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Top 50 Real Wedding Ideas To Steal

Top 50 Real Wedding Ideas To Steal

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Bring the Indoors Out

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We've rounded up the most popular real weddings ideas that you've repinned from our site. The result? Inspiring photos that range from pre-wedding picnics to decadent desserts.

For their open air reception, Leila and Tony made guests feel cozy by setting up a seating area complete with living room furnishings. For added comfort, they also set out a coat rack draped with pashminas for guests to borrow.

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Remember Loved Ones

Christina Richards Weddings

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This duo made a special yet subtle vignette to honor the groom's mother, who passed away when he was a baby. "It was our way of including her in our special day," bride Gabrielle said.

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Cast a Romantic Glow

Stephen Karlisch

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A bit of subtle lighting can lend an instantly cozy atmosphere to almost any outdoor venue. Here, two long rectangular tables are arranged side-by-side in the garden under strings of twinkling lights to encourage casual conversation during the alfresco celebration.

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Let the Groom Have His Cake

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It may have started as a southern wedding tradition, but these days, groom's cakes are a great way to personalize the dessert table at your rehearsal dinner or reception. This golf-pro groom's confection was a three-foot high golf bag with a monogram and a key chain shaped like the couple’s dog. It featured layers of red velvet, tres leches, and chocolate fudge cake.

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Give Eco-Friendly Wedding Favors

Millie Holloman Photography

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Your guests can help themselves and the environment when they take home your eco-friendly treats at the end of the night. Loved ones at this wedding enjoyed make-your-own packets of wildflower, sunflower, and garden vegetable seeds scooped from turquoise mason jars.

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Brave the Elements

Thayer Allyson Gowdy

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Getting hitched in the great outdoors? Take advantage of your natural surroundings by making them the backdrop of your wedding portraits. These newlyweds couldn't resist the urge to strap on skis and pose for pics on the mountains in Sundance, Utah, and based on the killer views, we don't blame them.

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Wear a Gorgeous Pair of Heels

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Your dress may be the main focus of your wedding-day look, but the shoes will be a close second, so be sure to go heavy on the glam. This bride's glittering Christian Dior booties matched the hand-beaded Florentine fresco motif on her celery-colored silk faille gown, creating a dazzing effect.

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Save the Date

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As a way to honor their big day, groom Colman embroidered his suit with the couple's wedding date, which was tucked away underneath the collar. The orange thread matched the day's color palette.

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Strike Up the Band

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To seamlessly flow from ceremony to cocktail hour, enlist a bit of live music like this couple did. Their four-piece band led a parade of guests to the reception with a rendition of "When the Saints Go Marching In" -- an idea inspired by a band the newlyweds spotted on a London street corner.

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Go Mobile

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If there's anything better than a cart of bubbly, it's a cart of bubbly that comes to your seat. This couple got their party started with a traveling prosecco cart, which rolled around to guests to let them customize their beverages.

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Embrace the Rainy Weather

W. Scott Chester Photography

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No one wishes for rain on their wedding day, but maybe a little drizzle isn't such a bad thing. This couple, who posed for rainy portraits in the hills of Positano, Italy, even believed it to be a sign of good luck, and nine months to the day of the wedding, their daughter was born.

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Plan a Great Escape

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Even if you're not going far, a special set of wheels is always a fun addition to a wedding. These newlyweds stepped into a rented 1950s Rolls-Royce Silver Cloud after their reception. Gold ribbon draped across the hood and tied to the hood ornament suspends a wreath of garden roses and their tiny buds in shades of pink, peach, and cream.

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Give Guests a Warm Welcome

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Thank loved ones who have traveled to your wedding from far off destinations with baskets of thoughtful loot. Make them location-themed or aim to make guests feel comfortable and include staples like spring water, lip balm, insect repellent, chocolate -- and hangover remedies.

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Get the Party Started

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There's nothing like an epic fireworks show to put guests in a celebratory mood, and that's exactly how newlyweds Ginger and Greg marked the transition between dinner and dancing at their wedding. After the fireworks display ended, a DJ took over the music and the fabric draped around the tent lit up in different colors.

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Add a Splash of Color

Lang Thomas Photography

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These groomsmen brightened up their neutral ensembles with an unexpected hint of emerald by sporting bold J.Crew socks.

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Bring Your Palette Outdoors

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Add a personal touch to nature’s own backdrop at an outdoor wedding with DIY projects. This bride adorned a tree at the site with festive tissue-paper pom-poms to help anchor the ceremony area.

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Toss Lavender

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Sporting the same design found on the bridesmaid dresses, sachets of lavender were hand-stamped and distributed to guests for tossing after this ceremony in Barto, Pennsylvania.

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Add Function to Your Table Numbers

Laura Murray Photography

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Bride Jessica painted table numbers onto glass bottles and filled them with pink lemonade for a touch of color.

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Dress Your Pets

AMY NEUNSINGER

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We’ve been a fan of dogs at real weddings for sometime and for good reason: They are family after all, and they couldn’t be cuter dressed to the nines. Here, Poly the Jack Russell terrier donned a special dress for the main event for her masters’ walk down the aisle.

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Make Some Noise

AMY NEUNSINGER

As you exit your ceremony as husband and wife, give wedding guests ample ways to make celebrate with festive props. Ribbon-tied tambourines, kazoos, and other noisemakers were placed on guests seats, along with packets of confetti, at Gabe and Amy's outdoor fete.

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Have Friends Help with Finishing Touches

Alan Friedman

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Put a personal touch on your designer wedding-day look by adding handmade details. This bride's feather-and-rhinestone hairpiece was made with love, by a close friend.

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Sneak in Citrus

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Fruit is an affordable way to add a seasonal element to centerpieces and décor. Here, lemons gave cloud-like clusters of white freesias and hydrangeas a sunny pop.

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Alter Your Altar

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Get creative when it comes to the backdrop for your vows. This bride and groom said “I do” in front of an antique fireplace arch decorated in flowers, vines, pillar candles, and personal photos.

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Cater to Your Littlest Guests

Nicole Hill

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Let’s be honest. The children attending your wedding aren’t going to notice a perfectly arranged floral centerpieces, so top their table with something that will get their attention. At this real wedding in Salt Lake City, Utah, the kids’ table was set with candy-filled vessels.

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Dry (Happy) Tears

Elizabeth Messina Photography

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A tray of vintage hankies "for your tears of joy" was set out at this West Coast fete for guests, at the suggestion of this couple's wedding planner and designer, Rebecca Stone of Duet Weddings.

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Crown Your Flower Girls

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Along with the other floral elements, the flower girl crowns at this wedding in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, were thoughtfully designed to capture a rustic elegance. The blue-tinged leaves in the crowns picked up the hues of each wearer's dress.

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Be a Kid Again

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Serve up miniature chocolate chip cookies and milk shooters like this couple did at their casual wedding in Walland, Tennessee.

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Wrap Your Bouquet in Ribbon

Ella Blue Studio

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This bride’s bouquet of mixed pink blooms and striped navy ribbon fit perfectly into the day’s color palette.

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Take Advantage of Your Surroundings

Ella Blue Studio

Crystal and Jason, of Ella Blue Studio, captured scenes from this summer wedding in Port Gamble, Washington, complete with a brief portrait hour featuring fun sights in town following the ceremony.

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Shrink Down Your Favorite Dish

Braedon Photography

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You’d be surprised how gourmet an old classic can look when it’s simply cut down in size. At this real wedding, the groom’s favorite meal -- tacos and the bride’s famous margaritas -- were interpreted for the cocktail hour menu.

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Take A Lovely Portrait

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To put a playful spin on one of their wedding portraits, this couple threw up their hands, shaping them to spell out "LOVE".

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