Victorian Weddings

A Garden Celebration In The Afternoon

Victorian weddings are a wonderful choice for a garden wedding. Serve up some crumpets, tea, and old world charm with this Victorian garden theme.

Here's an interesting little tidbit: did you know that before 1880, couples were required by law to have a morning wedding ceremony? Well we're bending the rules a bit and planning your outdoor vintage wedding for the afternoon instead.

Colors That Suit Victorian Weddings

Cream, blue, yellow. Also consider terracotta, ecru and pastel greens.

Also read the traditions and customs of Victorian weddings to understand the general superstitions that guided their beliefs while planning a wedding.

Victorian Themed Wedding Attire

For any of the outfits, you may also want to include Victorian capes, a cameo brooch at the neck, lace hankies, small beaded purses, and/or bustles on the dresses.

Bride:

Choose an off white or white Victorian bridal gown with a high-neck lace collar, long sleeves, lace cuffs.

Add a Victorian-style wide-brimmed hat, which was usually trimmed with ribbon and flowers; a short veil; white lace gloves; and ankle boots.

Carry a matching parasol or a bouquet of pastel colored roses.

Bridesmaids:

Look for Victorian pinafores, ankle boots, and lace gloves for your bridesmaids. Put hair up and entwine with ribbons. Carry parasols, baskets with summer flowers, or tussie mussies with small flower bouquets.

Groom:

How you dress for a Victorian wedding will be a matter of preference. Styles changed rapidly for men over the course of a few years. One thing that didn't change, however, was the black top hat which was worn throughout the entire period. Here are some suggestions on what you might want to consider:

• In the early part of the Victorian era, the frock coat was popular in either blue or a wine/plum color. Waistcoats were white with lavender colored trousers and gloves.
• By the mid-Victorian period, frock coats were out of style and men were wearing morning coats. Black and paisley vests were popular with dark gray trousers, folded cravat, and lavender colored gloves stitched in black.
• Guess what was back in style by 1899? You guessed it... the frock coat. Pair it with a light-colored waistcoat, dark tie, gray striped cashmere trousers, patent-leather button boots and pale tan kid gloves.
• Add a walking cane to complete the whole ensemble.

Groomsmen:

Keep the style the same as the groom.

If you're interested in having a fairly "authentic" wedding, you can learn more about Victorian wedding traditions and what your attendant's duties to the bride and groom entailed.

Wedding Invitations

• Choose ivory colored stationary with images of lace and calligraphy type fonts. Make sure the first letter of a line is very ornate. Invitations were engraved.
• Use images of a horse-drawn carriage, Victorian fan, and/or a dainty flowered tea cup and saucer.
• If you choose to make your own invitations, consider using Victorian stickers. You can usually find very nice ones at a scrapbooking store.

Here are some wonderful Victorian vintage style invitations that would be perfect. They are available for purchase from a variety of vendors on Zazzle. Each of these invites can be customized as required:

Vintage Bluebirds Yellow & Purple Blooms Wedding $2.70 each

Vintage Blue Flowers Wedding Invitation $1.80 each

White Floral Vintage Wedding Invitations $2.50 each

Vintage Rose n Butterflies $2.25 each

Victorian Weddings: Suitable Garden Locations

When planning Victorian weddings, you'll want to find a suitable garden setting such as a large backyard, park or pavilion area.

If you can't have it outside, choose a Victorian style mansion, Inn, or church with a view of beautiful gardens and an elegant long veranda that allows guests to "stroll" about.

Vintage Wedding Favors

• Rose or lavender scented cameo soaps were very popular during this time.
• Consider small bottles of scented oils such as rose, lavender, lilac, or jasmine. Add personal labels to the bottles.
• Make or buy cameo chocolates and package them in small, heart-shaped or round flower-printed boxes. Tie with lace and ribbons.
• Give your guest Victorian fans or Victorian style bookmarks.
• Fill inexpensive decorative teacups with mints or Jordan Almonds.

Decorating Ideas for Victorian Weddings

• In a garden setting be sure to set up a tent marquee to offer shade on a hot, sunny day; and as cover in case the weather turns to rain. Hang baskets of trailing flowers and vines from the poles.
• Decorate the area with pastel colored streamers and garlands of ivy vines.
• Place planters around the area filled with flowers.
• Tie large bows on the backs of chairs with ribbon streamers.
• Use silver and/or flowered china serving dishes.

Table Decor and Centerpieces

• Set up tables so they are cozy and personal, no more than 4 to 6 people per table (use round tables). Cover with white or pastel colored tablecloths.
• Use linen napkins with decorated wooden napkin holders at each setting.
• Fill a galvanized watering can with fresh summer flowers as a centerpiece.
• Scatter rose petals around table.

Victorian Wedding Accessories

Have a look at some of these beautiful wedding accessories to suit your turn-of-the-century marriage celebration. Flower basket, guest book, wedding flutes... there's a lot that can be done to enhance your Victorian style wedding.

Victorian Flower Selections

Brides were very careful in choosing their flowers for their weddings by selecting flowers with specific meanings.

Some of the popular flowers of that period were: roses (check meanings for each color), lilies, gardenias, stephanotis sprigs, pansies, hyacinths, baby's breath and orange blossoms.

Bouquets were small nosegays (tussie mussies).

Wedding Cake

The Victorian wedding cake was often a fruit cake with rolled fondant icing or a layered white cake. You may want to skip the fruitcake and go with a white or yellow cake covered with a fondant icing.

The bride also had a sweet white-layer cake with tiny charms baked into it for her bridesmaids. Some of the charms and meanings were:

Ring (next to marry), horseshoe (good luck), cloves (good luck), anchor (adventure), thimble (old maid), and fleur-de-lis (love will flower).

Victorian Wedding Reception Menu

As this is an afternoon garden wedding, set up it up as a buffet and keep it light and simple.

Some food ideas are: finger sandwiches (cucumber, tuna, salmon, egg, watercress), scones with jam or lemon curd and clotted cream, biscuits, miniature pastries, petit fours, French bread, real butter, Victorian kisses (meringue cookies), canapés, crumpets, shortbread cookies, fruit tarts, cheesecake, brownies, fresh fruit, chocolates, lemonade, champagne, claret wines, and a variety of teas. Don't forget to have "lumps" of sugar and lemon juice for the tea.

Entertainment During a Victorian Wedding

The Victorians were big on entertainment, so you'll want to be sure to do some pre-planning on this. Here are a few ideas:

• Hire a string quartet, harpist, violinist or pianist.
• Dances that were popular during this era were: reels, waltzes and quadrilles.
• Music was usually by: Tchaikovsky, Handel, Ravel, Debussy, Mozart, Beethoven, Mendelssohn, Brahms, and Bach.
• If outside in a large area, play croquet, which was a very popular game at this time.
• If possible, get your hands on a bicycle-built-for-two and have fun trying to ride it.
• Victorian parlor games will also keep your guests entertained. Try Blindman's Bluff, Charades, and Hunt the Slipper.

Other Suggestions

Some movies to watch to get a better idea of the Victorian age:

• Mrs. Brown (1997)
  
• The French Lieutenant's Woman (1981)
  
• Twelfth Night (1996) (Recast for the Victorian era)
  
• Charles Dicken's - A Christmas Carol
  
• Gettysburg (1993)
  
• Titanic (1997)
  
• Any of the Sherlock Holmes series

Victorian Wedding: A Garden Celebration by Rose Smith
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