Planning a Fall Wedding

Wedding plans and ideas are something that many brides and family members start thinking about months before the actual wedding. There are some young ladies that begin their planning early in their life and spend years planning the perfect wedding.

I think that a year is a good amount of time to plan a wedding, while not stressing out too much. Other people think that spending an entire year is unnecessary and torturous. It’s certainly possible to have a very short engagement or one that spans several years.

It’s important for any engaged couple to decide what elements of a wedding are the most meaningful and which are less important.  For some couples, the food and beverages have to be the best, some want to dance all night which means the very best band or most skillful DJ. Others are concerned with the perfect time of the year for a wedding.

Perhaps the first thing to consider is what season you want to get married in. Do you want the beauty and lushness of spring flowers, the warmth of summer, the coziness of fall, or a winter wonderland wedding? The cycle of ever-changing seasons doesn’t stop couples from planning their weddings according to their needs. Although the season of summer continues to be a popular time for weddings to take place, fall is now catching up.

Fall weddings are gaining popularity because they can cost less than summer weddings. This is thanks to wedding venues and other wedding related services taking fewer bookings from customers, which in turn, lowers prices for every fall-bound couple.

If you’re a bride or a groom with a penchant for the beauty and weather of fall, having a fall wedding is the best route to take. The season of fall allows many couples to incorporate many casual and elegant elements together when decorating both wedding ceremony and reception. Fall is one of the most popular times to plan a wedding — and for good reason! Gorgeous natural foliage and temperate weather make for great fall weddings. But for all of autumn’s positive attributes, there are still potential issues that you need to keep in mind while planning a fall wedding.

An outdoor fall wedding is definitely doable, as long as you (and your guests) are prepared for the elements. Make sure guests aren’t left shivering by clueing them in on the forecast — use your wedding website to give guests a friendly reminder that the evening might turn chilly they need to prepare for the temperature to drop in the evening.

A fall wedding can be casual yet elegant set in a beautiful old barn, an apple orchard, a vineyard, or any place that will have a view of fall foliage. If you live in a climate where the leaves don’t change, look for a venue with lots of rich dark wood and warmth.

A modern fall color scheme uses only chocolate brown with light-blue accents. One way to keep wedding costs down is to use in-season flowers, and though you might not be able to pack each arrangement with your favorite blooms, you’ve got tons of options for elegant fall floral arrangements. Dahlias, chrysanthemums, and asters are all at their peak. Also consider a few non-floral elements to create a bouquet that really plays up the season like incorporating fall fruits and vegetables. Generally you can find Mums, roses, daisies, yarrow, fall leaves, tallow berries and both natural and dried wheat for inexpensive prices during the fall. Consider hollowing out pumpkins for your centerpiece containers – if you don’t have the time, many craft and home stores now sell realistic fake pumpkins. But if you go with the real thing, consider white or blue natural pumpkins for an elegant and unique touch or use paper bag luminaries for a similar effect.

The most traditional fall dinner is a roasted turkey with pumpkin pie for dessert, but there are so many other options for a fall wedding menu. From roasted quail to standing rib roast, choose a hearty meat that will pair well with heavier side dishes such as squash and mashed potatoes. A mushroom ragout evokes the season and provides a nice entrée for your vegetarian guests. You might start the meal with a hearty soup served in a hollowed out pumpkin, accompanied by whole grain rolls. Serve warm apple cider in glass mugs with a cinnamon stick stirrer, and offer an alternative to wedding cake with a baked apple dessert. You can serve any wedding cake at a fall wedding, but you can add to your autumn theme by serving a spiced cake or a spiced chocolate cake, or omit the cake altogether to serve pumpkin bread and apple, pecan and pumpkin pie.

Give favors while keeping in mind the season such as a beautiful apple that is tied with a gold ribbon, or a bottle of maple syrup. If you have a sweet tooth, give guests caramel apples wrapped in cellophane, or give a kit of a caramel apple recipe with all the ingredients they’ll need. Help your guests decorate for the season by giving them mini pumpkins, or an ear of ornamental corn tied with some wheat and a pretty fall ribbon. I like the idea of giving each guest a jar of homemade apple butter as they leave.

Fall Weddings – Things to Consider
Back to school – this means Friday night football games and scores of other after-school activities – all which may affect the ability of some guests with kids to attend.

Fall Wedding Invitations
A fall motif – such as an acorn or maple leaf – to your stationery suite.
Outside splendor – the season seems to call for an outdoor, rustic setting affording prime leaf peeping views. Some ideas: parks, orchards, vineyards, farms, ranches, barns, mills, or the grounds of an historic inn or mansion.

Fall Wedding Location

Fall Wedding Decorations
Color palette – colors of the season – adhere to mother nature’s fall color palette: reds, oranges, browns, rusts, and yellows. – jewel tones – make a rich, interesting twist to the traditional autumn color scheme – gold, copper, bronze.

Fall Wedding Flowers 
Seasonal blooms – popular fall flowers include hypericum, mums, sunflowers, roses, and daisies.
Traditional favorites – you cannot go wrong with seasonal standbys: turkey, red potatoes, corn bread dressing, green beans, and honey glazed carrots.

Fall Wedding Menu

Fall Wedding Cakes
Pumpkin – round out a fall feast with a pumpkin cake or even a tiered pumpkin pie.
For the bride – off white – cream or off-white wedding gowns accent a richer color palette antique or vintage lace adds texture to a rustic setting.

Fall Wedding Gowns & Attire

Fall Wedding Favors
Homemade goodies like fudge, candy apples, or jams presented in festive packaging always go over well. Ride off into the sunset on the back of a hay wagon, an old truck, or invite the whole group to take a hay ride back to the hotel.

Fall Wedding Getaway

Ride off into the sunset on the back of a hay wagon, an old truck, or invite the whole group to take a hay ride back to the hotel.