Your wedding day should be all about celebrating your love for one another, but it’s easy to get caught up in “wedding trends”—from traditional cliches you think you need to have to the latest crazes sweeping the wedding world. When you focus too hard on trends, you start to lose sight of what’s important. Plus, everyone’s wedding starts to look and feel the same.
Our advice? Ditch anything that won’t stand the test of time when you look back on your wedding day 20 years from now. Just like an iconic wedding gown, an iconic wedding ceremony needs to be unique. If you need help narrowing it down, here are 14 overhyped trends that we’re 100% over.
#14: Anything Related to Cash
Just hearing the word “cash” tied to a wedding makes us cringe. Requesting cash as a gift is so uncomfortable for your guests, plus it implies that you don’t trust them to pick out a great wedding gift on their own.
If you want to put money towards your honeymoon or a big-ticket item for your home, there are better ways to ask for money—like using Honeyfund or another website for guests to make contributions.
Another tacky trend is the dollar bride dance. This is where the DJ announces that you can pay the bride to dance with her. It’s so awkward and uncomfortable.
To top it all off, nobody likes a cash bar—period. It’s tacky to have your family and friends pay $9 for a cocktail at your wedding. To lower your costs, just serve beer and wine! Bonus: many vendors will allow you to return unopened bottles for a refund.
#13: Too Many Meal Options
Many guests love this next option, but it’s really a time waster more than anything. Providing too many meal options for your wedding, especially a serve-yourself buffet, means your guests will take longer to decide. The lines will be longer, and guests will have to be extra patient while waiting for their food. Plus, this option is typically more expensive.
The better option is to serve everyone the same meal, and have guests request a vegetarian or special dietary option when submitting their RSVP.
#12: Unusual Cake Flavors
We’re all about a unique wedding cake flavor, but don’t let it be the ONLY flavor available to your guests. You and your partner may be obsessed with coffee and cream, but not everyone’s palette will agree. Stick to the basics: chocolate, vanilla, and red velvet. It may not WOW your guests, but it’s bound to please most of them.
If you’re dying to incorporate something unusual, choose a cake with layers or have two different cakes. That way you can have some of the traditional flavors and throw in a fun option like hazelnut almond or pink champagne. You can also achieve a variety of flavors through cupcakes!
#11: The Naked Cake
Since we’re talking sweets, let’s also nix the naked cake trend. It’s a beautiful work of art, but many guests say they miss the icing. If you’re not a big frosting fan, just ask your baker to use less frosting altogether.
#10: Too Much Personalization
We get it, you’re getting married, and you’re ready to show off your new last name or monogram—but personalizing everything is a trend we’re just not loving anymore. That means it’s time to lose the overpriced personalized napkins (that will just get thrown away), and save the monogram for the wedding invitation. Plus, nobody values the personalized touches as much as you and your spouse. Save your money and find ways to make your wedding personal for the two of you instead.
This also means skipping the too-long and overly-punny hashtag. It was cute for a while when you had your one unique hashtag on Instagram and could pull all your guests’ photos. However, we’ve reached a point where your hashtag is no longer unique since it’s probably being used by another couple (or multiple couples) of the same name. It’s just not special anymore.
#9: Monochromatic Bridesmaid Dresses
It’s rare to see matching bridesmaids dresses anymore. It’s not easy finding the perfect gown that fits every body type and pairs well with different hair colors and skin tones.
Today, more brides are choosing different patterns, styles and hues that express their girls’ individuality. Some brides even allow their bridal party to choose their own gown—they’re more likely to feel confident and even wear the dress again!
#8: Large Bridal Parties
While we’re on the subject of bridal parties, less is more. You may be tempted to invite every cousin, friend, and former college roommate into your wedding party, but the truth is: the more girls standing by your side, the more distracting it is from the bride. Plus, the groom normally matches the same number of groomsmen, so the end of the aisle can get crowded quickly.
Smaller, more intimate bridal parties allow for a more personal wedding day, and you’re more likely to stay in touch with a smaller group of bridesmaids than a larger group.
#7: Photo Booths
It’s time to move past the photo booth. It was a great idea for a while but now it’s becoming cheesy, especially with the tacky, cheap props.
The biggest issue is that it’s fun for a minute and then the booth sits there for a long while. Once all the guests are done taking their photo, you’re still paying for the booth and its attendant to just sit there unused.
#6: Recreating Pinterest Photos
This next one’s tough, but skip the overused Pinterest poses. These on-the-fly requests will add stress to an already tight schedule, so trust your wedding photographer to come up with their own ideas (they are the experts, after all). Besides, the candid, in-the-moment photos are 99% better than a staged pose that you just had to recreate.
If there’s a certain location or pose that you must have, talk to your photographer ahead of the big day so they can plan for it.
#5: The Bouquet/Garter Toss
Traditional brides may not agree with this one, but the bouquet and garter toss are so outdated, and many modern couples are done subjecting their guests to these “traditions”. Save your girlfriends the embarrassment of pointing out that they’re still single, and set them up with another of your single friends instead!
Same deal with the guys—no guy wants to watch the groom go under the bride’s skirt to retrieve a sweaty garter and then catch it as a prize. The concept is honestly gross.
#4: Party Favors
Party favors are on their way out as well. Most favors are either tacky or so overdone that guests end up leaving them behind or throwing them away. How many personalized koozies does a person need in their life anyways? Save that money and use it on something that can be enjoyed at the wedding—like a late-night snack or a fun dessert bar.
If you really want to send your guests home with a favor, something edible is your best bet. They’re more likely to grab a decorated cookie for the ride home than take a quirky bottle opener they don’t need.
#3: Signs, Signs, & More Signs
Take this as a sign to stop overusing signs at your wedding. It’s okay to have one or two, but there’s no need to have multiple signs; your guests know where to find the bar and the dance floor without a sign.
This includes anything from chalkboard signs to neon signs. Plus, what are you going to do with those signs when the wedding day is over? It’s a cute idea, but it’s unnecessary and overdone.
#2: Rustic Themes
Oh, the barn wedding. If you or your spouse grew up on a farm or own a farm, then maybe a barn wedding makes sense for you. Just be sure that if you are going to have a rustic barn wedding, there should be a good reason.
Rustic themed weddings have been on the rise for some time but they can easily become cliched if you don’t put thought into planning them. From the scratchy burlap to an enormous amount of mason jars, the country/rustic theme can quickly turn into a cheesy affair.
If you’re looking for something that’s more outdoorsy, go with a nature theme: hand-picked bouquets, wooden centerpieces, and semi-formal attire (meaning no more cowboy boots and jeans).
#1: Flower Crowns
Finally, it’s time to talk about flowers. Forget the flower crown—it was cute for a moment, but we like it better on the flower girl than the bride. If you’re looking for a cool boho hairstyle, add small, pinned flowers to an elegant braid.
