How to plan a garden wedding at home
- TRIBECA TIPIS
- Dec 16
- 7 min read
Tipi garden wedding planning - Our tips and advice for the perfect outdoor celebration.
Planning a garden wedding? Tipis are the perfect choice for garden weddings and parties, due to their versatility and natural, bohemian aesthetic, with open sides, creating an alfresco, summer vibe!
Giant tipis can be linked together, or set up separately, depending on space. Pictured above are 3 giant tipis, which house the tipi reception with a dance-floor area and another stand alone, slightly smaller midi tipi with a chill out lounge.
Why it’s great to have a garden wedding!
Firstly, you are getting married in a familiar setting, be it a beloved family home, or friend’s garden. There is more flexibility, especially when it comes to deliveries, site visits and set ups. If you grew up in the area, chances are that friends and family may be close by. Directions will be easy! You can be as creative as you like and there are no time restrictions. Plus, you don’t have to pay a venue fee, so you are saving money on rental charges.
Here are our best tips and guidance, when planning a tipi wedding in your garden at home.
No. 1 : Garden layouts & access points
Site options : Choose the flattest part of the garden to host your wedding reception. Consider how the day will flow from the outdoor ceremony through to the reception and dance-floor at night. You may want to have a a separate tipi for a chill out lounge area or outdoor bar area.
During our initial site visit we will discuss the best options for your tipi layout and send you a bespoke quote for this. Check for any overhead cables or underground pipe work in the area where the tipis are to be erected.
In addition to setting up the tipi, you should consider the suppliers who will be on site during the wedding and at the initial setup, such as those providing catering services (catering tents or food trucks), outdoor bars, generators for power and facilities like toilets and showers. You might also want to think about having a separate space for a glamping village for guests staying overnight, if planning a large scale wedding of 100 guests or more.
Accessibility: Ensure all areas are accessible, especially for older guests or those with any disabilities. There should also be good access for large vehicles such as vans and trailers.
Parking: Arrange parking and allocate space for wedding suppliers, including caterers and bar staff.
No.2 : Decorating with flowers
Embrace your natural surroundings : Use your garden, as the inspiration for your tipi decor, incorporate garden flowers and plants into your displays, table-settings or outdoor ceremony area.
Say it with flowers - Tipis seamlessly integrate with natural outdoor settings and are simple to decorate inside. With numerous natural wooden poles adorned with fairy lights, they are perfect for hanging floral arrangements or, garlands to enhance your garden. Take advantage of their impressive height with hanging flower clouds or flower rings, garden foliage wrapped around the poles, to give a seamless transition from the garden, to the tipi.
Foraging for flowers and greenery - Be inspired by your garden and forage flowers and plants for the tipis and outdoor ceremony areas. Gardens are a great source during spring, summer and autumn and best of all, it’s free!
Some couples work with friends and families to help grow, or cut their own foliage and flowers. The bonus is that it’s free and you can hire a florist to focus on a showpiece inside the tipis or ceremony areas, as they will always bring that little extra magic and creativity to your wedding!
Pictured above and below - Pampas grass is echoed inside and out, with Sheona and Carn’s beautiful tipi wedding, incorporating boho table displays and an impressive ceremony area outdoors.
Polly and Jack’s Surrey tipi garden wedding (pictured below), was beautifully decorated inside. Large flower rings suspended in the centre of the tipis, were echoed by the table jar flowers and green foliage wrapped around the poles.
You could also consider visiting locally grown flowers farms in your area, to collect flowers before your wedding or visit local flower markets.
Create a bespoke atmosphere with tipi lounge areas - Our tipi chill-out lounges are ideal break out spaces inside the tipis, allowing guests to unwind and take in the garden views. We incorporate our rattan and bamboo furniture, to help establish a bohemian, alfresco summer feel.
No.3 : DIY, budget-friendly decor
From bespoke table numbers to outdoor decor and handmade bunting, there are so many ways to get creative for your wedding. Guests really love the personal touches too!
Utilise items you already have at home, such as vases, bottles and fairy lights. Explore DIY possibilities with fabrics, or recycled materials and consider renting items for single-use occasions, such as crockery, glassware and cutlery. Some companies hire vintage crockery, which can also bring a personal, home from home touch to the wedding table. We can also help with recommendations for this.
Up-cycling wooden pallets can work perfectly as rustic table plans to greet guests on arrival and you can customise your own bunting - from macrame to silk ribbons or fabrics.
Lighting: The tipis will be adorned with fairy lights wrapped around the poles. However, it's worth considering additional lighting options for the tables, such as candles, LED candles, hurricane lanterns, and tea lights.
Placing extra fairy lights in key areas like the top tables and the dance floor can further enhance the magical ambiance. Gardens truly come alive at night with enchanting festoon lighting, which can be hung from tall shepherd's crook poles. If you have large trees in your garden, consider incorporating them into the evening decoration, with colourful garden uplighters. This can really add the wow factor and is relatively simple to achieve.
Outdoor firebowls or firepits with relaxed seating can also add to the tipi wedding festival vibe, but be careful not to position them too close to the tipis.
No. 4 : Wedding suppliers
To supply electricity for your wedding, you'll need a generator for lighting, sound (evening entertainment), and possibly for catering suppliers as well. Generators are compact and are typically placed behind the tipis, out of view. After reserving your tipis, we suggest booking the generator, toilets, and caterers next.
Catering options: There is a wide variety of catering choices available, ranging from food trucks to fine dining, BBQs, and hog roasts. Food trucks add a festival-like atmosphere to the event. Fine dining is a traditional choice, though it may necessitate a catering tent - so be prepared to factor that into your space.
Grazing platters and tables : Why not consider a buffet-style setup or a grazing platter as a centerpiece to make the food experience fun and interactive.
Outdoor bars : Create a DIY bar where guests can help themselves to drinks. Our nimbus tipi is ideal as a canopy for an outdoor bar and our rustic wooden bar can be placed either inside or outside the tipis.
Mobile horsebox bars are a favored feature at tipi weddings, adding rustic charm.
No. 5 : Garden ceremonies
Garden wedding ceremonies can be lovely and intimate events if you have the space to accommodate them.
Humanist ceremony: A home setting is perfect for a personal ceremony, possibly with a friend or a humanist celebrant. Before your garden wedding, you must however, legally marry in a church or registrar's office.
Garden wedding ceremony seating: Arrange seating to be comfortable for your guests. Use chairs, wooden benches or haybale seating for outdoor ceremonies. Our rustic wooden benches which seat 3 guests each, work perfectly for outdoor ceremonies.
If the weather takes a turn for the worst and you need to abandon plans for an outdoor ceremony, you can still host your ceremony, inside the tipis. This could be possible in the dance- floor tipi where there is plenty of space to move benches or chairs, or within a separate stand alone tipi, such as our midi, pictured below.
No. 6 : Wet weather plans
Plan B - Always ensure that you have a backup plan for your wedding for wet or windy weather. If the weather doesn't cooperate, we will recommend the best tipi set up, a few days before the wedding. You can still enjoy an outdoor wedding in the rain or wind, provided the tipis are strategically placed. Thanks to their Nordic origins, tipis are designed for all weather conditions, making them suitable for our Great British Summers!
If the garden space limits repositioning, we can either close the tipis or add our windows at the front, allowing you and your guests to still appreciate those beautiful garden views.
For main vehicle entrance points, where you will have multiple traffic, it's advisable to put down entrance tracking, or boards to avoid the land becoming too muddy. This is something that is often overlooked, but one of the most essential parts of planning.
As mentioned earlier, you may need to move your outdoor ceremony inside the tipis, so have a back up plan ready. Have umbrellas on hand too, just in case!
Talk to your photographer about what to do if it rains and the best course of action. Rain can unexpectedly add a fun element to photos!
No.7 : Pet friendly weddings
One of the few ways to include pets in your wedding is by hosting it at home. Your furry friend will enjoy being in a familiar setting, with the added excitement of many guests to keep them entertained and the prospect of delicious food!
No.8 : Garden wedding glamping
If you reside in a rural area, booking our glamping bell tents is an ideal option for accommodating overnight guests. Jessie and Jurrat hired three of our large tipis and a bell tent village, which was set up in the meadow, behind the garden wedding tipi reception and ceremony area. They spent the night under the stars in our luxurious honeymoon tent, alongside their guests.
Garden weddings can be incredibly beautiful, allowing you the opportunity to spend the day with family and friends in a familiar environment. They can also be budget friendly, and offer a bespoke approach to your special day. Our experienced tipi team are proficient in setting up tipi garden weddings and will assist in making the process as straightforward as possible for you.
From day, to night. The transition from Sarah and Paddy's stunning garden wedding.
Book tipis for your garden wedding.
Contact us on 01273 517 687 or email : info@tribecatipis.co.uk