Eight unusual wedding hire items

At some point during your wedding planning you might consider hiring a car, suits for the male members of the wedding party, and possibly a marquee if you are having your reception in an open space. Apart from these run of the mill wedding hire items, there are some quite unusual ones that you never would have dreamt you would hire. Here are some of the more unusual wedding hire items:

Hiring colourful umbrellas

You can now hire wedding umbrellas in almost any shade, so be sure to choose colours that will work well with your wedding theme. If you are having your reception outside, having a generous supply of umbrellas and parasols on hand is strongly advisable; you can never be certain what the weather will be like.

Hiring a confetti canon

Tossing confetti is a custom that’s been around for ages but if you want something really dramatic for your wedding photos hire a confetti cannon to blast the tiny bits of paper high up into the air, or twirl them around your heads. For a little extra you can pay someone to work larger cannons for you but most companies will provide smaller machines that you can operate yourself.

Hiring a red carpet

Enquire whether you can hire a red carpet with your wedding car; this may work out less expensive than hiring one separately. The journey from the wedding car to the venue might not be a long one, but if it’s wet or muddy it can ruin a bride’s outfit. To keep that hemline immaculate and to add a sense of occasion, you can hire a red carpet to position between the car door and the venue entrance.

Hiring a dance floor

Dance floors are available to hire in various sizes and arrive in several pieces to ensure easy assembly. If you are planning an al fresco wedding, you might think your guests can just dance on the lawn but a dance floor can be the centre of attention for your reception and makes the first dance and parent child dances easier to organise. It also sends a clear message that you expect your guests to get up and dance. See if you can hire a dance floor with your marquee.

Hiring antique bird cages

Bird cages can be embellished with flowers, birds and butterflies and suspended from the ceiling, used as table centres, or hung in trees to give a romantic yet modern feel to your wedding venue. They’re not a usual wedding must have, but antique bird cages are currently very popular in wedding decor.

Hiring potted plants

Hiring plants from your local garden centre is a lot less expensive than buying them and you won’t need to worry about where to put them afterwards. Whether you want to recreate the outdoors look indoors or you’re having an outdoors wedding and simply want to enhance the natural greenery, potted trees and plants serve great as wedding decorations.

Hiring a drinks fountain

If you want to create a focal point and an unusual way to serve drinks to your guests, a drinks fountain looks impressive and can be hired for a relatively low price. The fountain supplier may offer to provide you with drinks for the fountain, but your venue will probably charge corkage so calculate the costs before you accept. Whether you use champagne or a signature cocktail, your guests can top up their own glasses at the fountain as many times as they like. If you have a sweet tooth, choose a chocolate fountain to provide the desserts instead.

Hiring a wishing well

Hiring a secure wishing well into which your guests can place envelopes of cash or vouchers, can be the perfect solution if you are having your wedding abroad or have asked for contributions to something in particular. Even if you have a wedding gift list, many friends and relatives might still prefer to give money or vouchers. Your guests will want to make sure these gifts are stored somewhere safe, but it’s unlikely you will have roomy pockets on your wedding dress.