How to Decorate Gazebos for Wedding Images

Have wedding photos taken in a beautiful gazebo.

A gazebo is a beautiful place to have wedding photos taken. Not only is it an enclosed space, providing you with protection from rain, snow and high winds, but it's also a relatively small space, so you can decorate your entire backdrop. When deciding on decorations, consider a theme, such as tropical, Asian, Victorian, garden or fairytale. This will help guide you in your decoration purchases and make the finished product look more cohesive.

Instructions

1. Line the outside of the gazebo with shallow flower beds placed on the floor. Choose flowers that match your theme and/or color scheme.

2. Drape tulle along the banisters of the gazebo, using adjustable table clamps, ribbon or strong tape to hold the tulle up at equal intervals. Alternatively, you can use a vine-like garland for a garden theme, or leis for a tropical theme.

3. Use safety pins to attach embellishments to each section of the tulle that has been pulled up. These embellishments should match your color scheme and/or theme. For example, you can use bunches of fresh flowers if you have a garden theme, handheld fans if you have an Asian theme or seashells if you have a tropical theme.

4. Hang decorations from the rafters of the gazebo. For example, you can drape panels of fabric for a fairytale theme, hang vines and other flowers for a garden theme or hang paper lanterns and/or origami at different lengths for an Asian theme.

5. Add mood lighting. For example, you can scatter battery-operated candles throughout the inside of the gazebo, string tiny white Christmas lights along the rafters, pillars and/or banisters, or tikki torches around the perimeter of the gazebo.

6. Place some themed props near the gazebo to use in your wedding photos. Examples include a parasol for an Asian theme, beach toys for a tropical theme or costume accessories for a fairytale theme.

Tips & Warnings

• If you'll be using real flowers to decorate your gazebo, use flowers that hold up well outdoors and aren't heat sensitive. For example, gardenias or stephanotis tend to droop when exposed to too much heat.

References

• Wedding Flowers and Reception Ideas: Wedding Gazebos
• One Heart Weddings: Decorating a Gazebo for a Wedding