Leafy Winter Inspiration

You may already know this about me, but I’m a sucker for a good backdrop. They rarely take up much real estate in wedding decor, but the “wow” factor is always undeniable. So when I saw this styled shoot from Tom and Keidi and Ruie & Grace with an ombre magnolia leaf backdrop, I was reeled in hook, line, and sinker. Let’s jump in:

From the event designers, Ruie & Grace: Located in the historic town of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, the Battlefield Bed and Breakfast provided the perfect amount of charm for our romantic rustic photo shoot. The overall feel of the shoot was a romantic take on a rustic barn wedding, to evoke this feeling we used a rich jewel tone color palette with pops of gold. Leathery brown fallen magnolia leaves were sprinkled throughout the decor to incorporate a natural element while also adding a consistent warm base in all of the displays. We utilized a variety of found objects to create a old world feeling. Layered textures, like the lace of the gown paired with an emerald knit shawl, to the velvety lushness of the fuchsia cockscomb and the simplicity of the ivory spider mum created a rich complexity to the overall feel.

We wanted to highlight the natural elements of the property so we used one of the trees as the ceremony location. Using found twigs to exaggerate the curve of an existing branch created a necessary focal point to help define the space. Glass orbs with tea lights strung from branches brought a sense of warmth to the ceremony site. For escort cards and place cards we used gold paint pens to write out guests’ names on leathery brown magnolia leaves. For the escort cards we adhered the leaves to branches that were “growing” out of zinc bins with their correlating table number painted on. The bins were filled with magnolia seed pods dusted with gold. The magnolia leaf place cards were pinned onto local plums, which added a deep purple to our table settings and also acted as our guests favors. We used a mix of ivory plates with gold accents, emerald green champagne flutes and gold etched wine glasses.

We highlighted the sweetheart table with an abstract wire sculpture. Circles of 18 gauge wire were zip tied together and small wire was woven throughout the circles to create a “nest.” Skeleton leaves were added as a natural detail that also referenced our magnolia leaf inspiration. We then spray painted the entire piece with gold to unify all of these elements and added fairy lights to softly illuminate the space. Creating a modern yet rustic statement for our photobooth backdrop was a nice a contrast to the romantic undertones throughout this photoshoot. So, we layered our magnolia leaves in an ombre pattern that faded from deep walnut browns, rich honey to bright gold. Displaying the magnolia leaves in this simple, but yet effective pattern created a subtle textured backdrop, great for posing in front of. We definitely recommend utilizing your resources and checking around your area for magnolia trees, we sourced ours from a friendly neighbor who allowed us to rake her yard one Saturday morning.

See Also

Creative Wedding Bar Ideas That Totally Nailed It

Shoot Location: Gettysburg, PA / Photographer: Tom and Keidi / Event Design, Styling, Flowers, Cake, Fashion Styling, and Invitations: Ruie & Grace / Venue: Gettysburg Battlefield Bed and Breakfast / Wedding Dress: Taylored for You Bridal Boutique / Hair and Makeup: Nicole Castano