A Wedding Trend We're Loving: Living Walls

By Hannah Nowack
February 20, 2019
Erin McCall

These greenery and flower-centric installations are wedding décor showstoppers.

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Davy Whitener Photography

There are several good reasons why living walls have become one of the most popular (and statement-making) wedding design trends: They make a major visual statement, they're a fresh décor alternative, and they're an awe-inspiring way to dress up bare walls, hide an eyesore at a venue, or reimagine an otherwise simple backdrop. In short: They're bound to catch the eye of every single guest in attendance at your wedding.

No matter your wedding aesthetic, there's a way to incorporate a striking living wall into your big-day design. From a boxwood escort card installation at a tented celebration to a monochromatic floral wall at a black-tie bash, the photos ahead prove that living décor has a place in any type of celebration. They also work well for every part of your big day: While we love living wills as ceremony backdrops and photo booths, they also look lovely as a step-and-repeat or a focal point during the reception. From your ceremony and cocktail hour to your reception and after-party, the versatility of these greenery- and flower-centric designs know no bounds.

The living wall seen here marked the entrance guests used for the reception. Blossoms Events worked with Mariée Ami to create an on-trend ombré flower wall that tied in elegant draping and greenery garlands. This décor moment was a particularly effective showstopper since it gave attendees a hint of what was to come inside the reception tent.

Ahead, you'll find plenty of ingenious ideas for featuring a cool living wall—made from flowers, greenery, or some combination of the two—at your own wedding. From a wall of boxwood decorated with Champagne flute escort cards to a lounge backdrop studded with hundreds of pastel blooms, you'll soon find that there are so many inventive ways to freshen up your party with a live décor. 

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Sweetheart Table

Voir Pictures
Should You Sit at a Sweetheart Table During Your Wedding Reception?

This couple's loveseat was backed by a wall of lush greenery accented with countless flowers. In the mix were purple, green, and white hydrangeas; pink, peach, and white roses; and pink lily, peach amaryllis, white iris, and green amaranthus. The epic display lent a verdant, jungle-inspired vibe to the party.

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Champagne Wall

Erin McCall
Champagne-Inspired Wedding Ideas

Champagne makes everything better, even living walls. Guests enjoyed this interactive beverage display dreamt up by The Graceful Host during cocktail hour. Poppy and Mint was responsible for the floral design that brought it all together.

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Please Be Seated

Matthew Moore Photography
Lucite Wedding Ideas for the Minimalist Couple

Seating charts printed on clear lucite allowed the boxwood base of this wall from BW Theory to truly shine.

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Mirror, Mirror

Sylvie Gil Photography
Trending Now: Mirrored Wedding Décor

Ornate gilded mirrors were given a foliage upgrade for this escort display. With so many mirrors on display, the living wall served to both ground and unify the entire Snow White-inspired installation.

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Half-Wall

Julie Paisley Photography

A living wall doesn't have to take over your entire space—a look similar to this half-wall, which served as a ceremony backdrop, would make a statement, too.

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Neon Accent

Rachel Havel Photography
Types of Neon Signs for Your Wedding

A contemporary neon sign that read "Love on the Rocks" completed this textured wall of ferns and other greenery.

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Perfectly Tropical

Brklyn View Photography
Ways to Use Leaves Throughout Your Wedding

An installation of monstera leaves and palm fronds hanging in front of a white brick wall made a striking ceremony backdrop for this industrial-meets-tropical wedding.

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Best Day Ever

Theo Milo Photography
Neon Wedding Signs That Lit Up Real Receptions

A neon sign commemorating this couple's wedding date was incorporated into their living wall. Th entire display made for a great guest photo op.

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Seating Chart

Greer Gattuso
Unique Wedding Seating Charts to Guide Guests to Their Seats

A boxwood and greenery living wall provided a refined background for the escort card display at this black-tie wedding in New Orleans. Gilded frames, gold wax seals, and handwritten gold calligraphy contrasted beautifully with the wall's deep greens.

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Contemporary Backdrop

Feather and Twine

Ever the versatile décor element, living walls can also be modern and minimal. Taped to the white surface, the single stems and assorted leaves seen here were the masterpiece of Color Theory Collective and Wild Sky Events. The installation made for a pretty epic backdrop for photos.

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Music-Inspired

Birds of a Feather
Wedding Ideas for Music Lovers That Hit a High Note

To border the dance floor, this couple created a lattice and greenery wall and completed it with some song lyrics that reminded them of each other. The laser-cut quote from "Can't Help Falling in Love" by Elvis Presley helped get the party started.

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Modern Ceremony

Elizabeth Messina
Gray Wedding Details

Don't be afraid to incorporate colors beyond green or white in your living wall design. White roses dotted a slate gray wall that served as a ceremony backdrop for this contemporary celebration.

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Potted Plants

Jessie Schultz Photography
Ideas for Using Succulents at Your Wedding

Tiers of potted plants and succulents brought together by Ruffle Effect created a breathtaking photo backdrop.

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Cheers!

Abby Jiu Photography
A Cocktail Hour Trend We're Loving: Living Bars

In lieu of a traditional shelf bar back, a boxwood living wall with the quote, "They broke bread in their homes and rejoiced and were glad in it," anchored the drink station in this reception tent.

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Tropical Backdrop

Rebecca Arthurs
Island Time: Tropical Wedding Ideas We Love

Vintage and Lace Weddings created this living wall—which served as a photo backdrop—out of ferns, palm leaves, and other plants native to Hawaii, which showcased the natural beauty of the islands.

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Poolside

Ashley Ludaescher Photography
Ideas for Sitting Pretty at Your Head Table

An expansive wall covered in flowers and greenery by Zweigstelle served as a backdrop to this poolside reception setting. Flora included vanda orchids, foxtail lily, hydrangeas, medeola asparagus, cymbidium orchids, and anthurium.

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Dual-Purpose Décor

Nicole Leever Photography

This couple honored their Chinese heritage by adding a custom neon sign to a tropical-inspired living wall. The best part? They repurposed the sign as apartment décor following the wedding.

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Bold and Bright

Art Is for Lovers

Bold colors that run the risk of feeling jarring indoors look perfectly at home when diffused by soft outdoor light. Case in point: this vibrant red rose SEED Floral wall that stole centerstage at an outdoor mountain Wink! wedding.

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Faux Living Wall

Gretchen Gause
Faux Wedding Flower Ideas That Are Actually Chic

Inspired by living blooms, these paper flower escort cards were adhered to a faux boxwood wall for a "living" seating display. Elise Events, Bluejaye Papers and Press, and Mindy Liu teamed up to bring this design to life.

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All-White Roses

Amilia James
White Wedding Flowers

Although it's nearly impossible to tell, this all-white floral wall from Please Be Seated Rentals was actually made from faux flowers. Photographer Amilia James notes, "I love that the wall looks like living flowers with the added durability of being faux flowers." The whole look was designed by Cedarwood Weddings.

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Wall of Vines

Abigail Malone

While many living walls are backed with wood, this wall designed by Slauer Events was made up of intertwined vines. The vines created a loose webbing to which a foliage arch was then added by Gold and Bloom.

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Sun-Inspired

Sanaz Photography
Celestial Wedding Ideas That'll Have You Starry-Eyed

Instead of blocking out the background, as many walls do, this sun-inspired wall gave guests the opportunity to take in the mountain view at this

Malibu Rocky Oaks

wedding ceremony.

Jessica Lauren Events

worked with

Foxtail Florals

to bring this design to life.

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Pink and White

Katie Julia
Hydrangea Wedding Flower Arrangements

By mixing pink and white hydrangea together, this single-variety floral wall was full of striking texture. Lily and Sage worked with Studio Sorores to create this lounge backdrop.

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Blue and Orange

Elias Kordelakos
Unique Wedding Color Palettes That Will Set Your Big Day Apart

This couple embraced a bold color palette and the end result was a striking living wall by Deplan V. Coral charm peonies and blue hydrangea were just some of the many flowers used here.

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Crisscross

Cheyenne Schultz Photography

Hart & Co. Events and Julep Floral got creative by bringing in a patterned element to this living wall. Greenery garlands crossed over each other to create a dramatic look that was finished off by a selection of small mirrors.

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Asymmetrical

Matthew Moore Photography
Wedding Lounge Ideas Your Guests Can Cozy Up To

BW Theory used a base of boxwood layered with asymmetrical foliage for this lounge grouping's monochromatic backdrop.

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Ceremony Reading

Charissa Magno Photography
Unique Ways to Show Off Your Favorite Quote at Your Wedding

A quote from this couple's ceremony reading doubled as a décor focal point on the living wall at their reception. The laser cut quote said, "I'd choose you in a hundred lifetimes, in a hundred worlds, in any version of reality, I'd find you and choose you." 

Kelsey Rae Designs

worked with

Blue Ladder Botany

on this tri-panel wall.

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Minimalist Foliage

The Kama Photography
Cocktail Hour Ideas from Real Weddings

The individually placed pieces of foliage on this couple's living wall by Amy Lauren Floral Design looked almost like pressed leaves. Claire Duran Weddings and Events cleverly chose to place a cocktail table close to statement décor piece so guests could mingle and take in the foliage details up close.

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