I treat my horse like family. Well, that’s because he is family! So when it came time to plan one of the happiest days of my life, I knew I needed to honor my four-footed love.
Ahead, you’ll find inspiration from my very own equestrian wedding on how you can incorporate horses into your big day.
- Engagement photos. Celebrate your exciting news by including your horse in your engagement photo session.
- Equestrian setting. One of the easiest ways to tie in a horse theme is to host your wedding at an equestrian facility. My venue was in the heart of horse country and also happened to be across the street from land that my soon-to-be husband and I had paperchased on (and won) in the past. It had all the ambiance of lux equestrian, but without the high price tag.
- Wedding photos. Make plans in advance with your photographer to travel to your barn for styled pictures. Unfortunately, my barn was more than an hour from the venue, so I opted to board Dexter at a nearby barn for the weekend.
- Personalized socks. If your horse can’t make it down the aisle, have your husband-to-be rock their glorious face on their socks. When I came across DivvyUp Socks on Instagram, I knew I had to order a pair.
- Jewelry. Show off your passion for horses with jewelry that compliments your dress. My engagement ring was custom designed to subtly incorporate horses. I also purchased a pair of earrings from Michel McNabb, one of my favorite equestrian jewelers, to coordinate with my curb chain bracelet.
- Table numbers. As a paradoxical homage to your larger furry friends, display vintage horse show ribbons or chalkboard horse figurines as table numbers. Since my wedding was on the smaller side, I was able to borrow vintage 1st through 6th place ribbons from a family friend to set our seating chart.
- Decor. Use horse-themed accessories like old trophies, ribbons, and boots to set the tone. You don’t have to spend a lot on decor–besides flowers, all of my decor was either borrowed or purchased second hand from ebay, Facebook Marketplace and the consignment tack shops (hello $1 tall boots!). The key is to find pieces that you can repurpose or easily move on after your big day.
