Here at HEH, we’ve been lucky enough to work on thousands of beautiful weddings, events and special occasions. We’ve worked at all kinds of venues, in all kinds of weather conditions, with all kinds of clients – which means we have a few words of wisdom when it comes to all things furniture hire!
So, what are the key things you should consider when hiring furniture for your wedding or event? From timelines to wet weather plans and figuring out your style, keep reading as we share our top 5 furniture hire tips below.
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Book Your Priority Items First
From a supplier point of view, weekends during wedding and event season can get extremely busy, and calendars do fill up quickly. For this reason, we always recommend booking your priority furniture items as soon as possible to avoid disappointment.
Your priority items will be the essential pieces your event couldn’t function without – like dining tables and dining chairs for a sit-down event, cocktail furniture for a stand-up event, and any statement pieces such as specialty backdrops or service bars. These are the items you’ll want to lock in sooner rather than later, and you can then add smaller items like textiles, tableware and decor along the way as you finalise your plans. Our 12-month furniture hire timeline is a great guide to get you started!
2. Have a Wet Weather Plan
Outdoor events always look amazing, but please remember: the weather is unpredictable! A wet-weather plan is absolutely crucial to avoid any last-minute stress on the morning of your wedding. Before hiring furniture for your wedding or event, take a moment to think about your Plan B in the event of rain, wind or wild weather.
If you don’t have an indoor space to fall back on, consider hiring a marquee, tent or tipi to give you peace of mind for a rainy day. Trust us, you can still create that beautiful open-air feeling with a clear marquee, pavilion or tent!
3. Create a Checklist So You Don’t Forget Anything
There is soooo much to think about in the lead-up to your wedding, which makes it really easy to forget about certain items. Some of the most commonly overlooked pieces are things like napkins, entree cutlery, dessert spoons, signing tables, and extra chairs for the newlyweds (yes, you’re included in the guest list, too!).
While it’s no problem to add these items to your order at the last-minute, it will depend on availability, so we’d recommend creating a furniture checklist to avoid missing anything in the first place.
You can do this by going through each area of your day (including the ceremony, cocktail hour and reception), and making a detailed list of everything you’ll need to hire. We’ve created a super helpful furniture hire checklist that you can customise to suit your individual requirements. This way, you can tick off each item as you go and feel comfortable knowing that everything has been taken care of!
4. Define Your Overall Style First
Choosing furniture and decor for your event is an exciting part of the process, but it can be all too easy to get carried away without stopping to consider your overall vision! To create a cohesive look, it’s important to think about the vibe and atmosphere you want to create – then, you can choose complementary pieces that will bring this to life.
Whether your style is bohemian luxe, fun and tropical, or refined and elegant, think carefully about the kind of colours, textures and details that best reflect this.
We’re huge advocates for creating a mood board to help you visualise your options. Start by sourcing inspiration across Pinterest, Instagram and wedding blogs, then condense this down to one cohesive style. Refer back to your mood board often (and send it to all of your suppliers) to ensure everything works harmoniously together.
You can check out our top tips for finding your wedding style right here.
5. Ask The Experts!
Let’s be honest – planning a wedding can be hard work! So why not ask the experts for help?
We love talking through concepts, ideas and furniture options with our clients. If you’re feeling overwhelmed by the whole process, let us make some recommendations to help you achieve your vision. From suggesting dining table and chair combinations, to the correct quantities of furniture for a cocktail wedding, this is what we do for a living – there are absolutely no questions too big or too small! You can learn more about what to expect from working with our team here.
Hopefully, these tips will help you create a beautifully styled celebration (while avoiding any last-minute dramas along the way!). Ready to get started? Get in touch with our team here for a copy of our latest hire catalogue, or find more planning tips and styling inspiration via our recent blogs below.
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