Floating Candles The Easy Way

From You Tube

If you are looking for a floating candles the easy way look try H2O Instant Water Candles. They come with everything you need to make an instant water candle.

These make great centerpieces, add a mirror underneath for extra light. Or add some votives surrounding it or small vases with your favorite flowers.

Fill the water candle with your favorite color, add a favorite flower, stones, shells or whatever works for your wedding, then add your wick and oil. Purchase at Vat19.com.

Easy Do It Yourself Centerpieces

Photo courtesy of Lovely Wedding Day

 

Making your own centerpieces can be as easy as floating flowers and candles in water. Secure your favorite flowers, roses, orchids, tulips. You don't have to use real flowers, silk will do, which makes your timing much easier.

 

You can make these ahead of time with less worry of dying flowers. Anchor the flowers by either gluing to the bottom of your vase or by using floral stones. Add a floating candle to the top of your design and voila! The perfect centerpiece is ready to be put on the table, just waiting for the reception to begin and candles to be lit.

 

Photo courtesy of Lovely Wedding Day

 

Be sure your vase is tempered glass so that it won't shatter when the candle has been lit for awhile. I once arrived at a wedding just in time to see all the centerpieces shatter one after the other. That's a mess you just don't need on  your wedding day. These easy centerpieces can be clustered in a group or used as a single piece. Add some votive candles on a mirror to add some depth.

 

See more DIY centerpieces at WDW (Wedding Day Weekly)Blogging For Brides.

Candles and Pearls

Photo courtesy of Kim

 

Candles and pearls make the perfect centerpiece for a wedding or wedding shower especially if you are planning a winter wonderland theme wedding. Small candles, faux pearls in a variety of colors to add depth and put them all on top of, yes, you guessed it, SUGAR! I have to admit I'd never have thought to have subbed sugar for the bottom of a candle arrangement but using it in this one makes it look so wintry and gives your centerpiece a cool look.

 

One warning though, be sure to get glass that is meant for candles. The heat of a candle burning all through your reception might be too much for glass that is not designed to withstand the heat. So be sure not to just buy dollar store glass that isn't meant for burning candles in (or at least check one of you centerpieces out before you decide if they will work for your reception or not.)

 

You have to admit, this is an EEEBCDI (Easy Enough Even Bill Can Do It). Anyone who reads my DIY blog regularly knows I test how easy a DIY project is by having my husband (who is very un-crafty) try them out. The man can fix almost anything but DIY projects are just not his thing if they have anything to do with crafts! So if my man can make them yours can too, which means you get some extra help putting them all together. Add some togetherness to the wedding DIY projects.

 

Be sure to visit the web site linked under the photo for more great winter ideas for weddings or wedding showers.

 

 

 

DIY Gold High Heels For Your Wedding

Photo courtesy of Pinterest/We Heart It

 

Do It Yourself gold high heels? Want to create your own shoes for your wedding or other special occasion? Try these gold heels found on Pinterest.

 

How do you make them? All you need is a nice pair of high heels, adornment, glue and some gold shoe paint. Are you up for it?

 

It's always nice to have a unique pair of shoes that don't cost you a fortune. So no more paying for a pair of designer shoes, instead design your own and make these do it yourself gold high heels.

Do It Yourself Spring Centerpiece

Photo courtesy of Martha Stewart

 

I love this DIY spring centerpiece! Do it yourself flowers can be tricky but not with this easy to make centerpiece. Don't you love the huge bouquet of bright yellow daffodils juxtaposed against the wooden vase? Perfect for a spring wedding.

 

Just drill a hole big enough for a glass to hold the water and the stems of the flowers you want to use as a centerpiece and voila! Add the flowers and it's done. Just put it on the tabletops and your work is done! This is a great DIY project to get your fiance involved in (we all know how much guys love power tools!) Not to say you can't do it all on your own but hey, it's more fun together, right? So give it a try--Martha makes it all look so easy!

Easy DIY Luminaries

Photo courtesy of Life With 4 Boys

 

Looking for some do it yourself luminaries? These easy to make decorations are perfect for weddings or holidays.

 

Needed:

1 Pack of thick colored tissue paper or multi-patterned tissue paper.
3 Tall votive candle holders
3 Electronic candles. Battery operated candles can be found in your local dollar store or Bed, Bath and Beyond
 Scotch Tape
Scissors

 

For a step by step tutorial follow the link below the photo. These simple decorations are perfect for weddings or wedding showers. So get your DIY cap on and get started.

 

For those of you familiar with my blog this is a EEEBCDI project. (Better known as "Easy Enough Even Bill Can Do It) meaning I tested how hard it was on my husband who is DIY challenged. He didn't have any problems pulling it together. So grab your fiance and rope him into helping with these--yes HE can. If Bill can anyone can.

Fast and Easy Wedding Favor

From Pinterest Favecrafts.com

 

Looking for a fast and easy favor you can make for your wedding? Take some wine corks, add a key ring and a label with the date and location of your wedding. Easy to make!

 

Plus if you don't think you can drink your way through 200 bottles of wine so you have enough corks, head to your local Whole Foods Market. They recycle corks. Mine will give them to me as long as I ask. Nice way to re-purpose for your wedding!

Easy DIY Napkin Rings

Photo from Heart of Light

 

It's not everyday you find a DIY project that is super easy to make and will add a unique touch to your wedding day. These napkin rings act as place cards as well as napkin rings--a double whammy. Made by the crafty group at Heart of Light, these are made with heavy stock paper and zots (if you've never used zots you will be blown away at how easy them make crafting!) Plus download this. For step by step directions head over to Heart of Light.

 

This is guaranteed to be an EEEBCDI(Easy enough even Bill can do it) project so your fiance can give you some help with these--no excuses about not being crafty! If you don't read my blog regularly, these are projects that my  husband (the least crafty man in the world) has tested for me to see how easy they REALLY are to make. If he can do it, anyone can, your man included.

 

So take a night and knock out some of these beauties to decorate your tables for your wedding reception. Or if  you are newly married why not use them for your first dinner party as newlyweds? Have fun!

 

Elaborate Cupcakes

Photo courtesy of Elisa Strauss

 

New York baker, Elisa Strauss wrote the definitive book on delish desserts called The Confetti Cakes Cookbook.  She loves making her products beautiful and whimsical to please every taste. She's made designer shoe cakes, fancy handbag cakes, cakes that look like they've been embroidered, and cupcakes shaped like pool balls. So if you can think it, she can bake it.

 

Strauss is the founder and sole designer of Confetti Cakes in New York City. A former designer for Ralph Lauren, she is famous for her whimsical, elaborate, fashion-related cakes. Her work has been featured in dozens of magazines, on the Today show, The View, and the Food Network.

 

Her cookbook not only gives you recipes, it gives you exact directions on how to pull off the designs in her book. She tells you which tools you'll need and gives exact tutorials.

 

The cupcakes featured in this post are perfect for a wedding, shower, or even a little girl's princess party. So if you are 'thinking pink' for your wedding, head out and pick up a copy of The Confetti Cakes Cookbook.

Spell Out Your Love With DIY Love Blocks

Photo courtesy of Six Sisters Stuff

 

If you are planning a romantic centerpiece, Six Sisters Stuff has a great tutorial on how to make these 'Love Blocks.' Depending on how you size them you can use them at each place setting or as part of a centerpiece. Combine with some votives in similar colors and you're ready to rock!

 

I love the variety of black and white backgrounds with the bright red accents, use them for a Valentine's Day wedding or any wedding that black, red and white accents will coordinate with. No doing those colors? Just change out the colors to some that work with  your wedding theme colors.

 

Find the tutorial here at Six Sisters Stuff. (Where they really know their stuff!)

Salted Caramel Sauce To Die For!

Caramel Sauce photo courtesy of Always With Butter

 

Always with Butter, a blog to die for (at least if you aren't on Weight Watchers!) has this lovely recipe for this soft and luscious salted caramel sauce that is perfect for a wedding favor in the fall. It's soft and gooey and oh so so good. Even if you aren't having a wedding or shower that you need a favor for, you REALLY want to make this sauce. (My husband couldn't keep away from it while I was making it!) It smells and tastes great and looks really good too--what more could you want? Well calorie or fat free would be good but the taste would be ruined so... just enjoy and work it off the next day. Your guests will love it and so will you! 

 

To find the recipe head over to Always With Butter. You'll enjoy this recipe and want to try more of their other recipes as well. Enjoy your salty caramel sauce--and share (I know, it will be hard..but...)

A Smart Bride's Way To DIY

DIY Butterfly Cloche courtesy of Country Living Magazine

 

Have you considered making centerpieces out of glass for your wedding day? The Butterfly Cloche above from Country Living Magazine would make a great highlight for a wedding featuring butterflies or nature themes. For the tutorial (and other great craft ideas) go to Country Living Magazine.

 

Mini dome DIY project from Country Living Magazine

 

No bride wants to get so bogged down in a diy project that her wedding planning starts to become work. For a bride planning a DIY wedding, choosing extremely difficult or time consuming projects takes away the fun factor!

 

If you are looking for a less formal look, try these mini domes. They are made using glasses (turned upside down of course) with tiny keepsakes inside. Personalize your guests' wedding tables with 'a few of your favorite things.' To find the tutorial go to Country Living Magazine online. I love the personal look these give you. You don't have to use them for all the tables, but they would be cute added to your guest book table or other side table.

 

The best part of these DIY projects? They are rated EEEBCDI (easy enough even Bill can do it).  For those of you just starting to read my blog you may not realize I am not crafty, but my husband is worse. I mean he's great at some things, fixing things, putting things together, but not tiny little projects like this. So I test out the ease of the tutorial by having him try them out. If it's rated EEEBCDI, your groom should have no problem either, which makes these projects all the more fun. Or if you are all thumbs, they will be easy enough you can do them without the stress no bride to be needs during her wedding planning! Have fun, that's the whole point of this!

 

 

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!

 

 

 

 

 

 

Halloween Wedding DIY Project Idea

Photos and idea from Balancing Home

 

Planning a Halloween wedding? Here's the perfect decoration... if you are looking for the spooky look without breaking the bank. The author of Balancing Home designed these fabulous glow in the dark pumpkins using Tulip Glow In Dark Puffy Paints and some pumpkins she found in Target in their 'dollar aisle!

 

Photo credit same as above

 

Read Megan's post on how to achieve these cool but really easy accents for your Halloween Wedding. Don't you love the photo of what the pumpkins look like in the dark?

 

BTW, this project definitely meets my EEEBCDI criteria! (Easy Enough Even Bill Can Do It) Better known as my less than crafty husband could do this project and have it come out looking great!

DIY Thrift Store Vases

 

Photos and idea courtesy of Little Gray Fox Blog

 

Thrift shops and garage sales are a great resource for decorating at your wedding reception. Why spend a fortune on vases when you can pick up some inexpensive vases at a thrift store or garage sale, add a little paint, and voila! You have a centerpiece that is pretty and will coordinate with your wedding colors.

 

Don't forget, mint and coral are big colors this year, so even if your bridesmaids are wearing a neutral color, use vases is these au courant colors and it will give you a nice pop of color without forcing them to own a dress that shouts "BRIDESMAID!" Believe me, they will thank you!

 

Be sure to spend some time reading Little Gray Fox and Little Foto Fox for more great ideas for DIY projects and more.