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I am in the same boat with you on this one....We are on a super tight budget, and it seems like an unnecessary expense. However, after looking at pics with and without the covers, we decided we would cut corners on some other element b/c the chair covers made such a difference. We are getting married on a rooftop terrace of an uptown hotel overlooking the city skyline, and will be using chair covers for the ceremony -- They really do create a completely different feel for our venue and we decided it was worth the $. I completely understand why you feel the way you do, and honestly, it might depend on your venue. Definitely don't think they are necessary...more a matter of your taste. I'm not spending tons of money on flowers or other decorations, so the chair covers were one of the little elements I wanted to spruce up our day.
Bottom line: On your big day, all eyes will be on you and your beau - not the chairs!
We ARE shelling out the extra $750 for chair covers as we fill it will decorate most of the room. We are getting black chair covers with Champagne satin sashs.
I think it really depends on what the chairs originally look like...ours are teal/nasty blue from the 70's. :) So chair covers are a must for us! And...I think it will add so much to the room, and do most of the decorating itself!
nope, we're skipping this!
in the beginning, i had 2 color schemes, one was a more "cool" palette and the other was a more "warm" palette. i chose the scheme that best fit the decor of our venue which means the banquet chairs work with the look and not against it.
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I would argue against chair covers for you. I see from your profile and posts you are getting married in December in Canada. All your guests are going to be wearing winter coats to your wedding. The minute they get to your venue your chairs are going to be covered in coats and jackets and bags and people and stuff. So the beautiful chair covers will really only make an impact for the few minutes as everyone arrives, and after that the room will be full of people and their things and you won't even notice the chairs anymore. Also, grey sounds like a nice neutral color and so not really worth the expense of covering up, especially if you are on a tight budget.
No chair covers for me either, incidentally. Mine are white folding chairs made out of some sort of laminate material. Some are pretty banged up. They are not the nicest thing ever but they will do, and once there are people in the room no one will be paying attention to the chairs. Good luck!
Chelsea - good call on pointing out the coat thing! However, our venue will definitly have a coat-check for our guests as wearing large winter coats is a must where I live and most venues are adequately prepared with large coat racks :)
I keep looking at pictures and seeing how pretty the covers look...... do people even remember things like this? LOL
I am pretty much whatever about most stuff at the reception but I was adamant about the chairs. I don't know why but the pretty chairs just look so much better. It sounds ridiculous even as I type this. If its in your budget and you really want it, I think you should do it for you. It would drive me crazy later when I saw pictures if I didn't have the chairs.
I'm doing them... and the chairs even match the venue (in a good way).
ugly chairs are a major eyesore and I'd rather not have to feel sad about not getting them when I look back on photos.
I can see both sides of this. I really wanted chairs or chair covers myself. When I was looking at venues I actually took pictures of the chairs at each so I would know. In the beginning though I didn't know how much we would actually be spending on the wedding and that my fiancee would get laid off. So in the end for us we are not doing it. Before I was a bride to be I can't remember what anyones chairs looked like. I had to look back in pictures just to remember. If you have a big budget I am definitely for them but I don't think necessary. I do wish though for how much you pay for these venues they would splurge on the nicer chairs and make it easier for the bride. The amount of money I am paying per person they could pay the $7 and own the nice banquet chairs!
We've struggled with this question as well. However, we will probably have a harvest table (is that what they are called? Where the wedding party is in the middle of the room at a long table, so they can face each other), so to stand out a bit, we'll probably do chair covers for the wedding party only.
It is a lot of extra money that can be put towards something else. They do make the room look really classy though!
I can see not wanting them. I was totally planning on NOT having chair covers at all - they just seemed like such a waste of money. Only your butt really sees the chair!!
But of course, our florist has very reasonably priced covers, our reception site is old and the furniture isn't very nice (the same kind of chair but a faded, worn paisley fabric), and even the simplest, cheapest covers make the most amazing difference in the room. In total it'll be around $400, and while I'm not made of money the bang-to-buck ratio is really high.
Take a look at your room and if you can, find pictures with and without covers. That might help!
Do you think venues buy ugly chairs on purpose to milk more money out of venue-renters in the form of chair cover fees? Has anyone ever been to a venue where the chairs were really nice to begin with?
I'm not a fan of chair covers, so unless you hate it, or it completely clashes, I wouldn't.
I am not a fan of chair covers, they always look sloppy to me. But, I'm also not a fan of ugly chairs! How much more to rent nicer chairs that don't have to be covered? ;) Kidding.
I would go with the covers if the chairs totally clash with your decor.
I say definitely go for the chair covers. I went to a wedding this summer that didn't have hair covers. The chairs where pretty much what discribed except they were a light brown color. They actually kinda sorty fit the color scheme but seriously, I walked in the room and my first thought was "omg those chairs are aweful". And through out the night I heard people talking about it. And every person who sees pics from that wedding always goes "omg there's no chair covers". I think chair covers can totally change the feel of the whole room so I think they're definitely worth it. Good lukc with your decision.
I think I have the same chairs that you do Ms.B. Although I don't personally love chair covers, we're planning to use them because I'm worried that a room full of the chairs "as is" will distract from everything else we're doing to decorate the space. I agree with the other posters--it's frustrating that so many venues have ugly chairs that look like they belong in an office breakroom rather than at a wedding!
@KateMW--you may be kidding but out of curiosity I actually looked into replacing all the chairs at my venue with rentals! But my dream chairs (chiavari) would be way out of budget, especially since they can't be found anywhere near my hometown! Never thought I'd have a "dream chair" for my reception--too much bridal web surfing and TV watching!
gee i feel ripped off, i'm paying about 800 dollars for stupid chair covers at 4 bucks a chair! and if i wanted a color sash it's another dollar! wtheck!... but i would be really unhappy with the ugly ugly chairs at the venue...shoot i feel like i'm getting ripped off... $2 extra per person for prime rib rather than the other caved meat... $4/pp, $1/pp, $2/pp here and there...it's freaking adding up especially w/ the extra 18% gratuity and 8% tax.
I didn't get covers for my chairs. As my venue pointed out, once the guests are seated, no one sees the chair anymore anyway.
I'm the person that rented chairs even though my venue provides them. They have plastic folding chairs and all that is offered in my town cover-wise are those things I call chair condoms. They are so tight you'd think the chair was going to fold up on its own. So i just decided that the chairs were important to me, made some cutbacks and i get what I want. I was willing to go from dinner to hors d'oeuvres for the chairs, but thankfully I didn't have to.
Subee~ I was only half kidding. I would totally check it out! :) I just know that my chair taste would be like 4 times more. I love fancy chairs!
yes to chair covers (i prefer the satin wrap covers) or chiavari chairs!
why? because you may be spending thousands on your photographer(s), and they capture so much nicer with covers/chiavari chairs! :)
Unless you have an extra $600 to throw away, I would vote against the chair covers. No one but you will notice. I really wanted chiavari chairs and finally realized that I was the only one who would care, and it's unlikey that 20 years from now I'm going to look at my wedding photos and say that I wish that I spent the extra money on the chairs. The photos of my future in-laws' wedding are so hilariously out of date that even fmil was laughing at them.
Gray is a neutral and will disappear. If you really care, you can rent chair sashes from dovelinen.com for fifty cents each.
Think about all the things you could spend the $600 on. You could have a dessert buffet or really awesome favors, or you could buy a great piece of art or jewelry that you'll have forever rather than a totally forgotten and in my mind slightly tacky chair cover.
good luck!
we should just buy a bunch and pass it on to the next bride by having them pay like a % of the original cost.... :P
No chair covers here... Its going to be outdoors, and our main decoration is the wilderness around us. While it would be nice, I'd imagine that they'd be dusty by the end of the night.
I splurged on a really good photographer instead. Hopefully she can make my cheap tacky chairs look good!
We aren't using them, but then we are lucky the chairs are decent at our venue. Granted they aren't Chiviari, but they are nice enough. That being said, I honestly don't think I'd want to invest $600 in chair covers. I think I'd rather use that money in another way, or save it for my honeymoon!
Like KateMW, I also think that chair covers look sloppy! Even if you can't get chiavaris, would you consider folding chairs? I don't know what kind of reception yours is, but for some, it actually fits. Our ceremony chairs (white wood folding chairs) cost $2.50 each.
we're doing chair covers because their plush purple chairs don't really match our black + white + lime green color scheme. if we didn't get them for such a low price ($2/each including cover and sash), we probably would've skipped it.
I generally don't like chair covers - for some reason they make me think of 80s weddings with poofy sleeves and big hair - but it really depends on how bad the original chairs are and how tight your budget is. We have so few pictures (none?) that we will put in our album that really show the chairs - because if you like the picture it is probably because there are people in them, sitting in the chairs, which you therefore can't see.....
that said, our chairs were pretty nice so I didn't even think about it. If they were awful, I probably would have looked to rent new ones first and cover them second...
i'm just laughing at jeeyol's "chair condom" comment. lol
i used to be chair-obsessed from looking at pics of weddings online, but the more weddings i went to IRL, the more I realized they weren't really necessary, in most cases. but sometimes the chair really is THAT ugly and something has to be done. haha
i do not think they are necessary, but the chairs at my venue were just awful. They have black ripped vinyl and cracked paint. It looks bad!
I found 1 hundred black satin covers for about $270 on ebay, but I'll only be using about 50 so i will sell the rest as new.
i say if your chairs are decent, don't bother. Otherwise try to find a good deal from a seller.
Superstar makes a good point! Sharing would be great. Even if you cant share tthem, what about looking on ebay and then reselling afterwards? The only two downfalls are that some might get food on them and your venue may charge you a labor fee for putting them on the chairs...
I say yes to the chair covers. Ugly chairs can ruin the entire look of the reception you worked so hard to create!
If the chairs look really ugly I would def do it. I know other people won't notice but I would and when I get the pictures back i would def notice. But if you care more about saving the money than don't do it.
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How many of you ladies are using chair covers at your wedding?
The chairs at my venue are metal on the sides and a grey fabric in for the back and seat. I am debating whether I should shell out $600 for white covers with royal blue organza ribbons... I know it would look pretty, but is it worth the $$?
Any thoughts?