Intro:

Dearest Gentle Reader,

Bridgerton is the talk of the ton this season, especially since season 3 dropped; celebrating the friends-to-lovers journey of Penelope Featherington and Colin Bridgerton. While you’re stewing with your Polin longings (and maybe googling pics of Luke Newton 😉 ) dream of a Bridgerton Wedding! Sure, we all love watching Bridgeton and drooling over its dreamy men. But why use it as a wedding theme? For starters, it tops the charts for swoon, swoon, SWOOOOOONY romance! And who doesn’t want an achingly romantic wedding?! Second, it incorporates and elevates so many current wedding trends while maintaining a timeless feel. Here’s how to integrate these trends into every element of your big day, and prove that YOU are this season’s diamond!

#1: A Bridgerton Bride

Of course the groom is important and you burn for him. But as a diamond of the first water, the bride is the star of a Whistedown endorsed wedding! Start with a high-waist, Regency-style gown and remember this dress is all about the detailing! All Bridgerton girls wear gowns with intricate beading, pearls, diamonds, or floral details. The sort of details that make the gown shimmer and catch the light from a distance and are even more stunning up close. Add to that long gloves–they’re totally in!–but don’t limit yourself to satin alone. Brides are embracing sheer gloves made of the most delicate chiffon, often enhanced with beads or a flurry of floral embroidery. Sweep your hair into an elaborately curled updo like Daphne, embrace the height like Queen Charlotte at her wedding, or go with soft and glamorous curls like Penelope’s new look. Add an abundance of pearls–and, of course, diamonds–and you’ll have a look sure to make you “the object of all [your husband’s] desires.”

#2: The Decor

There are so many ways to go with Bridgerton-inspired decor! You can do an elegant mix of vintage art, gilded accents, and light winking from endless golden candlesticks. Or you can venture into the garden (and who doesn’t want to venture into the garden with the Duke, perhaps?) and create your own labyrinth of greenery and flowers to get lost in. Large, gold-edged mirrors amplify the elegance of the affair, augment the light, and give you your very own delicious mirror moment with your leading man. Anchor tables and tablescapes with vintage tea sets. Be sure to layer detailed pastels, soften soaring banquet spaces with hanging chiffon, and light candles on every surface to enhance the romance. For a focal point, consider a faux hot air balloon to recall Collin’s brave heroics with the balloon and add an over-sized touch of whimsy. Or provide a flower bedecked carriage for guests to take pictures in. You’ll absolutely have to exit in the carriage as loved ones wave you on your way; then have a little carriage time of your own. 😉

#3: The Food

The cake is the crowning jewel of the reception and vintage cakes are trending. Brides are bringing back the detailed pipping of classic wedding cakes,and a tiered masterpiece would be deliciously perfect for a Bridgerton Wedding. Or you can join the cake meadow trend and surround your cake with a garden–a floral art instillation all its own. Place settings can be classic with soft pastels, formal china, and golden utensils. Or go feminine and a touch playful with bows and florals in place settings. Bows are this season’s wedding accessory and can be used in countless ways in this theme. But the place settings are an unexpected and impish place to include them. That’s also true of encrusting your champagne flutes with pearls or diamonds so that every sip in a study in opulence. Host a formal tea in lieu of dinner, complete with tea service at each table and tiered towers of tea cakes. We’re getting hungry just thinking about it! Not to mention the thirst. 😉

#4: The Reception

Greet reception guests with a quill and guest book made of parchment so they can pen their message to you, Lady Whistledown style. For an outdoor wedding–and an adventurous couple–consider having a horse on hand. Sound insane? True. But Kate and Anthony met on horseback and we love the idea of speaking to that tumultuous and passionate beginning. Guests could take rides with a trained guide. And while you’re honoring characters, ponder using swan accents for the most awesomely outrageous wig Queen Charlotte’s ever worn and its revolving swans. Bedeck bridesmaids in high-waisted gowns of varying pastels for that mix and match trend. And no matter what else you do, include dancing! Grace the ballroom with Regency dances taught by an instructor or waltz the night away on the arm of your groom. For the perfect touch, hire musicians to play popular songs re-imagined classically, just like the score of the show. How lovely to have your couples’ song played live in a one-of-a-kind arrangement?!

#5: Other Details

The charm is in the details. If you don’t do your save-the-date or wedding announcement as a Lady Whistledown paper, you might as well not do this theme! Nod to Whistledown further by wrapping bouquets in newspaper or pages from vintage books, since Bridgerton began as a romantic book series by Julia Quinn. Include sheets of classical piano music in decor or place settings to bring a touch of the piano forte or hire a pianist to play for your processional. If your venue has a garden or courtyard are, offer fans and parasols to guests for their own promenade. Consider also the Indian heritage of season two’s star, Kate Sharma. We’re not encouraging cultural appropriation. But Indian weddings are absolutely incredible visually and a little touch of that golden glitz and glamour would be a great way to incorporate Kate’s lineage. Or, as an amazing guest experience, provide an artist to do Indian-inspired henna tattoos!

Conclusion

A Bridgerton Wedding theme doesn’t have to be over-the-top. It can be a subtle incorporation of these beautiful trends that will kick your nuptials up a notch. But if you love the Bridgertons and their world, it’s easy to bring a little or a lot of that world to your wedding. Not only will this earn you a lot of fans who talk about how unforgettable your wedding was, it will also set the stage for a celebration as intimate as it is romantic. For you to be joined to the one to whom you would say, “I will stand with you between the heavens and the earth.”

Just don’t try to climb over a wall on your wedding day.

Oh, and book the Venue at the Ranches while you’re at it! 😉