Now that gathering conditions have become more favorable, after nearly two years in the trenches of Covid lockdown, a race for the aisle has caused a boom in the wedding industry as couples are eager to celebrate the weddings of their dreams.
Many pairs agreed to wait for safer circumstances to throw the wedding bashes of their dreams, with an estimate of only 1.3 million weddings occurring last year, as opposed to the average 2.1 million, according to Shane McMurray, founder of The Wedding Report.
If you’re one of the patient couples who are ready to go all out in 2022, here’s a list of fun wedding trends for 2022 to keep your modern nuptials fresh.
Non-Physical Registries
Traditionally, couples filled their wedding registries with house and kitchenware essentials to equip their new living spaces; however, thanks to the pandemic forcing everyone to stay home and pre-marital cohabitation being at an all-time high, couples are now opting for experiences. Among these is funding for their honeymoon or donations to charity instead of your run-of-the-mill decorative bowl.
Couples are coming to find that shared experiences are much more enriching than materialistic possessions, and they’re a great way to build a foundation for a marriage that is sure to last.
Big Weddings vs. Micro-Weddings
Due to restrictions on the number of people allowed to gather at a time, micro-weddings with an intimate guest count were all the rage last year. Nowadays, couples crave big blow-out weddings where all of their loved ones can congregate and celebrate their love. And with that comes significant investments in quality photographers and videographers that will ensure every magical moment is captured for generations to come because who knows when we’ll get the opportunity again.
Diamond-Alternative Rings
Millennials and Gen-Z realize that diamond harvesting is exploitative of poor workers overseas and harmful for the environment. This has led to an increase in couples purchasing their wedding rings from boutique jewelers, and these are especially popular among more non-traditional couples with an adventurous streak.
Examples of eco-friendly diamond alternatives include:
- Moissanite
- Cubic Zirconia
- White Sapphire
- Lab-Grown Diamonds
Bold Colors
If you’ve been chronically glued to the internet for the past couple of years, you may have noticed a surge in dopamine-boosting videos or content meant to introduce a jolt of happiness into your feed. This sentiment certainly rings true for this next wedding trend.
Bold splashes of color are taking the spotlight for this year’s top wedding decor style. Pantone, a color trend forecaster, predicts the most popular colors for Spring and Summer of 2022 will be “pink-purple Orchid Bloom, vibrant Super Sonic blue, fresh Fair Green, playful Bubblegum pink, vivid Coral Rose and cool Cascade blue.”
Expect monochromes with a pop of color, earthy tones, and color-clashing to make a big scene at weddings this year.
Live-Painting Wedding Portraits
Good photographs at a wedding are a must-have, but brides and grooms are switching things up by adding a more personal touch to their wedding portraits. A recent craze in the wedding industry is hiring a live painter or caricature artist to seize special moments in a way that cameras could never do.
For example, painters can paint your first dance, and caricaturists can draw hilarious portraits of your loved ones that will blow an average photo booth out of the water. A wedding artist is a beautiful way to keep your attendees entertained, as well as provide an unforgettable wedding keepsake for you and your guests to take home and cherish forever.
Bouquet Preservation
While we’ve discussed many contemporary trends in this compilation, rewinding the clock and bringing back an old forgotten wedding tradition is another fantastic way to make your wedding unique. Bouquet preservation is making a much-anticipated comeback in 2022, with companies designing creative ways that you can preserve your most fragile wedding keepsake for years to come.
You have an array of options for preserving your gorgeous bouquet, depending on how you’d like them displayed. There’s:
- Pressed Flowers
- Epoxy Resin
- Paper Flower Replicas
- Wax-dipping
- Bouquet Paintings
It makes you want to rethink tossing the bouquet, not doesn’t it?
Regency Attire
The Netflix television show Bridgerton hypnotized audiences worldwide, enchanting them with all things Regency. This style is taking a stronghold over more than just decor, however. Wedding dresses with empire waists, puffed sleeves, and elbow-length gloves are already all the rage. Still, this Regency furor will incorporate everything from English floral arrangements to hand-written stationery wrapped up with a vintage afternoon tea ambiance.
