2020 Wedding Trends
How One Photoshoot Predicted 8 Wedding Trends
At LLG Events, we don’t just execute a styled shoot for the result of pretty photographs. Instead, our Design Team creates multiple design decks and mood boards, with thought and intention behind every detail. In an emerging age that craves authenticity rather than the perfectly-curated Instagram feed or photo, it’s important to have a story and concept behind your content. As such, we utilize styled shoots to showcase our expertise in the industry and provide innovative inspiration for couples getting engaged on the horizon.
If you’re one of the many couples who’s gotten engaged during this holiday season, take a look at our 8 new wedding trends for 2020, conceived in one sole photoshoot.
Attire Separates
It’s commonplace to now have multiple looks on your wedding day, but you don’t need to buy three different gowns or suits either.
Here, we started with a simple, elegant white bridal swimsuit and adorned it with body jewelry from Kleinfeld Bridal. For the overwater ceremony, we added a flowing cape with ivory lace detailing from Kleinfeld Bridal instead of using a veil.
As our bride made her way out of the ocean and up to the brunch reception area, we allowed her to change into a more ‘land’ look with a traditional, long flowing veil for photographs walking along the beach, and a ruffle-scalloped skirt from Kleinfeld Bridal that continued mimicking the waves of the ocean.
Floral Crowns
Along with ditching the tradition of the bouquet toss, we’ve seen couples start to get more imaginative with what they’re holding on their special day - yes, they’ve held everything from real, live puppies to slices of pizza or bouquets of chicken nuggets. Stemming from this shift to nontraditional practices, we predict that some couples will start doing away with the handheld bouquet altogether.
With alternatives like a floral crown, brides will no longer have to hand their florals off to a maid or man of honor standing beside them at the ceremony site. Instead, moving the florals up to the crown of the head allows the arrangement to continue complementing the bride’s look throughout the entire ceremony.
Corrie Elle Artistry custom-made this crown with the lush pink flowers from throughout the wedding day, making a full and blooming headpiece that provided a great pop of color to the all-white ensemble.
Overwater Portraits
Couples are getting more and more daring with their wedding day portraits, some even opting for ‘Encore Editorials’ where they debut their wedding fashion for a second time someday after the actual wedding day so they can have endless time with their photographer to get that magazine cover-worthy capture.
For couples who don’t have the option of booking a photographer for multiple days or shoots, we like to offer a more creative design of their ceremony site or location choices for their first look or hour of portraits on the wedding day. This way, they’re captivated by every photo that fills their heirloom album.
Before Four Seasons Resort Bali at Jimbaran Bay built the longest overwater aisle in existence, we took to the calming waters of the Persian Gulf surrounding Zaya Nurai Island to create an overwater portrait opportunity with their ocean-dipped swing.
(Curious how we were able to orchestrate this look? How Bliss Flowers UAE was able to snake their vines and roses up and throughout this overwater rope swing? Let us know and we’ll do a full behind-the-scenes breakdown of this 4 A.M. sunrise shoot at a private island resort only accessible by boat!)
Sunrise Ceremonies
Why limit your wedding day to the early afternoon and evening, where you lose some guests by the end of the reception and the guest count dwindles for the after-party? Not to mention, couples often have to step out of their own dance floor to capture their desired sunset photographs.
As a solution to all of that, we’re supporters of the sunrise ceremony. You get the same stunning backdrop for your photographs; you have an extended day for more festivities with your closest friends and family, and you can have a brunch reception!
We’re urging the trend of sober events to take a greater place in the event world, and brunch receptions make it easy to do with coffee bars, juice bars, smoothie mix-ins, you name it.
Boho-Rustic Decor
Yes, you read that right: boho-rustic. Both can be upscale, elegant, and unrestricted to just inside the walls of a barn or the open air of a flower field. Think Restoration Hardware and West Elm vibes.
That’s what inspired our table decor and rentals for this photoshoot with thick-woven knotted napkins at each place setting, sitting atop intricately wooden-carved chargers. Wicker rugs ran along the length of the wooden tables, adding in a more personalized style.
The best part of this type of decor is that it can be sourced sustainably and locally. There are plenty of markets and local artisans who can create these elements so your event details are not only memorable but made ethically and help out its creators.
Paperless Events
Did you notice there were no paper products present in our styled shoot? Upcoming generations care more about the environment and sustainability, so we’re always seeking options to be eco-friendly in the event world.
Paperless events are going to be the next wave that’s utilizing the benefits that technology has to offer. Instead of spending extra dollars on stationery and invites, put that towards a custom illustrator who can create an amazing email invite or website - where your guests can RSVP with the click of a button.
As for the menus, allow guests to be surprised by their meal. If you’re a big foodie couple, this will amp up the culinary experience of your event by creating anticipation about the tastes your guests are enjoying. If you want to play it safer, you can opt for a sustainable, singular menu display - either for the whole event, or one per table.
Alternative Seating
Forget about gold metal or clear lucite chairs and having all of your furniture rentals look identical. Now’s the time to mix and match, to get comfortable and creative.
Alternative seating is not only a new way to personalize your event, but it can also help facilitate guest flow. Think about where to strategically place swings, stools, bean bags, lounge chairs or other seating options based on if you want your guests to be standing around cocktail tables and enjoying passed hors d’oeuvres, if you want them to be comfortably seated and conversing with one another, or if you want the majority of them up and dancing!
You can also have fun accessorizing these alternative seating arrangements, as they’re more apt for floral adornments or pillow decor than traditional chairs.
Destination Hot Spots
As pioneers of wedding tourism, identifying destination wedding hot spots is our specialty. Last year, we traveled to Abu Dhabi, Dubai and explored the areas of the United Arab Emirates because they offered affordable luxury. You can choose a venue for any aesthetic, whether you prefer a city, ballroom, beach, helipad, race track or more... and it’s likely to be cheaper than the same experience in the United States or Europe.
Affordable luxury was a trend we had predicted to emerge in 2019, as couples were just beginning to phase out of the grand ballroom receptions complete with chandeliers and fancy butler service.
They proved right, as data recently released ahead of Arabian Travel Market 2020 announced that the regional wedding market of the Middle East is now over $4.5 billion U.S. dollars, and attracts five percent of the global destination weddings market. The region is now anticipating destination weddings to be one of four key trends to define the Middle East for 2020 and beyond.
Since we’re always one step ahead, stay tuned to read our destination hot spots for 2020 weddings!
WE COULD NOT HAVE PRODUCED THIS EVENT WITHOUT THE HELP OF OUR AMAZING VENDORS:
Photographer: Christophe Viseux Weddings
Hair, MUA + Crown Design: Corrie Elle Artistry
Bride’s Attire: Kleinfeld Bridal
Flowers: Bliss Flowers UAE
