St. Patrick's Day Themed Wedding Ideas

According to Irish tradition, St. Patrick's Day is the luckiest day to get married. In fact, the saying "tie the knot" comes from ancient Celtic "handfasting," where an officiant binds the couple's hands with colored ribbon. One year and one day later, they could either break the knot or marry. Even if you don't choose St. Patrick's for the big day, a themed Irish wedding steeped in rich imagery and tradition makes for a classy celebration. A few extra details can go a long way in making your reception one that guests will always remember fondly.

Imagine the possibilities with these St. Patrick's Day themed wedding ideas:

Irish Wedding Food & Drink

Start the night off with hors d'oeuvres trays of miniaturized Irish favorites—like shepherd's pie puff pastries, Reuben egg rolls, corned beef and cabbage sliders, pot roast skewers, or loaded potato bites. Soda bread and cheese is another easy grab-and-go appetizer.

Whisk your guests back to Ireland with an Irish whiskey and coffee sampling cart before the feast commences. After all, Irish coffee is still so popular with its blend of dark French Roast coffee, Jameson or Tullamore Dew, brown sugar, and a float of cream on top.  

Usual feasts include meat of some kind—pork, boar, venison, mutton, or salted beef—along with a potato and cabbage dish called colcannon, potato pancakes, stews, and savory bread. Salmon and prawns are also offered—but not before the newlyweds eat a few bites of oatmeal to ward off evil spirits.

Wedding cakes are often three-layer fruit cakes made with spices, almonds, cherries, raisins—and sometimes a few surprises like coins, rings, buttons, or thimbles! The top layer—soaked in whiskey and bourbon—is meant to be frozen and enjoyed at the first child's christening.

Irish Stone Guestbook

Reciting wedding vows while holding smooth river stones is an Irish tradition believed to bring good fortune. Instead of a guestbook, you can leave out a bowl of small, flat stones and ask guests to write their names and wishes for you.

The Craic

"The craic" (pronounced KRAK) is a form of Irish entertainment that embraces hospitality, friendly conversation, funny jokes, lively music, and dancing. In other words, it's all about bringing people together. A typical Irish greeting is, "What's the craic?"—meaning "What's going on?" or "How was your night?"

You might consider having a local Irish music group and dance troupe perform to get everyone dancing. Local Irish community centers can be a great place to connect with artists who will often entertain your guests in exchange for a modest fee. Get guests to participate by leaving Irish bells at each table, used to banish evil spirits and encourage couples to live harmoniously.

Irish Send-off with Confetti Cannons and Sparklers

The final wedding exit is a big moment as the newlyweds head toward their "happily ever after." For a celebratory feel (not to mention amazing photos!), you can give each guest a St. Patrick's green confetti cannon, which will disperse a thrilling POP of green biodegradable confetti paper up to 20 feet into the air with a simple twist of the compressed air canister.

Alternately, confetti cannons for weddings are also sometimes used indoors when the newlyweds first enter the reception hall. For this purpose, gold metallic streamer cannons are a great choice, as they're particularly reflective in low-light settings and show up well on camera. Streamer style confetti also swirls and dances more slowly to the ground, giving you time to capture that perfect shot.

Wedding sparklers are another option for a fanciful exit. A glowing spark in the dark symbolizes hope and optimism. There are many different wedding sparklers to choose from, depending on the guestlist size. For instance:

• The 10-inch gold wire sparklers are ideal for young children or a toast, as they fizzle out after 40 seconds.
• On the other hand, you may want the 18-inch gold wire sparklers (with a 1.5-minute burn time) if you plan to take many photos and use the sparklers for letter writing.
• For large parties, the 3.5-minute burn time of the 36-inch gold wire sparklers may be necessary if you plan to hold them up to create an exit tunnel.
• Other sparklers are designed for bottle service or cake-cutting ceremonies. 

Sparkler favors can be decked out with wedding sparkler tags with a saying like "Let love sparkle" or "Let sparks fly" for a personal touch. Galvanized sparkler buckets for weddings work equally well for décor as for practical purposes when it's time to extinguish them. 

Contact us for St. Patrick's Day Wedding Ideas

You won't need "the luck of the Irish" when ordering your St. Patrick's Day wedding supplies like sparklers, and confetti cannons from I Love Sparklers. We ship from our Magnolia, TX warehouse quickly—either same or next-business-day—with most orders arriving in 1-5 days. Since we stock straight from the manufacturer, there's no middleman, and we pass those savings down to you. Check our homepage for the latest coupon code.