A new season means new engagements, new trends in fashion and decor and a chance to create the wedding of our dreams. It’s 2020 and that means we have the freedom to play by the rules or throw those rules out and make our own! This year weddings are all about creating meaningful, sustainable, unique and endearing experiences for our bridal party and our guests. Whether it’s close family in the backyard, a sit down dinner for a hundred at a local vineyard or a blowout destination wedding in Bali the emphasis this spring is on celebrating true love while being truly ourselves.
Our founder Melissa started Elūm to celebrate couples getting married. The very first piece printed on our letterpress was a wedding invitation! For nineteen years we have been thrilled and honored to help couples create the weddings of their dreams. We love, love, love being part of your big day. This year we’re excited that brides and grooms have more options than ever to plan a wedding that captures all the wonderful, diverse, heart-achingly beautiful magic of two people in love. Read on to discover what wedding trends we’re falling for this season.
1. Finesse The Dress
In our humble opinion there has never been a better time to be a bride. We can show off different aspects of our personality and style with a wedding dress and a reception dress (think Megan Markle, Zoë Kravitz and Ellie Goulding). Not to mention the bride and groom’s first dance just got a whole lot easier. Let’s face it a formal full-length fitted gown has never been a gal’s best dance partner. Victorian high ruffled collars and lace sleeves are vibing this spring for the ceremony while flirty numbers with short skirts and full bling are heading to the reception and onto the dance-floor. Another major trend is personalized embroidery. When we saw Hailey Bieber’s “Till Death Us Do Part” veil we swooned.
2. Sustainability
Brides and grooms are bringing their Earth cred to their wedding planning by making a concerted effort to reduce the carbon footprint of their celebrations. Small but powerful changes can include using water pitchers and glasses rather than plastic water bottles, choosing locally grown flowers, donating leftover food and floral displays, and repurposing table fabrics and decorations. Party architect extraordinaire Johnny Roxburgh tells of one client who had her beautiful reception tablecloths made into curtains. You go, girl! Give those curtains a couple of years and they might even become a dress! #ScarlettOhara
3. Precious Paper
A wedding invitation sets the tone for the entire celebration. It speaks to guests about what to expect from your wedding and even more importantly who you will become as a couple. This spring we’re continuing to hand print invitations on soft and beautiful repurposed cotton rag paper with soy-based inks. More than ever we see couples leaning in to invites that shine light on their personalities and hopes for the future, like the effervescent and joyous invitations we created for Matt Farah and his beautiful bride Johanna that were featured in @theknot. We are honored to create a wide variety of invites from our one-of-a-kind couture pieces to our more affordable Umi by Elum options. When we sleep at Elum, we dream of weddings! ?
4. Grooming
We are all over this British trend that sees the groom and his groomsmen taking an active role in their outfits and grooming choices. We are all for the groom and his ushers spending a day spoiling themselves at the tailors over whiskey and charcuterie! And we are proud supporters of dedicated groomsmen spaces at venues where the male stars of our weddings can shave, dress, primp and moisturize their hearts out! (Okay, we admit it, we’re mostly women around here. We have no idea what guys get up to in front of the mirror. But whatever it is we darn well support it!). #GroomGoals
5. Sensory Delight
We all know weddings are a feast for our eyes and soul, but the latest trend in weddings is seeing them transform into a feast for all our senses. From wedding invites that are soft to the touch, to velvet tablecloths and tall grasses lining the aisle couples are looking for ways to create a touchable experience for their guests. Small things like whisper-soft draping around the arch at the altar, soft cushions and throw blankets, cut crystal glasses and bubbles floating through the air invite guests to touch and enjoy their surroundings. Fresh cut lemons at the drinks bar, vanilla candles in the church, roses at the table: couples are also giving thought to our sense of smell. The more senses we engage the more surprise and delight we create for our guests. Weddings may be a one time event but our senses can help us remember them for a lifetime.
If you’re tying the knot this spring, congratulations from our family at Elūm to yours! We wish you Champagne bubbles and tummy flutters, something old and something blue, one hundred magical moments and a long and nurturing marriage. Let us know if we can help. #ElumLove