Top 10 Wedding Trends for 2010

                          

Twenty-ten is a great year for couples to express their creativity, individuality and to alter classic traditions to suit their personal taste and style. Here’s what’s ‘in’ for 2010:

1. Being Ecologically Conscious. It’s no surprise that engaged couples are looking to reduce their carbon-imprint on their big day. Although it’s just one day (or more realistically 12-15 hours from the start of spa appointments to last call at the bar), the environmental impact of such an extravagant event is, unfortunately, permanent and irreversible. Many couples are now opting to print their invitations on recycled paper (or even on old stylish postcards), choosing organic flowers, having the ceremony and reception at the same venue, not serving bottled water, or even deciding to have the groom arrive on a bicycle! Not only will guests experience something different, but the environment will be eternally grateful!

2. Shorter Cocktail Hour. This year, wedding cocktail hours are under 60 minutes. The reason for this is to avoid keeping guests waiting for the main event (the dinner course) and also to focus on a sit-down intimate dinner gathering as opposed to the helter-skelter nibbling affair comprised of floating snack platters and guests-in-motion.

3. Tall Wedding Cakes. Five (or even seven layers!) is the new three or four. Go high or go home (or go cupcake).

4. Candy Buffets. Playing on childhood nostalgia are the lollipop, jellybean, sweetarts and gum-drop treats all displayed in various types and various heights of glassware. Using old fashioned scoops or spoons is an added touch.

5. Blues. Not as in blues the music genre or the emotion, but as in blue the colour. Blues are the most requested colour for 2010, with dashes of cobalt blue specifically, popping up in several of the ceremony and reception details. Blue has always been a colour famous for its calming effects; how appropriate on the day of a wedding! Other popular colours this season are platinum, coral, pale yellow and fuchsia.

6. Romance is Back! The classic, romantic wedding dress is ‘in’ for 2010. Overplaying fabrics such as chiffon and tulle as well as crystal and pearl embellished bodices are very popular this year as is the off-the-shoulder look, which accentuates the neckline or jewelry. Ruffles are also very twenty-ten. Blazing a subtle trail among traditional white is colour in wedding dresses, specifically champagne, platinum, and even black.

7. Natural-Looking Bouquets. Brides are opting for a more rustic and “just-picked” appearance to their wedding bouquet, as opposed to the traditional tightly bound bouquet. Natural objects such as pinecones, feathers (a 2010 trend on its own!) and shells are also being incorporated into the bouquet as well as bright bold flowers.

8. Personalizing. In a culture that values independence and the ability and confidence to stand-out, personalizing a wedding is the most grandiose opportunity to put one’s self out there. After location!, location!, location!, comes the details. It is the details that ultimately distinguishes each wedding; leaving guests talking and memories ablaze. Popular this year is for couples to create a signature cocktail or decoration or to place their initials on everything from the wedding cake to the dinner plates. Initials ensure that guests make no mistake as to who’s wedding they are at, especially after a night spent at the open bar.

9. Giving. Is the old adage true that it is better to give than to receive?  Find out by donating or selling your wedding dress to someone in need, arranging for leftover food to be given to a local shelter or donating flower arrangements to a hospital. Post-celebration, why not allow those less fortunate to relish in the after effects? Good karma makes for a sound marriage.

10. Blogging Brides. Sharing the experience of planning a wedding online via a ‘blog’ is a great way to gather feedback on ideas, themes and decorative details and is becoming increasingly popular (refer back to Trend #8). Writing is also a great therapeutic tool as the stress of the nearing wedding day collectively mounts.

Tags: blogging brides, blue, candy buffets, Decor, ecological wedding, feathers, flowers, to suit your fancy, Toronto, TSYF, wedding bouquets, wedding trends 2010