When it comes to wedding design, it’s often the smallest details that make the biggest impact. Among those details, candles play a subtle yet powerful role. Whether you’re planning an elegant ballroom reception or an intimate garden ceremony, the right candle options can enhance your atmosphere, add romance, and complete your overall aesthetic.
At Nadine De Leon Designs, we specialize in curating unforgettable wedding experiences throughout Maryland, Washington D.C., and Virginia. Our floral and event design team integrates lighting elements like candles to add softness, texture, and warmth to your wedding setting. Here’s a guide to the most popular candle types and how to use them to elevate your big day.
1. Taper Candles: Classic Elegance
Taper candles are tall, slender, and timeless. They work beautifully in candelabras or modern holders and are ideal for formal weddings. Placed down the center of long banquet tables or on mantelpieces, taper candles draw the eye upward and add a refined sophistication to your event.
Design Tip: Mix taper heights for visual interest. Choose white or ivory for a traditional look, or go bold with colored tapers that match your wedding palette.
2. Pillar Candles: Bold and Versatile
Pillar candles are thicker and can stand on their own or be used in clusters. They’re ideal for creating romantic ambiance and work well indoors or outdoors. When combined with greenery or floral garlands, pillar candles become a statement piece.
Design Tip: Use varying heights and groupings to create dimension, especially on ceremony altars, sweetheart tables, or fireplaces.
3. Votive Candles: Soft and Romantic
Votive candles are smaller and typically encased in glass holders. They emit a soft glow and are perfect for intimate table lighting. Votives can be scattered across guest tables, cocktail areas, or lounge spaces to gently illuminate the evening.
Design Tip: Use metallic or patterned holders for a decorative touch that doubles as lighting.
4. Tea Light Candles: Subtle Accents
Tiny but mighty, tea lights offer subtle lighting and can fill in gaps where larger candles may not fit. Use them in hanging lanterns, glass bowls, or even floating in water for a dreamy effect.
Design Tip: Consider using LED tea lights for outdoor events to avoid wind interference.
5. Floating Candles: Whimsical and Dreamlike
Floating candles add movement and elegance, particularly when used in glass cylinders filled with water. They work wonderfully as centerpieces or along the aisle in shallow pools or fountains.
Design Tip: Pair floating candles with flower petals or submerged florals for added texture and color.
Why Lighting Matters in Wedding Design
Lighting sets the mood, enhances your photos, and guides the overall atmosphere of your celebration. At Nadine De Leon Designs, we pay close attention to the way each design element, including candles, contributes to the tone of your event. With our extensive experience in luxury wedding and event design across the DMV region, we ensure every flicker of candlelight adds magic to your moment.
