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Wedding Theme Inspiration: Downton Abbey Wedding

Welcome to our first Wedding Theme blog post. We love the idea of having an early 1900s classic wedding inspired by the well-known British TV series Downton Abbey. If you watched Downton Abbey then you will know that the series is filled with class and stunning 1920s styling, making it a perfect theme for a wedding. 

Downton Abbey is filmed just outside London in a quaint little town called Newbury. Highclere Castle is the castle that you see in the outside scenes of the show. 

To match the style of the castle and the TV series, which is set in the early 1900s, the style of flowers and decorations should also be 1900s inspired. Here are some ideas for floral arrangements and centrepieces. 

FLORAL 

The flower arrangements should be large and over the top, but not in terms of colour. The textures of the floral arrangements are the factor that is most noticeable. The colours are mainly green and use basic colour combinations such as green and yellow or green and white. 

The vases/holders for the floral arrangements should ideally be handmade/naturally made materials. If you wish to contrast, using a chrome or glass antique vase would also add some modern style to your flowers. 

If the neutral colours are just not very you, then you can add colour to the arrangements by using different complimentary colours such as pastel pinks, brighter pinks, reds, purples and lilacs. Remember that texture is important when trying to pull off the 1900s look so foliage needs to be bold and stick out from the bouquet. 

DECORATION 

The table decoration would look beautiful with a crisp white finish yet something that gives it a sense of warmth. To achieve this, white table cloths, crystal glasses, and utensils which have a hint of gold or silver edging would work well. The idea of warmth could be achieved by having tea lights around the bottom of the flower arrangements. Large antique candlesticks can also be used as centrepieces instead of a flower arrangement. 

A lovely idea for the seating which you can see in photo number 6 in the collage above, is to use a chiffon material and add a small bouquet of flowers to the side creating a collective draped effect. 

BRIDAL STYLE 

Now for the bridal style. Dresses are one of the main parts of a wedding which really need to fit with the theme, if done wrong then it can be confusing and make a lot of aspects of your wedding seem out of place. Themes need to be well thought through and research needs to be done on your theme to ensure you are going down the right route for making your big day perfect. In the collage you can see at the top of the blog, we collected a few images of some dresses that we think just ooze Downtown Abbey Wedding. 

Dress 1. The dress is sprinkled with highlights of gold lace embellishments that flow through the chiffon skirt. The dress looks strapless from afar but has small thin straps over the shoulders, completed with elbow length gloves. The style is then topped off with a matching head band which sits perfectly within the hair style chosen. A small necklace has been selected which fits in perfectly with the gold and ivory colour scheme. This dress was the one worn on Downton Abbey, it was found in a vintage shop so we used it as inspiration for you. 
Dress number 2 combines both chiffon and silk. The chiffon sleeves flow into the waist line which then is tied round the waist with a decorative knot. The silk then starts to appear through the dress as it flows into the skirt creating a vintage antique touch. The headband in this look is quite a simple accessory which is quite popular in the early 1900s fashion trends. The ivory colour is quite a popular one throughout the early 19th century dresses. This dress is from Sally Acock and retails for about £2650. 

Cake 

For the perfect Downton Abbey style cake design, simple colours yet impeccable detail is key. Decorative piping and architectural looking design work all seem to work really well for this type of theme. Additionally, adding some matching flowers to the top of the cake or on the side give it that vintage touch which brings everything together. If you see in the collage at the top of the blog, picture number 5 is a cake that was designed by The Abigail Bloom Cake Company and was for a wedding in Highclere Castle. 

Invitations 

For some invitation inspiration, picture Number 4 on our collage above is a beautiful vintage invitation that we stumbled across. It is a simple white design with embossed silver decoration and text. It really does look vintage, yet with that lovely modern edge. Using a floral design on your invitations would also fit into a 1920s style theme, incorporating it within the flowers you have used for your wedding. 


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