Nautical Wedding
What’s more romantic than sailing off into the sunset? A nautical wedding not only sounds like fun but rather enchanting as well. This photo shoot ties together navy and white stripes, red highlights in the flowers and drinks, and of course, features a sailboat.
What to Look for in a Venue for a Nautical Wedding
Nautical-themed weddings should be held on a yacht or a boat! However, if either of you or your guests have seasickness, then a boat is out of the question. Other possible wedding venue options are a beach wedding, terraces overlooking the sea, at a lakeside resort, a marina pier, or even a garden. However, a nautical theme does not mean you must have the wedding next to a body of water.
If you have inland venue options and would still like nautical-themed nuptials, you can make a few changes to the wedding colours, props, and wedding décor. When selecting a wedding venue, it is essential to remember that you may have to ask for some special considerations from the resort or owners to make décor or interior changes to fit the theme. Having all these minor points cleared first will help you pull off your big day with ease.
Colour Palettes for a Nautical Wedding
The colour palettes for a nautical wedding should be red, white, and blue. The red, white, and blue shades need not be vibrant or bright and can be pastel shades to avoid clashing colours.
Other favourable nautical colour palettes can be sea green with blush pink and white.
Usually, palettes are chosen with an anchor colour (pun intended!), with secondary shades to add detailing or vibrancy. With a classic nautical pairing of blue and white, the anchor could be navy blue, with other colours like soft sky blue, teal, or emerald green as secondaries. Adding white or gold accents will further enhance the wedding colours.
Details for a Nautical Wedding
Nautical-themed weddings don't have to be over-the-top. You can have subtle nuances that allude to the theme without making the décor gaudy. Adding coastal motifs like buoys, boats, white and blue stripes, floral arrangements in patterns, and more can also help develop the nautical theme.
Alternatively, you can go all out with vintage props like anchors, a longboat for the buffet section, toothpicks with flags, and more. If you choose teal and pink, you could have tablecloths in a striped pattern with alternating colours or ribbons with teal and pink to signify your theme. The wedding details should be conveyed to guests in advance with the significance of the theme to ensure full participation.
Food for a Nautical Wedding
The first rational thought that comes to mind for wedding food with a nautical theme is seafood. Ensure you have various seafood options like oysters, shrimp cocktails, fish, and crabs. Some dish selections could include crab cakes, vinegar oysters on the half shell, surf and turf options, salmon sushi or nigiri rolls, and butter-garlic lobsters.
The food should be a reflection of the theme without going overboard. It is essential to also have a wide range of vegetarian or vegan options for people with seafood allergies or dietary restrictions. You can easily ensure the wedding food is of several varieties and serve the hors d'oeuvres in little boat-shaped plates to fit the nautical wedding theme.
Table Setting Style for a Nautical Wedding
Table setting for a nautical wedding should align with the wedding colours. Many couples forget that the symbiosis of the theme is reflected through the tables too. Having a striped blue and white table runner decked with floral centrepieces in red and white roses with some greens, adding floating candles in vintage cups of water, and more will help perfect the theme.
Apart from the décor on the table, adding spiced rum (a la Captain Jack Sparrow) as a drink in ale mugs, table numbers on tiny mast-like structures with blue and white ribbons, and some red serviettes will also fit nicely on your big day. The flatware and cutlery should be plain white, with gold or silver cutlery.
Budget for a Nautical Wedding
When planning the budget for a themed wedding, it is essential that you have a grasp of the number of attendees. Planning a themed wedding takes more time and money than a regular one. The added expense is that you would need unique props or patterns that are specific to your theme. The nautical theme usually doesn't require much expenditure, but if you are ordering handcrafted table props, décor, and gifts, you could spend too much if you don't know the total number of guests.
The venue and accommodation for guests could be wholly dependent on the location. However, seafood and alcohol are usually pegged towards the expensive side, with another significant cost being a nautical-themed wedding cake. It is essential to plan the wedding budget to ensure enough room for last-minute add ons.
Wedding Invitations for a Nautical Wedding
There is plenty of room to play around with nautical wedding invitations. These invites can be paper-based or digital, depending on individual preference. The invites can have unique characteristics or motifs like the famed sailor's knot, an old-fashioned boat, seashells, anchors, images of the sea (waves, seagulls, small boats), and even handmade details of a coastline with the location of the wedding venue.
These invites are the first signs of the wedding theme and should have all the details mentioned clearly for guests. This is also the time to let wedding guests know about any colour schemes or dress codes.
Wedding Cake Ideas for a Nautical Wedding
Usually, a nautical-themed wedding cake has blue and white as the primary colours, but couples have chosen coral, aqua, teal, turquoise, and green with gold and silver accents over the years. The wedding cake can also be buttercream white with icing in a wavy pattern bedecked with edible fondant anchors.
A bold cake would be white and navy stripes, edible gold ropes, sugared pearls, and miniature chocolate anchors. If you want to add some beach elements, you could also have sugar work in a starfish or seashells pattern and frosting in the form of ropes. Another excellent idea is a white and gold leaf cake with alternating net patterns.
Portrait Props for a Nautical Wedding
An excellent portrait prop for a wedding photoshoot would be an actual boat. The decorators could paint it in your wedding colours and tip it to the side or find a way to get it in an upright position. Adding some printed couple photographs of your journey together or pictures with loved ones, special messages, and small bowls of candy will be a fantastic prop.
A thematic 4 ft yacht with your wedding logo, colours, and a compass that points to a 'forever happy' would be another excellent prop for some fabulous couple wedding shots. Another fantastic thing would be to have a bridal entry and a departure by boat (if around a water body). Clicking pictures on a boat will add to the authenticity.
Favours and Gifts for a Nautical Wedding
There are so many nautical themes to inspire wedding favours. Some fabulous wedding favours are a thank you to guests are anchor keychains, fisherman's knot with navy and white ribbons, a boat-shaped bag filled with the wedding favours, a candle shaped like a lighthouse to light your guests' way in the dark, nautical tea light holders, personalized votives, ship's wheel bottle openers, and many more.
When planning wedding favours and gifts, it is essential to get the theme perfect. The gifts will help your guests remember that they attended your nautical-themed nuptials and enjoyed being there for your big day.
Nautical Red, White, and Blue
To all of my American readers – Happy Fourth of July! If you’re looking to have a red, white, and blue colored wedding a great way to pull it off stylishly is with a nautical theme.
This inspiration board is a pretty classic take on a nautical themed wedding and it has an East Coast vibe that I’m loving right now. The blue stripes on the boutonnière, navy blue bridesmaid dress, and sailboat themed save the dates and escort cards are all cute ways to tie this theme together. Adding pops of red brightens your palette and makes it perfect for a seaside summer wedding!
Details to adore:
If you’re looking for a more rustic, classic American 4th of July wedding style look here, and for all you beachy brides who are loving today’s nautical themed wedding inspiration board be sure to take a peek at these beach themed wedding details!
Credits: photo credits: boutonnière from Green Wedding Shoes, photographed by Will and Stacey, designed by Cori Cook // nautical save the dates from Love Jenna // sailboat via Style Me Pretty, photographed by KT Merry // BHLDN wedding dress via Style Me Pretty, photographed by Laura Ivanova // rhubarb raspberry fizz drinks from The Vanilla Bean // bridesmaid and escort cards from Stephanie Hunter Photography.