A Guide To Wedding Candles: Gorgeous Ideas For Lighting Up Your Big Day

Congratulations, you’ve finally settled on your wedding flowers. Now onto the next question: How to show off these beautiful blooms in their brightest light? This is when your florist and planner (if you are using one) will go over candle options to see which type best complements your wedding scheme. Candles are essential to creating the ambiance for your big day whether you dream of a candlelit aisle, want to dine in an intimate, glowing tablescape, or need to warm up a cavernous room. Because these decor staples come in an array of styles, shapes, and sizes, we put together this guide highlighting inspiring floral designs with candles from the Real BB Weddings archives.

Pillar Candles
Extremely versatile and classic with a commanding presence, pillar candles top the list of most wedding florists and planners. Because of their sturdy form, long burning time, and high impact glow, pillar candles can be used on tables amidst an arrangement of delicate blooms as well as on the floor at the base of a ceremony structure or staircase.

Nothing says enchanted garden romance like a colorful floral wreath arranged around a cluster of glowing pillar candles. The pairing of richly textured blooms and elegant ivory candles creates a beautiful contrast that attracts the eye.

Create a sense of movement by placing pillar candles in vessels of varying height. Raising the standard cluster arrangement centerpiece, this arrangement presents ivory pillar candles atop silver mercury holders surrounded by small vases holding white, purple and lavender blossoms with touches of greenery.

 

When less is more. Underscore the beauty of organic white florals and rich greenery with midi-pillar candles set in cylinder holders.

 

Because of their sturdiness and luminosity, pillar candles are an excellent decorative choice to line the aisle. For maximum impact, arrange the candles in groups at the inner most chair of each row.

When styled on the floor, pillar candles completely transform the look and feel of the surrounding area. Whether you are exchanging vows under a blossoming chuppah or before gardenesque alter arrangements, pillar candles will help create an unforgettably romantic ambiance for your ceremony.

Taper Candles
What pillar candles bring to a weddingscape in flourishing simplicity, taper candles match with grace and elegance. Their long, thin shape makes them an excellent decor option if you want your celebration to have a vintage feel. Available in a spectrum of colors and heights, they can also be styled to fit a modern chic aesthetic.

Set in  gold holders, ivory taper candles cast a soft, romantic light over a low centerpiece of ranunculus, dahlias, roses, hydrangeas in shades of burgundy, pale lavender, and cream trimmed with Italian ruscus and parvifolia eucalyptus.

Accentuate the luscious texture and of a low centerpiece with taper candles set on gold holders with a hurricane cover. The flame reflects off of the glass, imparting dynamic light over the display.

Put a modern spin on tradition by combining colored taper candles with sleek mirror elements. This centerpiece features a centerpiece of florals in hues of blush, mauve, and white set in a rectangular mirror vase surrounded by pale pink and white taper candles in glass holders.

There’s no denying the timeless beauty that glowing taper candles bestow on a long tablescape. For this unforgettable reception at the Bowery Hotel, each table was topped with a lush greenery and white floral garland illuminated by forty ivory taper candles set in glass holders.

Floating Candles
Over the past few wedding seasons, we’ve watched floating candles emerge as the new classic in illuminated wedding decor. Placed in vessel with water, floating candles are extremely versatile and can be styled to complement just about any wedding style from organic romanticism to contemporary minimalism.

The impression floating candles have on decor comes down to which type of holder is used. To incorporate a sense of movement in this low, garden-inspired centerpiece, floating candles were placed in stem glass holders of varying height.

 

The idea works to the same effect with high centerpieces. Here, floating candles in stem glass holders were placed under a towering harlow stand arrangement, highlighting the beautiful florals while underscoring the reception’s moody, intimate ambiance.

 

Looking for ideas to maximize a floral garland? This long tablescape centers on a vibrant and robust flowering garland trimmed with an undulating series of floating candles in stem glass holders.

 

For this chic cocktail inspired reception, communal tables were adorned with a captivating runner composed of bud vases containing a single white rose complemented by floating candles in cylinder glass vases.

 

Radiating dramatic romance, this mesmerizing tablescape combines floating candles with submerged blooms. There’s a short list of flowers that can be placed in water, so be sure to ask your florist which types will work for your desired aesthetic.

Votive Candles
Because of their petite size and long burning time, votive candles are a great option if you want to add a warm, flattering glow that doesn’t take focus away from the main decorative elements. They are usually placed in votive holders, which come in an assortment of styles ranging from clear glass to colored glass to metallic mercury glass. Votive candles also look wonderful when used in combination with pillar, taper, and floating candles.

 

Emphasize the wintry beauty of a low centerpiece that combines white florals with seasonal berries and greenery by arranging a warm, glowing ring of votive candles a few inches off from the foot of the vase.

 

A mix of candles set in gold mercury and clear glass votive holders was just what was needed to illuminate the majestic fairytale charm of this gold candelabra centerpiece topped with a romantic arrangement of roses, hydrangeas, lisianthus, lily of the valley, and thistle in shades of pale blue, blush, and white complemented by parvifolia eucalyptus, Italian ruscus, and dusty miller.

 

Place votive candles intermittently throughout a series of petite arrangements to highlight the intricate floral details while creating a welcoming setting for guests to enjoy.

 

Looking for ideas to shine a spotlight on your big day dessert? While wedding cake tables are typically small is size, there should be adequate space to add a few votive candles to the display.

Tea Lights
The smallest of the wedding candle family are tea lights. Despite their tiny size, tea lights offer ample glow to wedding decor, enhancing centerpieces, hanging installations, and even ceremony aisles. Flameless, LED tea lights are also available, minimizing the stress and worry that comes with hosting large crowds around open flames.

Cocktail tables function as a flat surface for mingling guests to place drinks on before heading into the reception. Using tea lights in a cocktail arrangement adds a just-needed twinkle while saving space for champagne glasses and appetizer plates.

 

Tea lights are an ideal choice if your wedding reception will take place during the day when natural light is still available. Their flames add a romantic touch to a bright and airy tabletop adorned with fresh blooms.

 

Whether suspended from a blossoming ceremony archway, dangling from a high centerpiece, or installed over the dance floor, hanging bubbles with tea lights bring enchanted romance to your weddingscape. Because of the complexity and burning time needed for most hanging designs, it is recommended that LED and battery operated tea lights are used.

 

Just like the slightly larger votive candle, tea lights add a luminous and delicate gleam to the wedding cake table.

Candles are an integral part to setting the mood for life’s most special occasions. Whatever style, theme, or venue you envision for your wedding, candles take decor and styling to the next level. We hope this guide inspires fresh ideas for illuminating a ceremony backdrop, softening a secluded corner, warming up a spacious room, or highlighting a table centerpiece.