wedding linen
I know, I know. This is such a boring topic. Linen is most often the last thing on a bride’s mind. It’s something most people overlook, but for me it’s very important because it sets the tone of the whole venue. Who cares about table cloths and liners? I do! I am here to talk about the different types of linen you can rent for your wedding.
Have you watched The Sound of Music? Who hasn’t? You know what my favorite part of the movie is? While I LOVE the whole movie because it’s amazing, my favorite part is the one where Fraulein Maria used the curtains to make play clothes for the children. If you've seen the movie you know what I’m talking about, the white curtain covered with green foliage design. I just loved how the curtain really matched the surroundings in the next scene. You know, the mountains where they sang the DO- a Deer song, and the scene with road leading to their mansion, lined with the big tress, where they were played. The curtain choice was so perfect, whoever designed the set and costumes for the movie was clearly thinking about how to match the curtains (that were transformed into play clothes) with the next scene.
I am mentioning this because, just like in a wedding venue, the linen (table cloth, table liners, chair covers, napkins, etc.) play a big part in tying together the whole place. It can either add to the whole theme and décor, or act as neutral base for every shade of the wedding color you are going to use. But whatever you do, pls don’t go matchy-matchy with everything. If you are renting chair covers in color, make the table cloth and the napkins white and vice versa. It’ll keep everything looking clean and crisp.
Here are the different types of linen you can rent or buy (they also come in different colors depending on your motif). There are lots of varieties, but these are the basic ones:
Polyester/Cotton - this is the most common and least expensive one you can rent or buy. If your wedding venue is decorated with a lot of draping and curtains, using your wedding color, whether on the walls or ceiling, choose this type of linen because this type doesn’t really attract too much attention. In the sense, that it won’t distract the eyes from all the other elements in the venue like the draping. Also, just stick with the white colored ones if there’s already an array of colors all over the venue, whether via the lighting, draping, curtains or whatever design element you put on there.
Spandex - this is mostly used for the small round tables that you put outside during the cocktail hours where guests put their drinks on. This is also good for covering the basic hotel chairs. It looks neat and tidy because the material is clinging to the shape of the chair, so there’ s no stepping, or tripping on extra the fabric laying on the floor.
Satin Finish - definitely more expensive than the ones mentioned above. It gives a more “high end” look, however, it doesn’t necessary mean that’ll suit your wedding venue. Like I said, it depends on what you already have in the room. Personally, I’d stay away from it because it looks so shiny, and unnecessary. If you have layers of lighting at your wedding venue, the Satin will reflect most of it, it’s going to distract from everything else that’s already on there. Plus I always feel like because it’s shiny and smooth, that the place settings will be messed up quickly.
Velvet - definitely looks the most luxurious of them all, because of the richness in it’s texture, but also one of more expensive options out there. If you have the budget, then go for it, I think it suits the Moroccan theme or Bollywood inspired weddings because those types of themes require layers and layers of fabrics and texture. The velvet embodies richness and glamour. So if you really want to, maybe rent one but just for the head table, if you have a head table.
Those are the most common ones you can rent or buy for your wedding. But, within those choices, are different categories as well. There’s different colors to choose from, different textures or designs, like weaving or a plaid print or some type of embroidery.
Be careful when choosing the linen you will use, because it’s so easy to fall into the “too much” category, where you match everything with the color of your wedding. Let’s say, your wedding color is purple. You have purple table cloths and purple chair covers. NO. Just NO. If your wedding venue is already filled with layers of lighting and colors, the safest choice is white. Whether it be satin, cotton, polyester, velvet or whatever else you choose, just go with white. You can’t go wrong with that. It also depends on the location of your wedding. If it’s outdoors, and you have wooden tables, you don’t really have to cover it with the table cloth. Just leave it bare.
