Vintage Aristocratic Wedding
Catherine and Alex are the ideal couple for showcasing a Vintage Aristocratic wedding photo shoot. From the pomegranate to antique gold and everything in between, the ambiance of this setting and events is spectacular!
An absolutely stunning dress and a groom dressed to impress, emulating this wedding theme will be an easy choice.
Details for a Vintage Aristocratic Wedding
You love Bridgerton, Jane Eyre, and the era of Queen Elizabeth I. You love the huge, glamorous dresses, corsets, and over-the-top jewellry ladies of this era wore. Perhaps you have an affinity for Anne Boleyn and the drama at court. A Vintage Aristocratic wedding just might be the perfect wedding theme for you!
Huge, cascading floral arrangements, tall candelabras with long tapers, hints of gold accents and a tiara in your hair - these are just the barest essentials of a Vintage Aristocratic wedding.
Don’t forget to include the groom in the fun! Dress him in the most Disney-prince of outfits for the big day!
What to Look for in a Venue for a Vintage Aristocratic Wedding
An indoor venue should offer decor and structure that lends to the idea of a royal throwback wedding. Large, arched windows are emblematic of many aristocratic homes, particularly like those featured in a Jane Austen novel setting. Bold molding and elegant trim separate the richly coloured walls from high ceilings. Of course, chandeliers are an integral part of the decor, and you’ll need them to help pull off the Vintage Aristocratic wedding theme.
While an indoor venue is perfect for the Vintage Aristocratic wedding, outdoor venues work well too. In particular, a blooming garden complete with sculpted shrubbery and trees is the perfect fit for the Vintage Aristocratic wedding.
Food for a Vintage Aristocratic Wedding
A sit-down meal is the most fitting for a Vintage Aristocratic wedding. In fact, if you truly wish to evoke the Vintage Aristocratic wedding, then consider meal options that most reflect the opulent and extraordinary meals of the royalty of 1500s Europe.
While you might not want to provide a seven-course meal, you can imitate a meal that royals might have had during Henry VIII’s day. The main dish of many of these extravagant meals was game meat (which you can replace with roasted chicken, lamb, or pork), potatoes, and other vegetables. All of this was served on the finest china, silver flatware, and crystal champagne glasses.
Wedding Dresses and Accessories for a Vintage Aristocratic Wedding
Whether you’re taking your wedding gown inspiration from Meghan Markle, Princess Diana, or Anne Boleyn, the dress should be very formal with flowing fabric and every adornment possible.
Some will opt for a gown with three-quarter sleeves and a bateau neckline with a flowing train, while others like the idea of a ballgown. However, no matter what style of gown brides choose, all royalty-inspired gowns share some common traits.
First, intricate embroideries and delicate beading are indicative of an aristocratic wedding. Most of these dresses also offer lace embellishments.
However, although most aristocrats of yesteryear wouldn’t dare to sport a sleeveless gown, today, these are quite stylish. Why not pair your gown with elegant gloves to really play up the royal look?
Groom Style for a Vintage Aristocratic Wedding
A suit is most definitely in order for the Vintage Aristocratic wedding. Grooms will want a three-piece suit complete with a cravat. The suit should be black, charcoal gray, or navy in colour.
Tweed is another fabric that is fitting of the Vintage Aristocratic wedding theme. Channel Netflix’s series The Crown when choosing your tweed suit, particularly the heritage look. These suits are both dapper and relaxed, but they are more suited to a fall or winter wedding. A black tuxedo is also appropriate for this type of wedding, but swap the cumberbund for a vest.
Wedding Invitations for a Vintage Aristocratic Wedding
Vintage Aristocratic wedding invitations will be crafted from the finest of stationery and embossed in gold or silver. They’ll use script font, and they’ll follow all the etiquette required of a royal family.
Many brides will choose white or antique white stationery with blue and gold accents. One neat idea, however, is to choose a crest to adorn the invitation.
You could opt for invitations inspired by Meghan Markle and Prince Harry. These invitations were printed on navy stationery with silver inlay. The details were scripted in sweeping calligraphy and enclosed in a plain envelope.
Wedding Cake Ideas for a Vintage Aristocratic Wedding
Wedding cakes at a Vintage Aristocratic wedding are always over-the-top. In 1947, when Queen Elizabeth II married Prince Phillip, the pair offered guests a nine foot tall fruitcake. When Queen Victoria’s daughter married a German emperor, their cake looked like a miniature of St. Peter’s Basilica. So, your Vintage Aristocratic wedding cake should be as opulent as possible.
Prince William and Kate Middleton’s cake was three feet tall, but Meghan and Harry’s cake was more scaled-down. Their display contained two single-tiered cakes and one larger two-tiered cake. The cake itself was lemon and decorated with buttercream icing. It was decorated with 150 fresh flowers.
Outdoor Wedding Ideas for a Vintage Aristocratic Wedding
The perfect place for an outdoor Vintage Aristocratic wedding is in a garden. English gardens are often set somewhere near a body of water, usually a lake (however, a well-kept pond will also do). These gardens also often feature recreations of certain architecture - Gothic ruins, bridges, or classic temples. Rolling lawns lead to groves of trees. If there is shrubbery in these gardens, they are usually sculpted.
However, even if you don’t have an English garden in which to say I do nearby, you can still decorate an outdoor setting to mirror the sculptures and lush flowers of an English garden.
Ceremony Decor for a Vintage Aristocratic Wedding
Lavish ceremony decor is key at a Vintage Aristocratic wedding. However, there is a fine line between overdoing the decor and keeping the ceremonial hall looking elegant.
Feature lots of scrollwork, elaborate floral arrangements dripping with cascading flowers, and gold accents throughout your wedding venue. Floral bouquets can dangle from the interior ends of each row of seats, and you’ll likely want a carpeted runway for your grand entrance.
There are some brides who utilise lots of rhinestones as well as glitter, while other brides may downplay the glitter and jewels for more bows and floral arrangements. Which will you choose?
Reception Decor for a Vintage Aristocratic Wedding
Crystal champagne glasses, a fully set placement for each guest with fine flatware and cloth napkins are integral to the Vintage Aristocratic wedding reception decor. Dripping floral centrepieces at the reception may rest in flare vases. Brides may also add chandeliers (these CAN be rented, by the way). Want to think outside the box? Consider a hanging floral centrepiece.
Tables should be covered with crisp white linen tablecloths, and you may want to use a chair cover for the chairs at each table. Gold chair covers will really help to emphasise the aristocratic theme.
Vintage Aristocratic Wedding
From Photographer Dmitry Pavlov – “When it’s cold outside an indoor wedding calls for seasonal warm and rich colours bringing to mind a cosy fireside whilst the snow falls outside. Inspired by this feeling we based the colour palette for this vintage aristocratic wedding inspiration shoot on deep emerald, burgundy, pomegranate, antique gold, vintage milk lace, and shades of chocolate, cappuccino, and truffle woven into an elegant style filled with the spirit of nobility.”
“We filled our scenes with grace, restraint, and elegance. The fragility, timidity, and tenderness of the bride contrasts the virility of the groom. Alex and Katherine were an incredibly harmonious and sensual couple to photograph… like a crystal vase cherished by the gentle groom.
For the venue we chose a cosy room 19th century brick wall, large arched windows, and lots of different textures to work with. It was perfect for our atmosphere of vintage nobility. For the décor we used antiques like the mirror in a wrought-iron frame. The chairs and small round cake table were originally from the 1920s in addition to the silver earrings worn by our bride.”
For Catherine we used a weightless lace robe for her boudoir look complete with a delicate hairpiece that was crafted especially for this editorial. We used light and natural makeup and searched long and hard for the perfect wedding dress, eventually finding one made of fine lace with long sleeves and a fully open back. For her bridal look we added a wine coloured lipstick and a wreath of wintry flowers in her hair which looked perfect against her copper curls.
For Alex we had him look slightly more careless in the morning with just a vest and added a blazer in a greenish-grey for the ceremony and reception portions of the shoot.”
“We adhered to our colour palette throughout the design, including the ring box made of aging wood with dry moss inside, the stationery which we did in burgundy and chocolate tones, and the marbleized emerald cake with gold lead. Perfection is in the details!”
Credits: Photography: Dmitry Pavlov // Floral & Décor: Nelly Baranenkova // Styling & Hairpiece: Veronika Demina // Lingerie & Lace Robe: Mandarini // Dress: Tati Magic // Groom’s Attire: Patrikman // Ring Box: Je T’aime // Cake: Daria Sibirtseva // Venue: Bakhrushin Loft in Moscow, Russia.