16 Wedding Ceiling Decor Ideas We Love

Wedding ceiling decor is a breathtaking way to elevate the look and feel of any wedding venue. If you feel as if your wedding ceremony or reception design is missing something, you may want to look up — literally — for inspiration. That's where these wedding ceiling decor ideas come in. 

Your options may feel overwhelming at first. But so much of your wedding ceiling decor ideas can be narrowed down by architecture, venue guidelines, and budget. The good news is there are workarounds for all of these areas.

For example, venues might be flexible with ceiling decor even if they aren’t keen on wall hangings. Or, they might be on board with all of your suggestions but know that their rustic wood beams are more aesthetic than structural and aren’t great for hanging objects. Whatever the case, great communication is key to bringing any wedding ceiling decor ideas to life.

From garlands to lanterns and everything in between, the mood of your wedding venue can always benefit from a little attention to ceiling details. Sprinkling in even one of the following wedding ceiling decor ideas to the mix can draw eyes upward, make your space feel bigger, and make it easier to personalize your wedding venue more than ever before.

Explore 16 of our favorite wedding ceiling decor ideas

Regardless of your DIY skills or budget, we’ve got you covered with wedding ceiling decor ideas for any wedding venue. Check out the photos and shoppable links below, or use the suggestions as a starting point for your own completely unique wedding ceiling decor ideas!

1. Choose transparent bubble garland strands

These garlands are whimsical and unexpected — perfect for a fun surprise at your reception venue! If you love the disco ball trend but want a new twist on it, we highly recommend these colorful streamers.

2. Fill the ceiling with purple, pink, and white wisteria garlands 

Spring weddings deserve to be dripping with flowers from ceiling to floor. Add faux flower garlands inside any event venue or tent to create the effect of floating petals overhead.

3. Try angelic cloud-shaped lights

Make a statement with a fluffy cloud lantern above a photo or lounge area. The extra lighting creates ambiance while the shape adds playfulness.

4. Use luxurious ribbons in your wedding color palette

What we love most about using ribbons for wedding ceiling decor ideas is that there are so many different styles to choose from. Fabric ribbons create a mismatched, eclectic boho vibe while luxury ribbons create a stunning aerial display over a sweetheart table or altar that is absolutely Pinterest-worthy.

5. Drape high-end string lights to highlight architecture

Working with an interesting ceiling? Features such as wood beams, spiral staircases, and columns deserve to be highlighted, especially when your lights are dimmed for dancing at the reception. Go for a higher-quality string light if you want to get away from the college dorm vibe.

6. Shine a spotlight on metallic star garlands

Even if your wedding reception isn’t starry night-themed, you can take advantage of this versatile shape with shiny star garlands that suit nearly any wedding design or palette. We love how they pop against dark backgrounds. Add in some lighting and you’ve got a stunning display!

7. Cluster disco balls together

Disco balls on a wedding reception ceiling will always be a hit. Choose varying sizes but stick to one or two colors if you can. Classic silver mirrored versions are practically neutral, but if you want something that stands out a little more, try neon pink or even black varieties.

8. DIY a series of everlasting dried flower strings

These look great dripping from the ceiling of a desert-themed wedding venue for late summer or fall weddings. We recommend using gerbera daisy heads, eucalyptus, and dried fruits with organic string for a more natural look. Mix and match to find your favorite look before buying all of your materials at the craft store!

9. Hang up a flock of paper cranes

This is yet another one of those totally DIYable wedding ceiling decor ideas you can do with a few extra helping hands. Buy a pack if you’re short on time or plan ahead and make folding a handful one of your more relaxed bachelorette party activities. Oh, and these will look stunning in your wedding shadow box, too. 

10. Display a starburst balloon cluster

These jewel-toned starburst balloons are sophisticated yet fun at the same time. Cluster them in monochrome tons or mix and match them with other accent colors in your wedding palette to really make a statement.

11. Mix paper lanterns and pom poms

Planning a more casual kickback like a wedding BBQ for your big day? You can still make the most of pavilion, patio, and backyard wedding venues with these pop-up decor items.

12. Add ambiance with hanging lanterns

An absolute classic, this wedding ceiling decor idea is great for creating soft mood lighting and adding a sophisticated touch to any venue.

13. Attach four leaf clover paper streamers to the ceiling

These simple yet classic paper streamers are easy to style, hang, and match to any wedding decor color scheme. Use them as filler or to cover up plain and boring ceilings.

14. Try a hoop ceiling drapery kit

Want to really wow your wedding guests with wedding ceiling decor ideas that look professional even though you did it yourself? We can’t recommend hoop ceiling drapery kits enough. They come with all the pieces you need to create a hoop display for fabrics, string lights, and more. Pro tip: Carefully measure your ceiling space ahead of time so you get the scale right. Oversized is always better than undersized.

15. Hang crystal-beaded curtains

This wedding ceiling decor idea is shiny, elegant, and provides a little extra glam moment to any ceremony or reception space.

16. Add acrylic diamond chandeliers

Faux chandeliers you can safely hang from any wedding venue ceiling? Yes, please! Add these over your altar, sweetheart table, buffet, or venue entrance to make a statement.

What to consider before choosing your wedding ceiling decor ideas

These are a lot of factors involved in choosing the best decor for any event. And when you factor in displays that will hang over the heads of your guests, it can feel even more complicated. But it doesn't have to! We're here to help. 

Setup and take down

Wedding ceiling decor is yet another area you’ll need to prep, load in, set up, take down, clean, and store or trash. When looking for wedding venues on Wedding Spot, make sure you consider this when looking at images. Some venues already have ornate ceilings, which can save you time and money.

Also, you’ll need at least two people and a tall ladder to accomplish most of it. Check-in with yourself to make sure you believe it’s really worth the effort. And don’t forget to check in with your venue, too! They might even be able to help.

Venue rules

Some wedding venues have strict rules around what you can and cannot do to their ceilings. Make sure that you check in with venue management about your ideas before you begin purchasing or assembling your decor no matter how tempting it may be to start it right away. Ask about temporary ceiling hooks or materials they already have for ceiling decorations. They may even have rental items or photos of past events with ceiling decor available to inspire you.

Safety

Most items you’ll be hanging from the ceiling should be lightweight. However, thanks to physics, some of those light items might not feel so gentle if they fall from a high ceiling. Keep this in mind when choosing where and how to display your wedding ceiling decor ideas.

Also, remember that open flames and items such as paper garlands don’t mix. If you plan to have real candles burning at your wedding venue, we recommend keeping the ceiling decor far, far away. A single loose dried flower head could cause some serious damage and the last thing you want is to worry about fire hazards after saying “I do”.

You’re ready to create the wedding design of your dreams with elegant wedding ceiling decor ideas!

As long as they are lightweight and easy to hang, there are no limits to what you can do with this bonus canvas at your wedding venue! Curtains, lights, fabrics, and more all come together to create the perfect mood for your ceremony and reception.

Up next, explore these gorgeous wedding balloon arch ideas for even more statement-making decor suggestions.