Winter Wedding Planning Tips!
Are you having a winter wedding? If you’re tying the knot during the colder months of the year, you’ve surely scrolled through the internet for countless hours collecting ideas. After all, you want your wedding celebration to be the magical event you’ve always dreamed of! Although “wedding season” is often considered to be in the spring, summer and fall months, winter weddings are gaining popularity. Not only is it already a festive time of year, but the weather is often ideal, especially for us here in Texas. At Madera Estates, we absolutely love winter weddings! For those of you who are just now stumbling across our blog for the first time, we are a luxury Spanish and European inspired event space. Located in Conroe, Texas, we offer an all-inclusive wedding solution for our couples. Whether you just want to rent the venue, or you want our team to plan it all, we’re happy to help! From catering to the cake, music and more, Madera Estates is your one-stop-shop for all your event planning needs!
In this blog post, we’re going to go over some of our best tips for planning a perfect winter wedding! From the theme to the food, flowers, photography and more, here are a few of our favorite winter wedding suggestions.
It Doesn’t Have To Be A Winter Wonderland Theme
So many brides feel the need to overly embrace the winter wonderland theme. Although the idea is beautiful, you shouldn’t feel obligated to adhere to a holiday theme for your big day. There’s no need to stick with a snowflake or red and green theme. After all, your wedding day photos are going to be displayed throughout your home. You probably don’t want them to scream “Merry Christmas” from the frames. Instead, start by choosing a color palette that is appropriate for the season! Deep jewel tones and shades of blue are a great choice. When in doubt, feel free to ask your planning team and florist if they have any suggestions.
There’s A Fine Line Between Fabulous & Tacky
There are a variety of ways that you can tastefully incorporate winter and holiday decorations. With that being said, you probably don’t want your wedding to look like a Party City catalog. Pinterest is a great way for you to collect winter wedding ideas! Consider incorporating lanterns, faux fur accents, metallic decor, and seasonal foliage!
Consider The Seasonality Of Floral Options
Like any time of the year, you have to consider the seasonality of floral options! For example, if you have your heart set on peonies, you’re going to have to fork out a lot more dough during the off-season months. Beautiful winter, in-season, flowers include brunia berries, ranunculus, orchids, and white lilies. You can even add hints of evergreen leaves and pinecones! Remember, when in doubt, roses are always a lovely in-season classic.
Keep The Food Warm & Tasty
Nothing keeps guests cozy like some good ole’ comfort food. Winter produce is full of yummy starches including turnips, potatoes and squash. Consider serving a warm soup as an appetizer, and following it with a steak or chicken entree. Green beans sprinkled with sliced almonds would also be delicious! To take it a step further, consider a winter signature cocktail! A hot whiskey sour, a white Russian, peppermint cocktail or even mulled wine would be fabulous!
With all this in mind, make sure you take catering into consideration before booking a venue! Just because a venue might appear beautiful, doesn’t mean that they are always the most functional. Before you sign a contract with an event space, ask the coordinator about the kitchen and how they help ensure the food is served warm.
Make Sure Your Venue Has Temperature Control
The last thing you want is for your guests to be uncomfortable! This holds true for any season, but it’s especially important for summer or winter weddings. If you set a winter date, you may have toured the venue in the warmer months and not even thought about asking about temperature control during your visit. A great venue will be able to accommodate any inclement weather. Not to mention, they should be able to offer a quick plan B option to transform an outdoor event inside.
Have Fun With Winter Accessories
A winter wedding allows the bridal party to have a lot of fun with non-traditional accessories! A bride might opt for a beautiful longsleeved wedding gown. Perhaps the bridesmaids can have a shawl or even a fur muff. Instead of bouquets, the ladies could walk down the aisle with a tray of candles, lanterns or floral hoops. When it comes to the fellas, they can dazzle in velvet sports jackets or even fun patterned ties and pocket squares.
Get Creative With The Party Favors
The best favors are the ones that guests will use over and over again. The last thing you want to do is spend a portion of your wedding budget on nonsense that will end up in the trash the next day. Consider gifting candles, matches, mini bottles of liquor or cinnamon-flavored cookies! These are a great gesture of thanks that most will love!
Be Aware Of Photography Limitations & Opportunities
It’s important that you’re aware of the potential photography limitations that accompany a winter wedding. A good photographer will be able to plan accordingly to avoid these, so it’s crucial you hire an expert! For instance, the daylight runs short in the winter months. This means you’ll have to have a stricter timeline to make sure you get all the photos you want. If you live in a colder climate, you might get a snowfall on your big day. These often make for great photos, but in the event of a blizzard you’ll want to have a few indoor options prepared.
Put The Receiving Line Inside
Receiving lines are considered a bit on the traditional side these days. However, if you insist on having one, make sure to move the line indoors! You don’t want your guests to be uncomfortable, this is especially true for elderly guests.
Host Your Winter Wedding At Madera Estates!
We hope that you enjoyed these winter wedding tips! Are you engaged and planning your wedding? Madera Estates would love to be a part of your celebration! Whether you’re planning a winter wedding, or you’re open to other seasons, we have resources, tips, and tricks to help your wedding day dreams come true!
Working with our team is easy and fun! Start by booking a FREE champagne tour of our venue! Just click here to pick a time and date that works best for you. We look forward to meeting you, your fiance and even a few of your family members! From the time you sign on with Madera Estates, we’ll help guide you throughout the wedding planning process to make sure you have the magical day you’ve always dreamed of.
We are located at 3201 N Frazier St, Conroe, TX 77303. For more information, please call our office directly at (936) 441-9337. Happy wedding planning!