How To Repurpose Wedding Decor Into Your Home's Decor

The wedding industry makes an estimated $60 billion a year, per IBISWorld. In addition to the steep costs of the venue and catering services, you'll need to find the perfect decor for your special day. Each area of a wedding venue has different decorating requirements (via Junebug Weddings). Pieces used to decorate the ceremony area, like chairs, aisle runners, or a large arch over the altar, are different from the main reception area, where you'll probably need dazzling centerpieces, food, dessert displays, and a lounge area.

Not surprisingly, beautiful wedding decor can cost a pretty penny. Thankfully, while the costs might seem overwhelming, there are many out-of-the-box and creative ways to save money on decor and create a glamorous look (via Luxe Event Productions). You can use candles for mood lighting, thrifted finds for unique table decor, and dried flowers for creative displays. A great way to make the most of your wedding budget is to buy items you can repurpose after saying "I do," preferably in ways that let you appreciate the decor for the everyday. Here are some tips and tricks for repurposing wedding decor for your home after you tie the knot.

A significant part of planning a wedding involves choosing a color palette. A palette helps narrow down decor choices and create a cohesive look. Choosing wedding colors has evolved significantly in the last 10 years, according to WeddingWire. While every event is different, Cindy Sanchez Lark from Detaille Weddings and Events said, "Today, couples continue to use these [safe] colors and every other in between ... mixing different shades into their own custom color palette, incorporating lots of contrast, poppy colors, metallics, and even the occasional black."

Wedding color palettes often include bold pops of color on dishware, fabrics, tables, and displays. You can repurpose these elements for colorful decor in your home. For example, you can reuse bold-colored vases or glassware from a guest table for a dinner party. Blue or bright orange tones look beautiful against a neutral white tablecloth. You can also use placemats or chargers underneath plates in a contrasting color, such as gold or a bright print. Not only will these elements make a statement at your wedding, but you can bring them home after and spruce up your living areas, kitchen, and dining room. Bold colors can make designs look more dramatic, impressive, and energetic (via Rterior Studio). They are great at jazzing up your interior spaces.

Tablescapes provide that wow effect when guests sit at the table and make a difference in the entire experience. According to Roots Floral Design, finding the perfect decor for your reception tables is a big part of wedding planning. The reception is the longest portion of your wedding day, meaning the tablescape is something you and your guests will spend much of the day or night around. After the wedding, why not bring these elements back home? You can rework beautiful vases, glasses, plates, and even napkins in creative ways as home decor.

One must consider all tablescape elements before deciding where they fit into your home. When creating a tablescape, start at the base (via Nina Hendrick Home). If your table base includes a fabric runner or cloth, place these onto your dining room set, along your mantel, over a console table, and in bookcases. Upwards from there, the design includes the centerpiece and assorted details like candlesticks or hurricane glass with candles, vases, and place settings. You can use all of these in your home in different rooms. For example, hurricane vases are great for flowers or seasonal candle holders (via Making It In The Mountains).

Though many of these items are easy enough to bring home, it's still important to remember your home's setting when finding the perfect placement of each item. Interior designer Emma Sims-Hilditch told Homes & Gardens, "A round table is a wonderful way to create a social environment in your dining space. we often place an arrangement of beautiful seasonal flowers in the centre to draw the eye and reflect the natural beauty of the home's surroundings."

Sustainable weddings have been growing in popularity over the years. Sustainably-focused brides have found great workarounds for decorating their wedding spaces with more sustainable elements or utilizing more eco-conscious sourcing. You can make your wedding even more sustainable by reusing organic decor elements like plants and greenery in your home after the ceremony.

According to Sustainably Chic, sustainable interior decor features natural, non-toxic, or recycled material. It often is Fair Trade certified and ethically made to support the makers. A set of handmade or artisan-crafted bowls or plates is lovely decor for weddings and homes, and also supports local businesses and doesn't add to shipping and packaging costs (via Organic Cotton Mart). The same goes for furniture, frames, and mirrors you can use as lounge decor. You can typically find these items in thrift stores or local antique shops. Another way to decorate sustainably is to use live plants as decor. Pair plants from your wedding day with recycled or locally sourced logs for a woodsy outdoor display. Alternatively, take them inside and add greenery to your living room, wall display, or as party favors to your plant-loving friends and family.

According to Wedding Forward, some of the most popular wedding trends of 2022 involve natural aesthetics and earthy color palettes. Bohemian style is becoming more popular as brides opt for simple, nature-based designs. Rattan, a popular material used in this trend, is an ideal element for a bohemian wedding and simple to bring back home after the ceremony.

One of the best things about rattan furniture is that it easily fits into most aesthetics (via Making Your Home Beautiful). Rattan features unique patterns, textures, and colors. It's a versatile material and complements bohemian styles. These attributes also make it great to accompany other furnishings with a rustic country chic or upscale coastal Hamptons look. The natural vibe makes the feeling of the room not only more relaxed and stylish but cost-effective. Plus, rattan pieces work great indoors and out. You can use rattan as wedding decor in numerous ways, but ideally with furniture or accessories with soft florals and natural color palettes. Once your guests leave the reception space, you'll have virtually no problem fitting these pieces into your home, no matter your interior style.

While the movement has been around since the 1980s, maximalist style strives to fight against minimalism and embrace self-expression. It's a celebration of bright and bold visual elements. Ms. Pink of Quirk & Rescue told ArchDaily, "you can never have too much of a good thing." Especially nowadays, maximalism is back in the mainstream with fashion and interior design. Maximalism elements in weddings are also on the rise. Couples looking to go big with their weddings want to live out their ultimate fantasies with extravagant details (via Wedding Forward). You can use decor like giant letters, towering floral decorations, or brightly colored lounge furniture to craft bigger, better wedding experiences. Those who love eye-catching decor can reuse these Maximalist-style items in their homes.

The statement decor from a wedding is best repurposed as artistic centerpieces, whether along the walls, in your main living space, or on a coffee table. Bringing these fun, zany elements into your home creates a striking look. Large wall art is a great way to show off a unique aesthetic and works best in high-traffic areas like the bedroom, kitchen, and living room (via ElephantStock). Ornate mirrors, tapestries, and chandeliers make great decor for weddings and everyday home interiors. These items give off great energy and are versatile for different spaces.

You can never have too much of a good thing, so why not create multiple bar areas at your wedding? Wedding planner Mindy Weiss told Vogue, "Satellite bars were trending in the days pre-lockdown, but couples seem very excited to have them back. In fact, double the amount than ever before, with a tequila bar being the favorite." Unless your venue provides the displays and glassware, brides need to source various furniture for their bar areas, including bar carts, bartending supplies, or even towers of champagne glasses for guests. The beauty of utilizing multipurpose decor is that you can use it in the future. These decorated bars and beautiful champagne towers are not only popular, but a great excuse to get some new treasured glassware and furniture for your home.

Excess glassware from your wedding is ideal for a bar cart or the shelving behind your home bar area. There are fun ways to organize glasses to jazz up this area in your home, whether by color, style, or shape. For the bar carts themselves, you can decorate using fancy glassware or other recycled elements from the wedding. As designer Emilie Munroe told Elle Decor, "Along with displaying your favorite statement glassware and bottles of spirits, don't forget to add natural elements to your cart such as a fun vase of flowers, bowl of citrus for use as garnish, or even snacks like a dish of walnuts or candies."

Balloon arches are a classic element at bridal showers and weddings. However, their appeal has depreciated over time. Katie Brownstein, director of marketing at the wedding-planning platform Joy, told Insider, "Balloon installations and arches have been synonymous with wedding decor ... the last couple of years, but this trend is fading fast." It appears that flower walls and arches are taking over. Arches are getting a new look with florals, draped fabrics, and intricate geometric shapes.

While there are a variety of easy-to-build arch options available on Amazon and Etsy, as well as rentable arches, the cost can take away from the appeal. Luckily, there are plenty of ways to craft your own with lightweight wood or metal, such as copper or aluminum (via Love You Wedding). These beautiful structures are not only buildable but also reusable. You can use them during a wedding ceremony and reception and for your outdoor space at home. These structures look beautiful at a backyard or garden entrance or as fun decorations. Grow climbing plants like morning glory, ivy, or tomatoes on these arches to create an elegant doorway.

Speaking of the outdoors, a lovely way to brighten up your outdoor space is with string or fairy lights. These lights are popular in wedding design plans to create a romantic, fairytale-like setting for the event, per OneFabDay. Popular varieties include exposed bulbs, festoon and string light installations, mix-and-match vintage chandeliers, and classic fairy lights. You can use these lights both indoors and outdoors at your wedding.

There are plenty of reasons to utilize string lights in your home if you're not doing so already. Your lighting setup can set the mood and create a welcoming atmosphere. The function of string lights is not to be the primary light source but to accentuate the beauty of the surroundings with soft, warm lighting. This lighting has a relaxing, calming effect that makes the atmosphere cozier, an essential feeling for your home. Other benefits of using string lights include their ability to create an inviting environment for entertaining and their lower than average energy consumption, not to mention they are incredibly versatile. Inside, you can line walls or dark corners with string lights or place them behind sheer curtains for a dreamy effect.

Pressed flower art, preserving flowers in resin, and dried flowers are all projects perfect for your wedding and home decor. Not only can you preserve memories in whatever fashion you'd like, but you can use flower art to add a natural touch to your interiors.

Shannon Morrow, founder and lead designer of Arvo Floral Studio, told Brides, "My No. 1 tip for someone who wants to preserve their flowers is to decide what way will be most practical and can be easily implemented into your home. Deciding on an option that will result in a piece of art that can be displayed in your home year-round is truly the best option for couples wanting to have everlasting enjoyment." Pressed flowers look great in clear glass frames, and some of the most popular flowers used in weddings today are great candidates for this style of art, either as full flowers or just petals. Shrub roses are thinner-petaled, wild roses that press well and look great in bouquets (via Mary Murray's Flowers). You can press flowers from home in several different ways. Place them carefully between heavy books and wax paper, plunge them into silica beads, or dry them in the microwave (via Popular Science).

This art can also take the form of flowers in resin, perhaps standing alone or in some time of usable craft such as coasters or a picture frame. While many flowers typically used in wedding floral designs are bulkier heads that do not press well, dried floral bouquets are popular for wedding flowers. To dry your flowers, hang the bouquets upside down somewhere dry for about a week. Then, they can be used in a vase or to decorate a wreath.

While not always top-of-mind during wedding planning, signs often play a significant role at a wedding, according to Junebug Weddings. Signs help guests find the bar, the photo booth, bathrooms, seats, and other locations at the wedding. Creating signage for weddings can be time-consuming, whether ordering invitations from online vendors or making signs yourself with tools like a Cricut. After the wedding, however, you can repurpose them into art for your home.

One of the best ways to recycle your signage is with a gallery wall, a group of organized framed art pieces or photos put together in a cohesive, thoughtful way. Gallery walls are a great way to personalize your space. Karen Hernandez, manager of product development and art reproductions at the Museum of Modern Art, told The New York Times, "To me, the most inspiring walls are those that mix a variety of artworks representing a range of media, from photographs to drawings, mixed in with personal mementos like children's artwork or souvenirs from one's travels." In this case, the personal pieces are signs from your wedding reception or ceremony.

Invitations work best in frames, mainly to protect the material, giving you the chance to add more personal touches to the wall. Other factors go into planning the gallery wall, including organizing the pieces, picking out frames, and finding the perfect wall. You can hang up different elements in a grid-like design for a more formal style or get creative for a relaxed wall in a living or bedroom. What matters most is to take your time and plan intentionally. A wall of art that displays memorable moments is a great way to deepen your connection to the space and achieve a timeless aesthetic.