Easy Feng Shui Tips to Make
Winter Weddings Fabulous!

By Marie Burgos
Photography By Francis Augustine/ Blurshot.com

Your wedding is the most important day of your life and it is essential that your surroundings nurture you and make you feel uplifted. A winter wedding can be extremely glamorous, cinematic and magical. Just imagine a snowy winter wonderland complete with sparkling crystals, twinkling lights and the glowing warmth surrounding you and your loved one. You will be introduced to great opportunities such as booking prime locations and saving money with your vendors, these are some of the added benefits as a result of the off-season.

Feng Shui simply means using the laws of heaven and earth to improve life by receiving positive energy. The concept will help you create an atmosphere of harmony, love and warmth for your special day. Additionally, it will reduce the stress on both you, your groom and your families. Who wouldn’t want that? Utilizing these easy Feng Shui tips will help you plan your wedding so you can benefit from the blessings of nature.

Here are nine tips that will help you incorporate beauty, balance, love and luck into the ceremony as well as the reception.

1: Picking The Date

The first thing on a couples “to do” list is to pick a date. Numbers can represent many auras some being luckier than others. Choose a date of the month with either an 8 or 9 in it, or numbers that add up to one of these. In Chinese tradition 8 means LOVE and 9 means ETERNITY. The 18th is the most perfect date as it has an 8 in it and it adds up to 9. Other favorable dates are the 8th, 9th, 17th,19th, 28th and 29th. Looking ahead, 2009 is a great year for getting married!

2: Finding The Venue

For a magical winter wonderland it is important to look for something cozy with lots of elegant carved wood and maybe a fireplace. Pay attention to any dark spots or corners within the venue, this can become an obstacle for the chi energy to flow freely. Free flowing energy is vital for happiness and joy. If possible, place plants or arrange soft lighting to illuminate the corners. Also, check to make sure your site will be adequately heated during the winter months; old churches, and large country houses can be especially drafty.

3: Fashion

Traditional American wedding dresses are usually all white. According to Feng Shui, a color representing the element earth will attract good luck. Instead of choosing classic white opt for a softer earth tone like ivory, cream or bone. The nurturing energy of earth will put you at ease, making for a much more enjoyable wedding.

Feng Shui influenced brides can also wear or carry something red. Red represents the color of happiness, you will attract this aura by wearing at least one small detail in that color. Another great option is to wear white with black accents this represents the yin and yang; two forces that symbolically balance each other to represent positive energy and a strong and balanced relationship.

The best part of winter wedding fashion is that you can indulge in luxurious heavyweight silks, satins or heavy velvets without getting too hot. If you're considering a ball gown, winter weddings are definitely the ideal time for full skirts. If you love the look of lace, opt for a heavier variety like Battenberg which will keep you warmer than a more delicate type like Chantilly.

Picture you and your groom set in the elegant style of an old Hollywood movie: the groom in tails and the bride in a white long slinky silk dress with a white fur (or faux fur) wrap, a la Carole Lombard. To chase the chill look for wraps, shrugs, capes or dramatic coats. If your dress is white add a red shawl to coordinate with the groom’s red boutonniere. Don't forget your bridesmaids, an attractive wrap or embroidered shawl to wear on the day of your wedding makes a great personalized bridesmaid’s present.

4: Picking The Flowers

Red roses, calla lilies and amaryllis are decidedly winter wedding flowers, but if you step outside the flower box you will find a variety of options for winter blooms. Consider fuller flowers such as white hydrangeas and soft ranunculuses. White boutonnieres can be handsome when they're accented with greenery, but they also look great with a simple white ribbon. To add sparkle to your bouquet try wrapping the stems in ribbon embellished with crystals. This represents good chi energy.

Each flower has its meaning, a bouquet of...
Lilies can increase sensuality.
Roses for romance.
Sweat pea for creativity.
Ivy is good for vitality.
Ranunculus helps with prosperity.
Snapdragons enhance spirituality.
Tulips are good for the ambitious.
Cosmos for those who value family and friends.
Quince for partners looking for new opportunities.

5: The Decor

To increase the good chi energy of your reception venue there are a few things to consider. Tables structure is an important factor, it is vital to avoid rectangular or square tables in your reception area. The hard, sharp angles create a feeling of conflict. Round or oval tables are perfect choices, they bring closeness and emphasize conversation among the guests.

Another important factor is to make sure everything is lit up. Clear quartz crystals are a famous Feng Shui solution. Crystal dinnerware, candlesticks and chandeliers are good because they reflect light. For luck take wedding photos under crystal chandeliers or include sparkling crystal tableware in your gift registry. Be creative with your crystals add them to your dress, veil or shoes. Crystal beading also looks exotic rimming dainty tea-lights on tables! Go beyond just glowing candles to add both warmth and romance to your reception site.

If you want to heighten the drama bring the icy outdoors inside with ice-carved vases on your reception tables. Have your florist fill the vases with tall winter-white branches and hanging crystals to reflect the light from the tables. Then surround the centerpieces with votive candles, frosted glasses and serving pieces and finally top your tables with white Dupioni silk table linens.

6: Preparing The Ceremony

Invite mother nature to your wedding by bringing the outdoor in with plants or snowy white decor. Releasing doves or butterflies are symbols of peace, harmony and eternal love and gives a poetic spectacle for photographers. Writing your own vows, poems or ceremony is also great Feng Shui because you bring your own true essence to the day.

7: Making The Menu

Working with the caterer is important so you can have all of your favorite foods, but adding some seasonal winter touches like a squash dish or warm pumpkin soup compliments with the season. Hearty foods like ham and roast beef are good entree choices, as they are yang foods which in Feng Shui means they help warm the body and prolong energy. Guests will be fueled to dance all night! Also, consider serving non-alcoholic eggnog, exotic hot teas, hot chocolates, gourmet coffees, non-alcoholic spiced wines and other warm drinks to your greet your guests after the ceremony.

8: Choosing The Cake

A wedding cake trimmed in red/green ribbon or topped with roses looks pretty, but bakers who are willing to push the fondant envelope can reflect the winter in breathtaking creative ways.

Play up the season with a white, vintage-style cake dusted with edible silver dragees or powder. For accents, have your baker add a white sugar ribbon and crystal drops cascading down one side of the cake. Look for an all-white cake decorated with snowflake patterns or sugar sculptures. Ask your caterer about using a decorative snow globe as a cake topper.

Feng Shui practitioners believe that the wedding cake is symbolic of the married couple's future. With that in mind, you should choose a cake that best represents your shared goals. For instance, if you want an adventurous marriage where you will grow and learn together choose a three-tiered wedding cake, which represents the rising energy of wood. For a stable marriage pick a square cake which symbolizes the nurturing energy of earth. A round cake is perfect for people who want lots of children or are very artistic, because circles represent the creative principle of metal.