Wedding Wednesday | Ceremony Chairs

As if there weren’t already enough choices for brides to make for their wedding, rentals are a huge piece of the puzzle and a huge choice to make regarding the feel of the wedding. I think I took a moderate approach to making my wedding personal. It was a huge thing for me, but due to our time and budget, I couldn’t order elaborate favors like these or fancy printed programs like these. All of our favors, menus, programs, place cards, and table “numbers” were handmade by us (to save on time and money!) As you can tell, some people really go ALL out! If you have the budget for it, why not?

You’ll most likely need chairs for your ceremony and, chances are, you’ll be paying per chair either way. So, chairs are a great way (and cheap way depending on your number of guests) to make your wedding more personal and special… or just to provide a specific theme or feel!

A few years ago, chairs at weddings were usually covered with fabric and a bow. Some brides prefer this and at some venues (such as hotels) this is the only option given to you.

Working in the event planning industry, I’ve always loved chiavari chairs. They look classy but are a bit expensive per seat. Plus, they didn’t exactly fit the feel of our venue. They’re a great choice though because of the variety of colors they come in. If you find a great rental company (hotels are usually a bit more limited) they should have many options for colors of the wood as well as the cushion cover.

Or, a slightly less expensive option (and easier to move from one place to another) are the foldable wooden chairs which also come in a few colors. This is what we chose for our wedding as the style of the chair fit in better with the style of our venue! The first picture was taken at our wedding :)

OR you can jazz it up with non-traditional ceremony chairs. I’m talking: benches, rocking chairs, beach chairs, vintage chairs, etc. These options will be a little bit harder to find from most rental companies but if you’re into yard sales and antique stores, this could be a fun project for you!

 

As much as I love the idea of mis-matched chairs and antique shopping, I couldn’t deal with trying to find homes for the chairs after the wedding or else throwing them away! There’s a plus of working with a rental company or venue that provides chairs. That’s just me though!

Also, during your ceremony chair selection process, keep in mind whether the ceremony and reception venues are different or the same. If your ceremony is being held in a church, you only have to worry about chairs for the reception. However, if you’ll be needing chairs for both events, keep in mind the set-up and break-down of chairs (and possible transport if your reception venue is on a different property.) Our ceremony was held on the lawn of our venue so the chairs were just folded up, taken inside, and re-set!

Figure out your budget, get quotes from rental companies or scour through some antique stores, and see what your options are. Happy chair hunting! I’d love to hear your thoughts! Which chair option do you like best? Which would you absolutely not choose?