Dried Palm Leaves as a Wedding Trend

Au Naturel Brides Are Using These Leaves for Floral Decor

Updated 01/10/18

Palm leaves are the perfect addition to a tropical or beach-themed wedding, and they’ve made appearances on everything from wedding stationery to the bridal bouquet and even the cake! But the latest take on palms is a little more surprising. Lately, florists have been incorporating palms in their dried form. Once they’re fully dry, palm leaves take on an entirely different personality, becoming more sculptural, wispy, frayed, and textured.

Also, once palm fronds have dried, their bright-green color fades into softer, desaturated tones of mint, sage, taupe, and tobacco, which lend a lovely aged, earthy patina to floral arrangements. Dried palms are a beautiful addition to celebrations held in “blank canvas” locations with lighter palettes and surfaces—think stone walls, industrial concrete, or an arid desert.

Use dried palm leaves to add drama to your ceremony backdrop, or ask your florist to incorporate them into your bouquet for a unique pop of texture; mix them in dinner-table arrangements or highlight them in bud vases on their own. Keep reading for our favorite takes on this new dried-palm trend.

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Peach and Mint Bridal Bouquet

Dried, spiky-leafed fan palms are a sculptural addition to this peachy bouquet of garden roses and ranunculus. The preserved palm fronds were spray-painted with a soft shade of mint green.

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Fall Bridal Bouquet

This sculptural bouquet is perfect for fall brides. It includes autumnal foliage branches, cappuccino roses, phalaenopsis orchids, chocolate cosmos, and dried sago palm leaves, which fade from a fresh, vivid green color to a lime, almost mustard-yellow hue.

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Dried Bouquet

Boho brides, take note: This wild, sculptural bouquet by U.K.-based florist Georgia Westwood is made entirely of dried materials, including strawflower, palm leaves, wheat, and lunaria. Bonus: Since everything in the bouquet is dried, it will last forever and you can display it at home in a vase after the wedding.

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Modern Wedding Backdrop

Floral arch not your style? If your wedding aesthetic is more MoMA than the Met, we love the idea of a modern, statement-making ceremony backdrop for your vow exchange. This dramatic display by Hawthorn Floral Studio is fashioned from a dozen oversized palm fronds that have been dried before being constructed together.

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Ceremony Backdrop

Tying the knot on the beach? Mark your ceremony spot with a spectacular arbor made entirely of dried palm leaves. The sculptural palm fronds have a wonderful windswept look that’s perfect for an oceanside ceremony. Ceremony backdrop design by Euflorial.

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Dried-Palm Ceremony Backdrop

Imagine saying “I do” in front of an oversized ceremony arch made of dried palm leaves. The towering structure also features tufts of smokebush and cream-colored astilbes, which add just the right amount of softness and romance.

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Reception Centerpiece

Add an unexpected touch to your dinner-table centerpieces with a couple of preserved fan palms. Here, the patina of the dried palm leaves perfectly complements the vintage color palette of the florals, which include Queen Anne’s lace, scabiosa, smokebush, and garden roses.