Creative Ceremony Seating
For this wedding on the stairs inside the former San Francisco Public Library, local planner Pamela Fishman Cianci arranged the guests on the sides, looking down. The venue does not allow guests to stand on the stairs, so only the couple and their wedding party did so. "The bride and groom's parents met in the middle and stood in the loge, which was transformed into a cocktail area afterward," says Cianci.
Santa Barbara planner Alexandra Kolendrianos wanted to create an intimate setting for this 18-person wedding at San Ysidro Ranch. "We used benches with comfy white cushions and paired them with side tables with floral accents to make it feel cozy," says Kolendrianos. "The couple wanted something different, so I proposed these benches to give the ceremony a clean, intimate look."
Washington, D.C., planner Carol Marino of A Perfect Wedding designed a square ceremony space in part to make full use of the gardens at Meridian House in the nation's capital. "It was also very important to the bride and groom that all 130 guests could see really well," says Marino, "and it was a different take on a wedding 'in the round.' From a planning aspect, the setup helped us deal with tree roots and uneven ground in places throughout the garden."
For this wedding at Nestldown, a private estate in Northern California, San Francisco planner Joyce Scardina Becker designed the ceremony space to honor the couple's Vietnamese heritage. She arranged 60 white leather cubed ottomans in a spiral pattern to create a Zen feel in an already spiritual setting. A Buddhist monk officiated the ceremony and led all of the guests into the spiral aisle. Explains Scardina Becker, "Design is all about the art: painting a stunning masterpiece on a nuptial canvas."
New York City planner JoAnn Gregoli chose benches with cushions for this wedding outside a private home in the Hamptons. "Since the ceremony was on the beach, I suggested benches instead of chairs because I knew the benches would be very sturdy in the soft sand," says Gregoli. She lined the aisle with hydrangeas and covered the custom-made chuppah with hydrangeas and roses.
Rebecca Gigandet of Imagine Weddings & Special Events in Santa Barbara arranged 125 bamboo chairs for this fall wedding at the Four Seasons Resort Santa Barbara in a circular formation with the couple in the center. "This way, the bride and groom feel embraced by their family and friends surrounding them," says Gigandet, "as opposed to setting up the chairs in a more traditional manner." She also placed rose petals in a sunburst pattern, rather than a straight line down the aisle.
For this 122-guest wedding in Healdsburg, California, planner Rebecca Johnson of Kristi Amoroso Special Events arranged the ceremony space on the lawn adjacent to the bride's family's winery. "The mix of seating included overstuffed couches, covered chairs, large fabric ottomans, wood benches with cushions and some Chiavari chairs," says Johnson. "There was also a mix of wool rugs on the grass -- some Asian inspired, some country." To protect the guests from the summer sun, Johnson also scattered umbrellas throughout the space.
Santa Ana, California, planner Lisa Vorce combined chairs and benches at this 140-guest wedding at the ranch at Bacara Resort & Spa in Santa Barbara. "We wanted to add a bit of a residential vibe to the ceremony, so we incorporated the benches," says Vorce, who notes that mixing the two gives guests who would like a seat with a back the option of choosing a chair over a bench.
Planner Bryan Rafanelli, who has offices in Boston, Palm Beach and Washington, D.C., had the unique challenge of coordinating a ceremony on the steps inside the Boston Public Library. "The bride wanted to be walked down the aisle by her father," explains Emily Lalone of Rafanelli Events, "but at the same time wanted the ceremony to be informal and in the moment. Guests arrived, got comfortable, had a drink, and then we caught their attention as the bride's father walked her down the grand staircase. The couple was married amid hundreds of candles in a 20-minute ceremony while 80 guests surrounded them, drinks in hand."
Los Angeles planner Heidi Mayne collaborated with Clifford Miller on this Beverly Hills wedding at the groom's parents' home. The seating was a mix of white benches, chairs and ottomans surrounding a curving aisle lined with potted flowers. "The client wanted an English-garden look, but without the stuffiness or formality of an English garden," says Mayne. "We took a few design cues from the outdoor furnishings that the mother of the groom had in her backyard and ... voilà!"
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