The Garden & Courtyard Wedding Edit

Every garden has an axis: a path, an avenue of trees, a line of hedging, a view framed by two walls. A ceremony placed on that axis looks as though it belongs there. A ceremony placed across it, facing a hedge side-on or with a greenhouse half in view, tends to look temporary however carefully it is dressed.

Courtyards usually have one wall or doorway that the eye goes to first. That is often the right place for the ceremony, with guests facing it and the rest of the courtyard behind them.

In a garden, the planting is the decoration. The job is to leave room for it.

Garden ceremonies are often over-furnished. An arch, an aisle runner, lanterns and two large arrangements can crowd a place that already has hedges and trees doing the same work. Choose one focal element or none. A pair of mature trees, an opening in a hedge or a stone bench is already a frame.

Think about the ground. Lawns are soft underfoot for guests but awkward for chair legs and heels, and they are often damp in the morning. Gravel is stable but noisy. Stone is ideal and not always available. A short aisle on firm ground usually works better than a long one across grass.

The sun matters more outdoors than anywhere else. Guests facing into low sun will squint through the vows, and a couple standing in full sun will be photographed with hard shadows. Check the direction of the light at the actual ceremony time. Wedding ceremony ideas built around the setting covers orientation in more detail.

A courtyard is one of the best places for an evening dinner. The walls hold warmth after sunset, contain sound and make a group of any reasonable size feel gathered. A single long table running the length of the space, or two parallel tables, suits the proportions of most courtyards. The case for a long-table wedding dinner explains when that arrangement works best.

Gardens are more open and need more help after dark. Without walls to hold light, candles alone will read as small points in a large darkness. Overhead festoon lighting is the usual answer. Lighting the trees from below, or setting dinner close to the house so the windows contribute, often looks calmer.

In a garden, cut flowers are seen against living ones. Arrangements that echo what is growing, in similar colors and looser shapes, look settled. Tightly composed, formal arrangements can look brought in. A courtyard, with its plain walls, can take more contrast: one strong color against pale stone reads clearly.

The palette is mostly decided already. Green is the dominant color in any garden, so the question is what sits well against it. Wedding flowers that belong in the setting and choosing a palette from the place both start from this point.