Wedding Trends of the Future | Hudson Valley Wedding Photographer | 2022 Wedding Trends
Wedding Trends for 2022 – What’s new for 2022 and 2023 when it comes to weddings, elopements, and intimate celebrations? Wedding ideas post-covid will concentrate on being smaller, more unique, and more colorful. We’ve all been stuck inside for a long time, and for those who planned celebrations, then planned again, and then re-re-planned them, it’s time to just do the darn thing, and make it meaningful and decidedly different. I’m a destination, California, and New York wedding photographer, and I’ve noticed trends worldwide that I believe are going to be huge in 2022 and beyond.
All this to say, 2022 wedding trends are going to be creative, colorful, and wild. Destination weddings, bold accents, and unique activities will make attending a wedding more like a mini vacation escape for adults than a parade of formalities.
2022 Wedding Ideas: A Top 10 List for the Future
Even a global pandemic hasn’t stopped couples from tying the knot, and over 60 million people got married in 2020 (with a similar number assumed for 2021). So: What will a 2022 wedding look like? Look to wedding trends to get a good idea. In fact, I was putting together this list of my ideas, several of which were published the other day in Woman Getting Married: Wedding Trends We Are Over and the Ones We’ll See Next
This top 10 list of 2022 weddings trends isn’t just something I’m re-writing about based on similar articles; rather, these are trends I foresee based upon working in the wedding industry for years and years. I’m a wedding photographer, not a planner, but this allows me to see exactly what’s happening all over the country with my diverse client based. And while I can’t predict specific color trends or worldwide pandemics, I can use my experience and relationships with people in the field to get a good sense of what’s hot and what’s not. Unrelated: Remember hotornot.com?!
Without further ado, here are my Top 10 Wedding Trends for 2022
(in no particular order):
1. Big, Bold Colors
We’re so over pale, white-and-cream everything. It feels so formal, and it’s so one-note. Weddings are full of excitement, and staring at white flowers, decorations, and settings can be both modern and stark-feeling. Luckily, 2022 should have lots of color. Think big, bright wedding party dresses, colorful flower combinations with accents, colorful lights, and more. We are not sad to see pastels go, and very excited for this colorful 2022 wedding trend to kick into full gear. Oranges, bright pinks, canary yellow, and teal will all make splashes.
2. Next-Level Adventure Elopements
The wedding trend of stressing less to celebrate in a more epic way was popularized during COVID, but elopements and smaller ceremonies are only gaining momentum. I’ve been not just a wedding photographer, but an elopement photographer, for many years—and adventure elopements are becoming more and more popular.
Elopements used to mean you got married without telling anyone, but the modern-day definition of an elopement is basically just having a ceremony for the two of you, and 0-10 guests. What’s the trend, then? Adventure elopements have been getting ridiculously popular, and I’ll be one of the first to say I love it! As an adventure elopement photographer, I get to take couples on adventures unique to their tastes. Oftentimes I help plan as well, and quite often, the couple will use the adventure elopement destination as a combination honeymoon. Adventure elopements are all about the experience, and range from a half day to a week-long series of adventures. It can be road tripping and getting photos in wedding attire in Iceland, doing a long sunset hike in Yosemite, or helicoptering to a glacier in Alaska to say vows.
Of all the 2022 wedding trends, I have to think that splurging on an experience like this for yourself and no one else is darn awesome.
3. Floral Attire and Non-White Dresses
Going with the bigger, bolder color theme, a 2022 wedding trend I predict is more floral wedding dresses and colorful accents from couples who don’t want the same ol’ white dress (not that there’s anything wrong with that). More and more, I’m seeing non-white veils, bodices that have embroidered flowers, and wedding dresses that are black, custom-made red, blue, pink, pants instead of dresses, and more.
Having a white dress signifies something a lot of brides just don’t see eye-to-eye on, and plus…why do you need to stick to the rules? Check out this inspiration for colorful wedding dresses and veils, and never feel you have to be traditional.
4. Lawn Games 2.0
With more weddings being held outdoors, this 2022 wedding trend is all about making your wedding, well, funner. That’s a word now. But seriously, while weddings in the past few years have had huge Jenga and cornhole, 2022 and 2023 weddings will likely see the next generation of fun lawn games: bounce houses for adults, volleyball courts, human foosball, glow-in-the-dark giant bowling, life-size chess, lawn dominoes, and so many more. Who said adulting was boring?
5. Destination Weddings
Destination weddings have always been an option for those who had money, but these days there are affordable options because honestly, we don’t need 100 extra people we don’t know at our wedding. You can have an amazing, affordable celebration for 35-70 guests (typically), where everyone gets to know each other and you actually spend time together. Popular U.S. destination wedding locations are Hawaii, the U.S. Virgin Islands, Mexico, and more. Of course, not all destination weddings are tropical. Acadia National Park is super popular, a long weekend camping trip in the Adirondacks was Niki & David’s choice (below), and California is often picked for destination weddings.
6. Unique Cake Flavors, or Wedding Cake Alternatives
If you don’t like dessert, I don’t want to be friends with you. Just kidding, I’ll be friends with you, but I won’t photograph your wedding. No, I kid, I kid! Desserts are awesome though, in that that bring joy to everyone who doesn’t have diabetes. I’ll stop. Cake has always been a fun way to end the evening, but with cake getting more and more expensive (and predictable), couples are opting for alternatives.
Expect more unique wedding cake flavors like almond cake with citrus filling, or vanilla-pear-honey cake, moving forward. Vanilla and chocolate wedding cake? Come on, now.
For non-cake fans (of which there are many!), folks are choosing to have pie, ice cream sundae bars, fondue fountains, candy “bars,” brownie pops, s’mores stations, and so much more. There are a hundred alternatives to wedding cake, and guests are more than happy to take fun desserts home with them.
7. Comfortable, Cool Shoes for Gals, and No Socks for Guys
I’ve seen this wedding trend coming for guys and gals who don’t want to be uncomfortable for their entire day. As an LGBTQ wedding photographer, this same wedding trend goes for lots of same-sex weddings as well! People are sick of high heels, and when you’re walking around as much as a bride might (or groom who is wearing a higher shoe/uncomfortable shoe), that’s a whole lotta pain while wearing a large dress. I’ve noticed grooms foregoing socks as a trend (many Indian grooms do this anyhow, and have for years), and many brides choose flat shoes or fun, decorated shoes and boots for their weddings.
Look at these Wonder Woman socks and sparkly flats worn by my bride just this fall. A sign of more to come in 2022 and beyond? Absolutely.
8. Photobooths Out; Live Painters, Magicians, and Sculpture Artists In
Photobooths have been around longer than anyone predicted, but I believe the next 2022 wedding trend will be something new and just as interactive. So what’s next? More awe and more interaction.
Examples of unique elopement and wedding ideas:
Make-your-own bouquets floral vendors
Cigar rollers
Magicians
Poets on the spot
Wire sculpture artists
S’mores bars with a flame to roast over and campfire chairs
Live painters
Aerialists
Browsing an independent bookstore + free book tab
9. Exciting Florals that are Dried, Fake, Mixed, or Handmade
Florals are an expensive part of every wedding, and with good reason: Getting blooms from around the world, every day, and then having the talent to arrange them, go to venues with a team, have all the accessories, and design everything to look spectacular with live flowers is no easy, nor cheap, feat. Many people train for years and years, just as I have with my photography. Floral design styles vary so much, and what is available/will last in heat/can be in the right color shade is not always easy to plan.
For this reason, a 2022 wedding trend is to save money on florals by a.) buying in bulk and doing the blooms with your own family (as many people have been doing); b.) using a mix of dried or local flowers with real ones; c.) using artificial flowers made out of not just silk but wood, newspaper, brooches, etc.; d.) going for quality over quantity—bold statement pieces that can be reused throughout the day; e.) skipping bouquets altogether, and doing wildflower flower crowns, pets, single flowers, leaves, produce, flower beards, and more.
10. Customized, Offbeat Celebrations
Once COVID hit, weddings became the time to say, “Screw what everyone else wants. I can’t have that big wedding, so I might as well do something small but spectacular!” That means that people splurged in other ways. So for 2022, a wedding trend that I see happening even more is splurging on what YOU love, and not what your family expects.
Couples I’ve photographed as of late have splurged on:
- Having me adventure with them and photograph sunrise adventure sessions (a hike up a mountain for example)
- Roll into their wedding ceremonies on a golf cart to wacky music
- Kayak instead of walking down an aisle
- Eloping on an island with just a handful of guests
- Doing a multi-day road trip and have me photograph it
- So much more
2022 will bring about the adventurous, quirky sides, and less so the predictable, traditional celebrations.
In Summation:
2022 wedding trends are going to make attending these celebrations much more fun and memorable. While 2021 didn’t turn out how anyone imagined, weddings still happened, and people found creative ways to have fun outside and celebrate, no matter what. I have loved photographing these more intimate celebrations that are more about the couple than about putting on a show.
While we’re all hoping for a better 2022, couples are acknowledging that COVID-19 weddings will require various measures for some time yet, whether it’s doing a more intimate backyard celebration or having an adventure elopement in a remote area of the world.
Which one of these wedding trends for 2022 into 2023 excites you most? I can’t wait to hear, and hope to see your 2022 weddings are a whole new level of amazing~
Love the idea of incorporating unique activities and personal touches to make your wedding feel like a mini vacation – so many fun ideas!