Spring Wedding Inspiration – Pretty Pastels

In celebration of the first day of spring yesterday, it seemed like a good time to refresh the blog with a new moodboard.  With sherbet shades and soft sentiments, this moodboard is perfect for spring, but would also suit a serene summer wedding too. 

This is a classic wedding theme, but how many times have you seen it done well?  Follow my moodboard (and don’t make your groom wear a pink tie!) and you’ll be on to a winner. 

The colours here are soft rather than sickly, and the mixture of pastels makes it bright and fun rather than too girly.  This is particularly illustrated through the mixed palette for the bridesmaids; the dresses themselves are kept quite simple though so that they still flow together.  You want a good mix of colours but you don’t want your bridesmaids to feel out of place, or your guests to feel overwhelmed!  If you’re on a budget, or only having one bridesmaid like me, you can still do a similar mix of colours but with something like straws or napkins.  This is equally as effective and probably even looks better in photos and on Instagram, as they will appear more consistent than the odd bridesmaid in orange. 

As always (and my favourite), texture adds a lot more depth to this story.  The uneven icing on the cake makes it feel a bit more rustic, and stops the cake looking overly pretty.  I think the course edges really balance the gentle pastels used.  The foliage around the base of the cake is in keeping with the natural theme and makes it seem all the more contemporary.  The matt texture of the painted jars also makes it seem not entirely perfect and polished, in a good way, and keeps the feeling of the moodboard relaxed.  This can be achieved with matt spray paint, or else B&Q also do some good chalkboard paint which gives the same ‘unpolished’ matt/chalky effect. 

I’m also a big fan of conveying wedding themes with food!  To me, it's a no brainer; killing two birds with one stone!  Ice cream cones are the perfect addition to this board, with flavours readily available (with minimal effort) to really emphasise the pastel theme, and coordinate with the other colours that pop in the rest of the board.  Again, the course texture keeps it current and makes it a little rough around the edges, literally.  Opt for old fashioned hand scooped ice cream rather than a Mr Whippy machine version, with lattice cones to keep it cute and classy, and not corny. 

For me though, the bouquet is at the heart of this theme.  The colours blend together perfectly and fuse everything else.  Different types of ranunculus, garden rose and peony are at the core of this beautiful bouquet, unravelling delicately with just a sprinkling sweet peas and hydrangeas to create more texture and give it a less contrived look.  I just wish I could smell this!  

I think the key to doing pastels well - without them being too sugary - is balance and texture, but you could take this through to winter easily by adding in some dove greys or a dash of navy, or keep it contemporary with some metallic undertones.  The best place to start is your florist; they will be able to tell you what’s in season (and cheaper) at the time of year you plan on getting married, then you can build everything else upwards to create your own story.  

Keep an eye on my Twitter and Instagram too for daily inspiration on all things wedding-y!

Lx