From fancy floral walls to elegant draped arbors, we suss out ten picture-perfect wedding backdrops for every bride-to-be and her dashing groom.
Much like your wedding decor, your ceremony backdrop will set the mood for your big day. That special moment when you say ‘yes’ to a lifetime of love won’t just be a precious memory – it’ll also be photographed to death, so make it count with a dazzling ceremonial structure.
Custom chalkboard
Forget the traditional arch; give your wedding a playful punch with a chalkboard backdrop you can double up for your photo wall. The beauty of the board is its myriad opportunities for personalisation – write your names and ceremony details on the board, and decorate it however you prefer. We promise your guests will be jostling over their photo ops.
Fabric strips and ribbons
This one’s great for outdoor weddings on a budget. All you need is a dowel rod, strips of fabric, and plenty of fabric dye (if you’re nifty with DIY). Use satin and silk for a more luxe look, lace for a more traditional theme or string fairy lights around the rod to give your altar an ethereal glow.
Fabric scroll
Lovers of the written word, sit up for this one. Print a quote that best describes your relationship, your vows or favourite literary excerpt on a winding piece of fabric and hang it up at your altar, or double it up as an aisle runner. To amp up the magic, swath your altars with gorgeous flowers or assorted candles.
The holy trifecta
We’re suckers for loads of wedding backdrops – including ones that feature antiques, florals or letterings of any kind. So when we found one that combines all three, we were bowled over. For an utterly charming backdrop to your wedding vows, prop a fabric scroll with your fave quote between two rustic doors (good news: they don’t have to match) and decorate with gorgeous vines blanketed with colourful flowers.
Traditional seaside arbor
Nothing quite screams lush seaside wedding like a beautiful arbor. Fashion a structure out of wood or rods and drape linen fabric around it for a touch of elegance. Finish off by weaving clusters of flowers around it to complete the romantic look.
Glam floral wall
Were you sick with envy when you saw the over-the-top (and totally gorgeous) floral wall at Kim Kardashian and Kanye West’s opulent Florentine wedding in 2014? We know we were. Fancy florals are the glam go-to for wedding backdrops these days; do up a wall with big blooms if you’ve got cash to splash, or if you’re on a tighter budget, decorate a doorway with clusters of pretty flowers or string them from the ceiling for an elegant look that brings the outdoors in.
Paper pinwheels
Yet another budget-friendly wedding backdrop idea is to use DIY-able paper pinwheels. Go with a gradient-style, colourful variety for a touch punch of whimsy, or cream coloured ones with lace trims for a more sophisticated style.
Paper parasols
For a dramatic wedding backdrop with major wow factor, get creative with colourful paper parasols. These require a bit of a hunt, but we promise the search will be worth it. Look for a variety of colours, prints, trims, and styles (like the traditional Japanese wagasa umbrella) to add varied dimensions of texture and make your ceremony setting really pop.
Vintage photo frames
Another picture-perfect rustic wedding backdrop we love is the use of vintage photo frames. Perfect for outdoor or folksy-themed ceremonies, a backdrop of (strategically) assorted vintage frames will perfectly frame your first kiss as man and wife.
Recycled bottles and mason jars
If you’re making your big day as eco-friendly as possible, start saving your used glass bottles and mason jars. Besides being highly functional, they’re versatile enough to be decorated in different ways: spray painted; filled with tea lights; strung up on a tree. Bonus: besides being a really unique decor idea, this nifty lil trick will also save you a ton of money on that ever-burgeoning wedding budget.