Wedding Trends California Experts Say Are Worth Rethinking
California wedding pros share the trends and traditions they’d rethink - and what couples should consider instead.
October 4, 2026
Wedding trends can offer endless inspiration, but that doesn’t mean every popular idea belongs at every celebration. From sweetheart tables and champagne towers to highly styled décor and picture-perfect moments, couples can easily find themselves choosing details because they feel expected rather than because they actually mean something.
We asked California wedding professionals which trends and traditions they’d encourage couples to reconsider, and what they suggest doing instead.
Seat Your Favorite People at the Table
For Amorology Weddings, one tradition worth reconsidering is the sweetheart table.
“With only a few precious hours to truly sit, eat and take in the celebration, there’s something incredibly special about spending that time surrounded by the people who know and love you best,” the team says.
Rather than seating the newlyweds at a table for two, they love incorporating the wedding party, close friends or family into one long table. It keeps the couple connected to the energy of the celebration and makes it easier to share the conversations, laughter and little moments happening throughout dinner.
They also find that couples rarely stay tucked away at their sweetheart table for very long anyway. Creating that connection from the beginning can make the reception feel more communal and natural.
Let Golden Hour Come to You
Sunset portraits may be beautiful, but Pamela Tatz of Pamela Tatz Photography would love to see couples stop treating them as mandatory.
“Treat golden hour as an invitation rather than an obligation,” Tatz says.
At one recent wedding, rain arrived just as the couple was scheduled to head outside for portraits. Instead, Tatz found a tall window indoors and photographed them there. Those quiet minutes before the ceremony became some of her favorite images from the day.
Her advice is to build flexibility into the timeline rather than interrupting a moment the couple is genuinely enjoying simply to chase a particular kind of light.
“The most beautiful photographs come from people who feel comfortable and happy, not from the perfect sky.”
Give Cocktail Hour Room to Breathe
Marisa Furlong, Owner and Lead Planner of I DO Need You, would love to see couples stop treating cocktail hour as merely the gap between the ceremony and reception.
“It can be one of the best parts of the entire wedding when it’s designed intentionally,” Furlong says.
It is often the first chance guests have to mingle, explore the space and really settle into the celebration. Instead of designing the entire timeline around moving everyone through cocktail hour in exactly 60 minutes, she encourages couples to consider lounge seating, memorable passed bites, live music and interactive food or beverage moments.
“Not every great wedding needs to rush guests from one scheduled portion of the evening to the next.”
Choose Favors Guests Will Actually Enjoy
Meg Walker, Executive Chef of Made by Meg Catering and Venue Operator of La Venta Inn and Redondo Beach Historic Library, encourages couples to think intentionally about wedding favors and whether they are something guests are likely to use, enjoy or take home.
At weddings hosted at La Venta Inn and Redondo Beach Historic Library, she says a significant number of favors can be left behind, particularly when they aren’t edible.
Rather than skipping favors altogether, couples might consider options that feel both personal and practical. Walker recommends prepackaged cookies for the ride home or custom matchboxes for those who still want to give guests a personalized keepsake.
“I suggest couples rethink wedding favors as a place they put time, money, effort and love into,” Walker says.
Balance Styled Décor With Real-World Logistics
The artfully ruched, pinned and tucked linen look may be everywhere right now, but Ashley Monge, Founder and Senior Principal Planner at Monge Amore Events, encourages couples to think about the logistics behind the design as well as the finished look.
These elaborate treatments can create a beautiful, romantic effect, but they often require significantly more installation time and are best executed when a dedicated styling or rental team is handling them.
Monge also points out that what appears “timeless” now may ultimately become one of the details that identifies a wedding with a particular era.
“If you love it, go for it, but ensure the execution is both intentional and realistic for a live wedding,” she says.
Bring Back a Little Black-Tie Grandeur
Not every rethink involves abandoning a trend. Nichelle Travis, Assistant Director of Catering at Terranea Resort, would actually like to see a return to some of the formality weddings have moved away from.
“There was a certain sense of occasion in the beautifully orchestrated formal wedding - the elegance of the setting, the attention to detail, the refined attire and the feeling that everyone had gathered for something genuinely extraordinary,” Travis says.
That doesn’t mean sacrificing individuality. Instead, she sees an opportunity to combine personal, contemporary details with the ceremony and sophistication of a truly formal celebration.
“Perhaps it isn’t about returning to the past, but about bringing a little of that timeless grandeur forward.”
Skip the Pinterest Shot List
Tatz would also encourage couples to reconsider arriving with an exhaustive list of poses and photographs they want recreated.
With celebrity weddings and social media providing an endless stream of inspiration, it can be tempting to treat a saved image as a guarantee of what your own wedding photographs should look like. But recreating someone else’s day can leave less space for moments that are actually unique to yours.
Instead, Tatz recommends telling your photographer how you want the day to feel and identifying the people and details that matter most.
“The images they’ll return to in thirty years won’t be the trending poses,” she says. “They’ll be the photos that could only have happened at their wedding.”
Rethink the Dedicated Champagne Toast
The team at Chic Event Rentals encourages couples to consider whether a separate champagne toast is a tradition that feels meaningful to them.
While undeniably classic, pouring a dedicated glass for every guest can become a significant investment at a larger wedding, particularly when many guests already have a preferred drink in hand.
“If you’re spending several thousand dollars on champagne specifically for a toast, that same budget could instead enhance the overall bar experience and give guests the freedom to enjoy what they prefer,” the team says.
Their larger point is that traditions can be beautiful, but they don’t need to be included simply because they have always been part of weddings. Couples can decide which ones feel worth preserving and which investments might have a greater impact elsewhere in the celebration.
Put the Newlyweds Back in the Celebration
Furlong also questions why the sweetheart table so often receives the best position in the room.
“The sweetheart table doesn’t always deserve the best seat in the house,” she says.
Couples spend months gathering everyone they love into one room, only to seat themselves apart because that is what weddings have traditionally done. Instead, Furlong suggests sitting among close family and friends, creating a larger couple’s table or choosing a floor plan that keeps the newlyweds immersed in the reception.
“Some of the most meaningful moments happen during dinner, and couples shouldn’t feel like they have to watch those moments from a distance.”
Personalize the Champagne Tower
Shelby Kenney, Principal Planner of SK Events & Design, isn’t necessarily ready to eliminate the champagne tower, but she does think couples should consider how to make the moment more personal.
“Does it make for a cute photo moment? Absolutely!” Kenney says. “But nine times out of ten, it isn’t personalized to the couple.”
One couple she worked with were both doctors who had survived residency fueled largely by Celsius, so instead of Champagne, they created a Celsius tower.
“Same fun moment, but so much more personal,” she says.
The idea is simple: if you love a trend, find a way to make it tell your story rather than recreating someone else’s.
Don’t Be Too Quick to Cut Family Portraits
Family formals are often one of the first things couples shorten when they want to save time, but Tatz suggests thinking carefully before trimming the list too aggressively.
“A wedding may be the only time a particular group of people is ever gathered in one place,” she says. “These are the photographs that grandchildren will one day hold.”
Rather than skipping them, she recommends organizing them well. A thoughtful photo list and someone designated to gather family members can turn a potentially lengthy process into an efficient and meaningful part of the day.
See Each Other Before the Ceremony
For Walker, couples shouldn’t feel obligated to wait until the aisle for their first glimpse of one another.
A first look can create two entirely different experiences: one quiet and private before the ceremony, and another when the couple sees each other again surrounded by their closest people at the altar.
There is also a practical benefit. Taking portraits beforehand can free the couple to spend at least part of cocktail hour actually enjoying the celebration.
“The wedding day moves so fast, it’s the little moments like this that become such a big deal,” Walker says.
Embrace a Softer Kind of Glamour
Travis would also welcome a return to the classic pearl.
For couples who gravitate toward a more understated kind of glamour, pearls offer a timeless alternative to high-shine embellishment and can be incorporated through jewelry, gowns, hair accessories or even the larger wedding design.
“There is something undeniably romantic about a pearl,” Travis says. “It doesn’t demand attention; it captures it quietly.”
It’s less about choosing one aesthetic over another and more about reminding couples that luxury can take many forms, including those that feel quieter, softer and enduring.
Design for the Experience, Not Just the Photo
For Claudia Brade of Shescloudy Calligraphy, the trend worth reconsidering is less about one specific detail and more about the pressure to make the entire wedding Instagram-perfect.
“Beautiful pictures are important, but I think it’s easy to get so focused on how a wedding will photograph that we forget to think about how it will actually feel to experience it as a guest,” Brade says.
That is why she loves experiences such as live personalization stations, where guests can select a keepsake and watch as it is customized with their name or initials.
The result can still be beautiful enough for social media, but more importantly, it gives guests something memorable to participate in.
Ultimately, the most worthwhile wedding trends are rarely the ones couples copy exactly. They’re the ones they adapt, personalize or sometimes leave behind entirely in favor of something that feels more like them.