Let It Snow - DIY Winter Wedding Centerpieces

Photo and idea courtesy of Cleverly Inspired

 

Tracie at Cleverly Inspired made these wintery centerpieces from three empty wine bottles. She added some holiday ornaments (also with some 'snow' added) and some votive candles, and placed them all on a tray. Voila! A perfect centerpiece for a wintery wedding!

 

You won't believe what you use to make this--some craft bond spray adhesive (try your local craft store) and Epsom Salts. (If you don't have a box at home already, check near the first aid aisle in your pharmacy.  No fancy fake snow flakes...just epsom salts! Tracie is so clever! Of course you'll need some help drinking all the wine so you have enough wine bottles, so sounds to me like it's time for a PARTY!

 

Be sure to take the time to visit Tracie's blog to get the whole tutorial, not to mention see all the other great ideas she has that are quick and easy.

Peacock Wreaths For Your Wedding

Made using HGTV tutorial

 

I admit, I tried this first without finding a tutorial--big mistake! Because what I didn't realize was you needed a base of green chandelle or turkey feather boas, once I figured that out the rest was so easy you may not even need the link for the tutorial that I posted under the photo of my wreath. Granted, they hung their wreath using a purple satin ribbon, but since I was making mine to add to my 'collection' of peacock feather decorations for weddings, I left the ribbon off.

 

Two critical tips for my success: First: be sure to let the paint dry before you try to attach anything, rushing it will not work. Second be sure to use spray glue, it's so much easier with feathers than hot glue or other craft glues.

 

This is time consuming the first time but if you are making several, by the time you get to the last one you'll be cranking them out pretty quickly. I tossed the first two I tried (one, I didn't let the paint dry, the second, I tried to used hot glue and made a huge mess!) But after that it was pretty easy.

 

Be sure to work where you have plenty of ventilation (I ended up using my front yard.) My neighbors were intrigued. But now my grass has some paint on it (one good reason to work outside, it's not on my floors. Just do it on a calm day and stay away from your cars.) Good luck, have fun and enjoy your wedding day.

Candymaking for Wedding Favors

Photo and tutorial can be found at Brit + Co.

 

Want to give a wedding favor that has the personal touch? Brit + Co. shows you how to make your own candy combining candy you can easily find at your favorite store and combining them so you have a decorative product when you are finished.

 

What do you need?

 

Materials:

- candy bars (above photo used a combination of Snickers, Twix, Milky Way, 3 Musketeers, Reese's Peanut Butter Cups, and Hershey's Cookies n' Creme Bar)
- Starburst
- Airheads
- a sharp knife
- rolling pin (even better if you have a mini one!)
- aspic mini cookie cutters (I got mine on Amazon, but you can pick them up in your local brick and mortar stores as well to save on shipping.)
- clear gift bags
- string or ribbon (I prefer ribbon, the kind that curls)

 

Cut your candy bars into bite size pieces (no snacking, I saw that!). Next you need to roll out your Starburst and Airheads. They need to roll flat enough that you can use the mini cookie cutters to cut our decorations with them.  Cut out your favorite designs (I like the hearts. What can I say, I'm a romantic!)

 

You can decorate the shapes with sprinkles (see my post on how to make sprinkles in your wedding colors) or use a gourmet food markers to add designs.

 

Place the finished products in clear plastic bags, decorate with a tag, and tie with string or ribbons. Ta Da!

 

 

DIY Favor Boxes

Favor Boxes photo courtesy of Wedding Friends

 

Looking for an easy DIY project for your wedding? These favor boxes, courtesy of Wedding Friends, are easy to put together and fill with your favorite candy or other goodies. Wedding Friends gives you a printable that you can print yourself or take to your local print shop. Choose a heavier weight paper than your usual printer paper because you need it to hold up better. The link for this printable is at Wedding Friends as a PDF document.

 

While you are there don't forget to check out all their other great wedding ideas.

 

Pastel Folding Chairs

Photo from Kelly at The Moon and Me

 

There's nothing I like better than a DIY project that is easy, fun, and looks great with minimal work--just my style! Do you have some old, ho hum brown or gray folding chairs? Or chairs that have nicks and scrapes accumulated over the years that need to be repainted? Kelly, the genius at The Moon and Me shows you how to spray paint your folding chairs and make them part of your decor.

 

Having a pretty pastel garden wedding? The chairs shown above would be perfect! Kelly recommends Krylon, but you can read her review of the other paints she tried and see what you think. She suggests 2 cans per chair. So what do you think?

 

I think this is an easy way to take a wedding from ho hum to WOW! And it's so easy even my non-crafty husband can do it. It definitely rates a EEEBCI rating (Easy Enough Even Bill Can Do It). It's a great project for grooms to do while you're busy doing something else! Start early and you can pick up inexpensive chairs at yard sales or Goodwill.

Easy 2 Ingredient Strawberry Fudge

Photo and recipe at Cookies and Cups

 

Looking for an easy to make fudge to use as a wedding favor for your wedding? Cookies and Cups has more than one fudge recipe but this one is super easy (only 2 ingredients), and it turns out pretty AND delish.

 

Not looking for pink? Or strawberry flavored fudge? Or watermelon fudge? Or key lime fudge? Trust me, Shelly has more! Just type in the word fudge in her search option and you're off!

 

Take your time browsing through Shelly's blog and you are sure to find a long list of fun and easy recipes for to take along when you're a guest or just to enjoy for a special occasion at home.

 

I can see taking some watermelon fudge along for 4th of July (when your sister has drawn the job of  hosting the family barbecue and insists she doesn't need a thing, but you just have to take something!) The watermelon fudge is perfect for that summer party when you just can't envision a party without watermelon!

 

Head to Shelly's blog, Cookies and Cups to find the secret ingredients for the 2 Ingredient Strawberry Fudge, then enjoy!  You may not even need to head to the grocery store for the ingredients--how easy is that? And you are sure to be hooked on some of her other easy recipes, perfect for busy moms who want to involve their children in cooking!

 

 

 

 

 

 

Tutorial on Making Your Own Wedding Cake

Photo and tutorial link from Epicurious

 

Are you that brave bride (or mother of the bride) who is taking the huge step to make your own wedding cake? If so you want to head to Epicurious' tutorial. They have step by step directions plus a recipe for a Lemon-Raspberry Wedding Cake and a video to help you through every step from start to finish. With wedding cakes costing at least $400 (and that's a low estimate) making your own cake can save quite a significant amount of cash. (In my case it wasn't I was too chicken to make the cake, it was transporting it that made me hire someone!) I could just see all the layers smashed on the floor of my Tracker! NOT! At least not for my daughter's wedding. I don't want to try something for the first time when it's an important occasion and one where I'll be busy running around as it is. But if you are a gutsy bride, give it a try. Epicurious gives you all the info you need to pull it off.

 

Easy Fondant Roses

Make these gorgeous roses from fondant/gumpaste to decorate the tops of  your cupcakes (or cakes). These are remarkably easy, just need a little patience and the right materials. Watch the tutorial, and give it a try.

I suggest reading the comments, it might make your project go a little more smoothly and/or just make it go faster.  Some info I found useful: be sure you don't place these in the sun to dry, the color will bleach out, also do not put the flowers in the refrigerator. Place the flowers on the cupcakes right before placing on display on your dessert table. You can use an egg carton in place of the plastic watercolor palette, not sure if the cardboard would absorb the dampness faster or not, just a thought.

***Most important: THAT IS NOT NAIL POLISH or EGGS used at the end to stick the white 'pearls' in the center. Obviously (or at least I thought obviously, but some people missed it) raw egg is not something you want to serve guests (can you say salmonella?) and neither is nail polish. (Shaking my head is wonder that anyone would think to use nail polish on something they were eating!)

I recommend doing a trial run or two before a special occasion so you have it down to a science!  How hard are these to make? They definitely are not EEEBCDI (Easy Enough Even Bill Can Do It), (anyone who reads my blog knows that my husband Bill tests out my craft ideas so I know which ones a total novice can handle.) This one requires more patience than he has for anything craft/or food prep related. So be prepared to put a little more work into it.

Enjoy the YouTube video by Cakes By Merry. And look for other tutorials by the same author on YouTube.

The Extra Touch For Your Stationary

Photo and tutorial on Inspired Goodness' blog (link below)

 

 

Want perfect seals for your wedding invitations or notes? See how to make this on Inspired Goodness' blog. 

 

What do you need? Just a glue gun, glue gun wax, wet paper towel and aluminum foil!

 

Glue Gun Wax is very easy to work with, is available in a large assortment of colors and can be used with any standard glue gun. They suggest that the round seals are easier to use, but it's your call. Be sure to read their whole tutorial for those important 'secret' details.

 

I love the look of the seals on wedding invitations and thank you notes don't you? And since it's easy, it adds a nice touch without a lot of extra work.

DIY Mirror Backdrop

Photo and idea from Apartment Therapy 

(Photographer Tess Wilson for Apt. Therapy)

 

What a perfect background for a DIY Photo Wall for your wedding. Just pose the bride and groom goofing around in front of the backdrop, or their guests in glittery disco-esque looks for a fun DIY photo wall. Kind of an open photo booth! To see how to hang up your mirror garland (you can purchase it here) at Party Oasis. Then all you need are a few hooks, an aluminum rod, and some lights.

 

Need exact directions? Head to Apartment Therapy for their tutorial and see just how easily you can pull off this look for your wedding (or other party.)  They also have lots of other great ideas for your first home together. So head on over and settle in for a nice long reading session!

DIY Organic Table Numbers and Placecards

Photo and idea courtesy of Austin Wedding Blog

 

How simple and inexpensive can this DIY project be? Austin Wedding Blog uses an assortment of colors of cherries, go red, or golden, make small 'flags' to put around the stems and use your computer to type names on them in a cursive font before you cut them out and glue them around the stems of the cherries. Do the same to put the 'table number' on each cherry.  Put the number of cherries on the saucer of the people sitting at the table plus one.

 

Choose a pretty saucer for a romantic garden party look. Either pick up saucers from friends and family or hit Goodwill or the your local garage sales. Inexpensive but pretty! (Not to mention edible!)

 

Be sure to take some time to browse through this blog, it's full of great ideas that aren't too hard to execute.