Wedding chairs are a big thing for 2018. It’s rare nowadays to cover chairs; instead brides and grooms are sourcing their own chairs with a look to fit the style of their day. You’ll very rarely see a chair cover on a wedding blog – and I’ve featured so many wonderful shoots with ghost chairs, chiavari chairs, crossback wooden chairs and eclectic collections of chairs from chic city venues I thought it was about time we looked into the wedding chair mystery a little further!

I spotted a great piece on alternative wedding chair styles on Wedhead‘s blog (which is a beautiful part of the internet all on its own, and highly recommended reading) which taught me so much about wedding chair styles. Lovely Anastasia explains that chair covers can be just as expensive (as much as £10 each!) to hire as chairs themselves – and someone has to spend an hour or five wrestling them onto the chairs… is it really worth it? (And then they come off… I’ve even seen people wearing chair covers at the end of one evening do! As ghosts. Not even kidding…)

I think most of us will agree chair covers are the very last resort and nice chairs are the simplest (and most obvious!) solution. But what should you look for, and where will you find your dream wedding chairs?

Ghost Chairs

Anastasia from Wedhead recommends five gorgeous wedding chair styles. Ghost chairs are the most beautiful solution for a chic, modern wedding with elegant styling.

“They mimic the traditional chair shapes and re-imagine what a modern chair looks like with clean lines and modern perspex. Completely transparent, these chairs have very little in common with being invisible. In fact, they open a whole load of possibilities in terms of themes, decorations and seasons. Equally suitable for winter and summer, indoor or outdoor, in a simplistic and clean environment or paired with a grand antique chateux – these chairs are a very well-rounded alternative if you like the idea of being different.”

With a price tag of just £5-£6 per chair from Wedhead.co.uk 

Chiavari Chairs

Then there are the classically beautiful Chiavari chairs, probably the most popular option in the UK right now.

“This style is a very traditional choice of an alternative wedding chair. Imitating bamboo, the legs and backs are a simple, yet pretty design that won’t clutter your space. If you are dead set on chair covers, these chairs also offer lace cape-like covers for the backs that are a welcomed stylish twist on stark white full chair covers (like lace lingerie vs your grannies cotton underpants). Want even more choice? These come in a whole array of colours. Hire Chiavari chairs in limewash colour for a natural understated look or go gold for more impact if it matches your decor.”

Both styles available for hire from Wedhead.co.uk and will set you back only £3.50-£4 per chair.

Alternative wedding chairs for modern brides and grooms

I love seeing mismatched, antique chairs at restaurants and wedding venues. There’s something charming about old chairs, and hunting around at antique fairs or finding a place to hire an eclectic mix of chairs from is to be admired!

One major trend in the US is for crossback chairs, often in oak – they’re fabulous for tying floral arrangements or your Mr & Mrs signs to the back of!

Another I love – and for a wedding which is more polished than rustic; more city chic than country charm – try a Masters Chair (pictured below). Its sleek architectural lines are divine; it works beautifully alongside contemporary wedding styling with geographical shapes and blocks of colour.

I’m so tempted to share a photo of a chair cover right now, just to see if these beautiful chairs have so completely won you over that you’ll swipe away from your screen to save your eyes! But I won’t. I think we all know chair covers are doomed, and we want nothing more than to find a venue with lovely furniture or a blank canvas space we can fill with our own gorgeous hired chairs.

Huge thanks to lovely Anastasia at Wedhead for letting me recycle her blog post! Discover more gorgeous wedding chair styles available to hire at www.wedhead.co.uk