Planning your wedding in the wintertime gives you tons of opportunities to get creative. From the dress to the decor, there are many beautiful options that work well for colder months. Need inspiration? A great way to gather ideas is by looking at wedding scenes from hit movies. With those Hollywood budgets, movie weddings can be grand and gorgeous! Check out some of the ideas below and pick and choose what you want to use for your special day. You could incorporate just a few seasonal accents…or go all-out and transform your space into a winter wonderland!
Alaska Wedding – The Proposal
In this hilarious 2009 film starring Sandra Bullock and Ryan Reynolds, Bullock plays a Canadian businesswoman working in NYC who discovers she is in danger of being deported. The Proposal follows Bullock as she forces one of her employees, Reynolds, to marry her so she can stay in the country. Their sham-wedding takes place in chilly Alaska, and even if the marriage is phony, there is absolutely nothing fake about the gorgeous decor. The ceremony is held inside a beautiful old wooden barn that has been decorated to the nines using wintery elements. Original accents like real birch trees give the scene a nature-y feel, and dozens of white lights strung throughout the building add a soft glow which increases the ceremony’s ambiance.
Additionally, the bridal gown is perfect for the cooler setting. Bullock wears an ivory satin wedding dress with long sleeves and a high neck. The dress also has exquisite tiny details, like the long row of miniscule buttons down the back. While the 1930s style gown is a very covered-up look, the bride still shows off a gorgeous figure as the dress is immaculately tailored.
Over the Top Wedding – Sex and the City 2
2010 saw the continuation of the ever-popular Sex and the City franchise with a second movie, Sex and the City 2. Towards the very beginning of this movie, NYC’s most fabulous couple – Stanford and Anthony – gets married in an absolutely lavish ceremony that lends itself to plenty of winter wedding inspiration. Their black tick, black and white themed event is completely over the top in the best way: think white chiffon draperies, gigantic white flower tapestries, and even live swans.
And of course, who could forget the sparkle? There was lots of shimmer and shine throughout every aspect of this wedding. From the crystals hanging off every tree, to the shimmery silver bridge leading to the art, to best (wo)man Carrie’s black sequined tuxedo, the occasion definitely glistened. Glitter is a great element to add to any winter wedding, as it lends a snow-capped glow to the whole scene.
Warm and Fun Wedding – My Big Fat Greek Wedding
My Big Fat Greek Wedding, a sleeper hit from 2002, is a laugh-out-loud film that definitely has a lot of what-not-to-do wedding moments. Though there are plenty of scenes from this wedding comedy that you may not want to recreate for your special day, the wedding reception goes off splendidly and can give winter brides some great ideas. Wedding guests in this movie stay warm throughout the entire festive event because everyone is on their feet the whole time! If you’re having a winter wedding, it is more important than ever to keep your guests from getting cold and ensure they are having fun. Do this by playing lively music that gets a big crowd out on the dance floor. Toula, the movie’s bride, and her entire “big fat Greek” family, make the wedding a success with their fun attitudes and readiness to participate in reception activities, like traditional line dances.
Home Wedding – Father of the Bride
Steven Martin stars as the disgruntled title figure in the iconic 1991 film, Father of the Bride. Throughout this heartwarming movie, Martin learns a lot about fatherhood – and also helps put together an absolutely gorgeous January wedding. Every element of the wedding has lovely wintery touches, from the gown, to the church ceremony, to the reception held at Martin’s family home. For starters, the bride’s dress works well for winter with its long sleeves but avoids looking too heavy with lots of delicate lace accents. Additionally, the elegant ceremony space is decorated immaculately, with hundreds of white flowers lining the aisles. Tall, tapered white candles flank each pew, casting a romantic glow over the church.
The reception is also an extraordinary winter scene. Greenery accented with tiny white lights is draped all over the house, inside and out, giving it a winter/holiday feel without being too Christmassy. The lavish backyard tent also incorporates long strings of white fairy lights which look beautiful against the black sky. And – although this can’t be planned for – it even snows the night before the wedding! Talk about a winter wonderland!
Modern Church Wedding – Love Actually
2003’s holiday hit Love Actually follows the lives of eight very different couples dealing with life in the UK in the few weeks leading up to Christmas. One of the couples gets married in a stunning winter ceremony towards the very beginning of the film. The wedding takes place in a formal, older-looking church, but the decor and style choices are extremely modern. The bride incorporates white feathers, a great winter decoration, into her dress, bouquet, and hairpiece. Additionally, the groomsmen wear red accents as part of their suits, which are a subtle homage to the Christmas season and a fun modern twist on traditional male wedding-wear.
One of the best parts of this wedding scene is the special surprise that the bride and groom receive as a gift from the best man towards the end of their ceremony. This lovely musical surprise is great inspiration for bridesmaids and groomsmen who want to do something nice for the couple on their special day!
Tags: winter wedding, winter wedding inspiration, winter wedding movies