West Coast Wedding Trends

Wedding trends for 2018

WRITTEN BY NISHA HALLERT
PHOTOS BY GAGEWOOD PHOTOGRAPHY

Nicole and Kevin Tilley celebrated their wedding at The Ritz-Carlton, Lake Tahoe.
Florals by Art in Bloom, wedding planning and design by Felicia Events

Your wedding is not only one of the most important days of your life, but it likely is the most significant gathering you will ever plan. Of course, you want it to be perfect. That pressure for perfection can derail your Big Day if you let the stress overwhelm you. I’ve been in the planning business for almost two decades, and I can tell you that the best way to alleviate the anxiety and turn it into excitement is to limit your focus. Get clear about what you want. My suggestion for doing that? Explore the hottest trends for the year and borrow only what resonates with you. Authenticity is the key to designing the perfect wedding — one that you will be happy to attend. Read on to discover some of the hottest trends this year, which you can leverage to create the wedding of your dreams.

Décor and event design

Not every bride or groom wants to go crazy with the décor. Not every venue demands that, either. Whether you are looking to create a lush fantasy garden or a simple, sleek space, suspended arrangements and ceiling treatments are all the rage. What once was rustic is now woodsy. Use lots of greenery to create this feeling. Mono-botanical floral arrangements make any venue look contemporary this season, while cascading bouquets elevate the elegance quotient.

Nicole and Kevin Tilley celebrated their wedding at The Ritz-Carlton, Lake Tahoe.
Florals by Art in Bloom, wedding planning and design by Felicia Events

Detail photo from Monica and Gareth Stamp’s wedding

Elegance is the perfect word to describe the 2018 trend direction — elegant without overdone formality. Clean floral arrangements complemented by classic attire create a romantic, whimsical mood that is anything but stuffy. This trend extends to jewelry as well: Flower necklaces, especially chokers, are hot this year.

Bride is Tyler Govaars. Hair by Jenae Pino

To put the finishing touches on your décor, consider adding texture details to the menus, such as marble, copper, or wax stamps. Finally, eclectic seating arrangements will set your wedding apart. Think high-top tables mixed with rounds, king tables, banquettes, and mix-and-match chairs at each table.

Choosing colors

Color is about more than a palette for your party to abide by. Color sets the mood for your Big Day. Always, the colors you pick should reflect your personalities. If you worry so much about staying fashionable that you end up with colors you barely tolerate, you will regret it. Being true to yourself is the biggest trend of all. Fortunately, this year’s fairly subdued colors ensure elegance and serenity. Navy still is hot, especially when paired with a neutral. Try substituting navy for black at formal events. Think blue tie instead of black tie. Metallics still are popular in 2018, with a slight shift. Brass and rose gold have replaced last year’s gold. Also, silver and chrome are making a comeback.

Food selections

Ahhhh, the good stuff. Gone are the banquets of classic chicken and bland rice dishes. Everyone seems to be a foodie these days, so get creative with your menu. Unique appetizers and salads featuring seaweed and hemp have surfaced this season. If those suggestions make you squirm, have no fear. Classic flavors also are in, with a contemporary twist. In place of spaghetti and meatballs, consider baked mini spaghetti bites topped with meat sauce. For bacon lovers (bacon always is trending!), imagine a chocolate-dipped bacon hanging from a cute, woodsy clothesline display.

Many of your guests, and much of the public, increasingly consider where their food comes from. If you serve seafood, ensure it’s sustainable and think about putting up signage indicating such. Stem to stalk and nose to tail have surpassed farm to fork as the righteous food calling cards. For your non-meat-eating guests, try vegetarian variations on the classics.

Food must not only taste scrumptious, but it must look great, too. A plate of food should be designed just like a work of art. Small, composed plates comprised of bright colors and textures add pop to your party. Imagine, for instance, edible flowers on top of burrata. Interactive food stations add another festive element. Cap the soirée with creative desserts such as popsicles or ice cream sandwiches.

Approachable videography

Where once videography seemed a superfluous luxury, now the medium has become accessible and predominant. These are not the long, droll, straight videos of yesteryear. Today’s wedding videos tell cinematic stories using multiple angles and quick edits. Drone video is especially popular. We can thank the Super Bowl for this trend! Drones, in particular, offer a different vantage point that traditional videography cannot achieve. For a wedding recently held at the Nevada Museum of Art, for example, the couple hired a drone pilot to fly a drone over the Stacie Mathewson Sky Plaza, an outdoor patio space located on the fourth floor Fred W. Smith Penthouse, outside of the Nightingale Sky Room. The drone took spectacular photos of the guests during the reception and ceremony. One tip: Make sure that your drone pilot carries the proper license. Also, while videography is popular, I do not suggest that a video replace your still shots.

Photo courtesy of Brian and Mandy Egan

As you can see, 2018 trends exude eclectic elegance. Still, never sacrifice authenticity for fashion. To help tell your wedding story in the most authentic — and trendiest — way possible, I recommend partnering with professional wedding service companies. Nace.net is a great national resource to search for such a firm. These companies have experts who can help make your Big Day perfect.

Nisha Hallert has more than 15 years of industry experience planning 600-person galas, rooftop weddings, intimate exclusive dinners, events for VIPs such as Former President Clinton, and more. She currently works as director of special events and sales at the Nevada Museum of Art and serves as immediate past president of the Reno/Tahoe chapter of the National Association for Catering and Events (NACE). In 2014, Hallert and her team were awarded a national NACE award for the Best Social Event Production of the Year.