument of champagne saucers. The honour of the first pour (and the first sip) of course goes to the bride and groom.
Wondering how to tackle this herculean task? Well it takes a steady hand and lots of patience but luckily, Hitched, has a handy guide that tells you everything you need to know: https://www.hitched.co.uk/wedding-planning/entertainment/champagne-towers/
COOL COCKTAILS
Everyone loves an ice lolly on a sweltering day, and a cocktail or two never goes amiss at a wedding. So why not combine two of the best, serving up summer’s coolest wedding trend – frozen cocktails? Whether it’s a watermelon sorbet slush, frozen margarita or the classic ‘Frose’ (frozen rose), there are many easy-to-make iced tipples that will keep guests cool and appeal to their fun side.
Visit Good Food for a whole selection of frozen delights: https://www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/collection/frozen-cocktail-recipes
Dial it up and create your own frozen ‘signature serve’ hiring in a mixologist to completely personalise the experience.
COBALT BLUE
Blue is a perennial for wedding colour schemes, but whereas in recent years pastel and powder shades have brought Regency ambience to the occasion, this summertime a strong and saturated shade of blue is set to rock its way straight from the runway to the aisle. Cobalt blue is bold and unabashed. It brings with it a Moroccan-inspired vibrancy.
Dive right into the colour of the season. Use it as a flash of colour in surprising spaces if you don’t want to fully saturate your room with such dazzling hue. Pair with crisp white, gold or terracotta clay shades to complement and ground the scheme.
SURPRISING INTERACTIVE ELEMENTS…
Surprising interactive elements are wowing wedding guests in summer 2024 – whether it’s a secret nightclub or speakeasy underneath your venue, creative seating charts that double up as favours (or even a dinner course) a cheese conveyor belt or a ‘Ring for Cocktails’ concept. Take a leaf from Soho’s trendy and luxurious art deco restaurant Bob Bob Ricard, which has a handy button on each table that diners can ‘press for champagne’. Well, isn’t that every wedding guest’s dream?
HONEY, WE SHRUNK, EVERYTHING
2024 is the year of the mini. From wedding and bridesmaid dresses (yes think Lulu circa 1960) to bouquets (shrunk to posies), cakes (shrunk to cupcakes or cake pops), even tiny pint-sized gravy boats and saltshakers. Everything is being miniaturised to the cutest personalised proportions.
VINTAGE CARNIVAL
Roll up roll up, weddings are being infused with a sense of nostalgic charm as the carnival wedding brings all the fun of the fair. Carousels, Helter Skelters, vintage garden games, a Ferris Wheel? Don’t forget the candy floss, coconut shy and hook a duck. This theme can permeate every aspect of a wedding day, making it a joyous, colourful celebration in every sense of the word. It’s a perfect theme for a summer wedding too, why not parade your wedding party from ceremony space to venue to the sound of a brass band playing? A true spectacle for guests and onlookers alike.
DUSTY BLUE AND RED
Green and pink have dominated the wedding colour palette in recent years but there’s a new colour combo in town for summer 2024. Red and blue is set to take centre stage, but not in its patriotic form. This blue is chalky, with almost slate-like characteristics whereas a deep rose red will provide a charming contrast. Use highlights of peach to add further visual interest.
MORE SUMMER WEDDING TREND PINSPIRATION…
Want to know what everyone is searching for in weddings this year? Read Pinterest’s research into the most searched-for wedding terms on its platform: https://newsroom.pinterest.com/en-gb/news/the-pinterest-2024-wedding-report/
SAY YES TO THE DRESS…
Looking for wedding dress inspo for your summer wedding in 2024? Take a look at Glamour’s guide to the most on-trend looks
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DqG5e_vBqrg
Thanks for sharing our top 10 summer wedding trends for 2024. If you need help in planning your big day, get in touch with us today: events@tlc-ltd.co.uk