Book Lover Wedding

A literary themed wedding can make a statement for books with so many aspects. From pre-wedding bridal showers to the ceremony itself, it’s the ideal way to proclaim your love of books!

The venue you choose can be all about treasured volumes in your own library. A wedding venue in Leeds, for example, is the perfect locale for a wedding couple surrounded by storybooks and favourite fictional pieces. With historical sites like Kirkstall Abbey and Harewood House, the history and joy of books will make a wonderful theme. Blogerina Courtney from She Always Loved Larking adores both the lead up to a wedding (the bridal shower) and the big day!

Details for a Book Lover Wedding

Bibliophiles or book lovers who get married to each other usually have a unique theme for their wedding. More often than not, it is a book lover's wedding theme! When planning this wedding theme, it is necessary to have the correct wedding colours, wedding food, invitations, and décor to match.

Book lover weddings have lots of scope, including classy yet gorgeous library-themed wedding cakes, book-inspired dresses and tuxedos, enchanting scenes from their favourite books, and more. However, the most romantic thing is when the couple gets to say 'I do' surrounded by their version of the 'bookish' happily ever after!

What to look for in a Venue for a Book Lover Wedding

Since the love you both share is an extension of your passion for books, the ideal wedding venue would be your favourite library. If booking an entire library is not possible, you could also think of book bars as a viable solution. These bars are stocked with books!

They can be reserved in advance for the ceremony and reception, and the venue can be stocked with your favourite literary treasures for the special day. If you have a specific place in your mind for the wedding venue, like a lake from your favourite books or a themed venue from The Great Gatsby, you should reserve it in advance for your big day.

Food For a Book Lover Wedding

There is no set standard for wedding food for a book lover's wedding. Since the wedding is a celebration of the love you share with your partner, and for reading, the food should be a reflection of that love and passion.

Butterbeer-inspired drinks, wizard crackers, and more from Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone, a tea party-style finger foods layout from Alice in Wonderland, cheese, fruits, crackers, and chocolate pastries, a tribute to The Hunger Games, and more. If the food has a specific purpose or is inspired by your favourite authors, you should have some signage with literary quotes to honor the author.

Table Setting Style for a Book Lover Wedding

Books make excellent centerpieces. When considering the wedding ceremony décor and reception décor, it is effortless (and affordable) to stack a few books (purchased from a thrift store) and place a candle votive on them. They make great conversation starters.

If you want to opt for something fancier, you can have a local artist make some flowers with the pages of old books and place them on each table for the wedding guests. While designing the table setting, you can also seek inspiration from favoured books – like the House colours in Harry Potter or the colourful table settings from the Mad Hatters Table.

Wedding Invitations for a Book Lover Wedding

Wedding invitations are the first step in ensuring your guests understand the theme of the wedding. Since having a book lover wedding is essential to you, the wedding cards should indicate the theme. Some excellent ideas are bookmarks as wedding invites.

Many local designers can design the wedding invite to include all the crucial details and ensure that the invitation looks like a vintage bookmark. If not the bookmark, you can also have the invitations designed as books, with a small illustrated story about how you and your partner met, followed by the wedding and reception details.

Wedding Cake Ideas for a Book Lover Wedding

Bibliophiles can go as fancy as they like with their wedding cakes. Some prefer cakes in the shape of open books, while others like traditional white wedding cakes, with quotes from their favourite authors, inscribed. Short quotes, inscriptions from authors, book series logos, and more are excellent wedding cake décor ideas.

Consider if you want an out-and-out book lover theme. In that case, you could take inspiration from any of your favourite books and have the cake made according to your specifications. Some ideas for the wedding cake are Allie and Noah from the Notebook, the House colours of Gryffindor and Ravenclaw from Harry Potter, a cake shaped like the Iron Throne from Game of Thrones, and more.

Wedding Photo Shoot Ideas for a Book Lover Wedding

Suppose you're planning a wedding photo shoot just after the wedding ceremony. In that case, you could be in luck since many outdoor venues usually have a study, central office, or an in-house library with shelves of books. In keeping with the wedding book lover theme, you should plan the wedding shoot in one of these locations.

If a library isn't possible, you should opt for any space with a classic, vintage feel that can be made magical with a few props and little décor. If the area is large enough, you could even consider hosting the wedding ceremony in the library or study.

Portrait Props for a Book Lover Wedding

It is best to think out of the box when it comes to portrait props. Wedding portraits and props need to be aesthetic yet fit the overall theme of the wedding. As bibliophiles, there have to be plenty of book-related props. Bookmarks with your names held in your hands, MRS or MR in large scrabble-font letters, and mini libraries with ladders as the backdrop are just a few of the things you can consider.

The classic book lover trick is to have couple photo sessions with their favourite books (for portrait props). Many couples also prefer book planters with quotes from their favourite authors, champagne flutes covered in a script, Harry Potter props, and poems.

Favours and Gifts for a Book Lover Wedding

When you're considering wedding favours, you should get highly innovative. For all the men attending, you could give them a book-shaped lapel pin for formal and informal occasions and a book brooch for the women. If children are attending, you could speak to a local bookstore and have a selection made from local children's books wrapped in plain paper for them to select at will.

Many bookstores also offer customised book-themed gifts for weddings if they know the approximate age range of the wedding guests. Another great gift is mini-scrabble sets. Travel scrabble sets for children and adults on long trips will also be a great gifting idea.

Ceremony Décor for a Book Lover Wedding

As a bibliophile couple, the ceremony décor ideas are endless, especially when you add a touch of old-world charm with a memorable wedding arch made of books. Nothing is more special or magical about having your wedding photos shot under a book arch.

Couples with an outdoor themed book lover wedding can also consider hanging books from trees or hiding in plants to add authenticity. Instead of having only wedding flowers placed all around, you could also opt for some Lord of the Rings themed décor with the quotes from the original books for people to read.

Bibliophile

a person, or collector, who has a great love of books.

origin: from Greek biblion = book, and philos = loving

Are you a fan of literary themed weddings? Well, I’ve got a treat for you today! Blogerina Courtney from She Always Loved Larking had a fabulous post featuring a bridal shower she threw for a bibliophilic bride! Check out some of the pictures below and read the full post here. (My favorite part of this bridal shower are the chocolate pies from The Help – minus, of course, the ‘secret ingredient). Plus, read on for a list of literary lovers and feel free to add to it in the comments!

Take your literary lovers themed wedding to the next level with this ceremony bookshelf frame and table numbers featured on Spearmint Wedding. View more amazing book table numbers here!

Table numbers not your thing? Another awesome idea is to name them after literary couples!

Love the idea of tables named after literary lovers? Here’s a quick list I thought up…

Anne of Green Gables and Gilbert Blythe, Romeo and Juliet (sorta tragic, and they only knew each other for like, a week), Lancelot and Guinevere, Paris and Helena, Scarlett O’Hara and Rhett Butler, Harry Potter and Ginny Weasley (yea I went there – so you may as well add Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger), Heathcliff and Catherine (from Wuthering Heights, mildly creepy if you consider she’s his adopted sister), Anna Karenina and Count Vronsky (again, maybe not the best choice since it’s a bit of a ‘train wreck’), Elizabeth Bennet and Mr. Darcy, Jo and Frederick (from Little Women), Noah and Allie (from The Notebook), Jamie and Landon (from A Walk to Remember), main character lady who is never named in Rebecca and Maxim de Winter, Jane Eyre and Mr. Rochester, Gatsby and Daisy, Dr. Zhivago and Lara, Marlena and Jacob (from Water for Elephants), Pip and Estella (from Great Expectations) Stevens and Miss Kenton (from The Remains of the Day) and…. that’s all I’ve got at the moment. Click the links to see inspiration boards inspired by these literary lovers…. and please add more in the comments at the bottom!

Great gift idea for your bridesmaids:

And last, but not least, don’t forget to get a shot of your bouquet with a few of your favorite titles.

Credits: photo credits: bridal party, S & B mugs with flowers, programs sign made with books, pages table runner, vintage typewriter guest book, candle, vintage book confetti.