Whether your wedding is to be a grand or intimate affair, one thing is for sure, it doesn’t have to cost the earth. Here, Helen Moore Stylist, Blogger and Crafter from Whitewood & Linen takes a look at simple decorative ideas for those wishing to create their own personal and individual day.
Keep in mind three simple rules when you are planning your special day:
1) How much money do you have to spend?
2) How much time do you have to achieve your goals?
3) How much human resource is available to you? Perhaps you have family members or friends happy to donate their time and skills as a wedding gift? Don’t be afraid to ask those who are bakers, decorators, crafters, florists or gardeners for contributions of help towards your big day. Nobody wants too many toasters and a team effort can add to the fun and happiness of a successful wedding.
Determining the answers to these three questions, creating a plan around them and then working to that plan, will reward you with a special and individual look for your celebration.
In this article we shall take a look at personalising tables and room décor. Firstly, decide how you want your wedding décor to look and keep in mind your three simple rules. You could begin by addressing your flower displays. If your budget is small and time is on your side, you could grow a selection of inexpensive and simple blooms of your own from a few seeds or ask your gardening guests if they would grow them for you. If on the other hand you are short on time, you could look to buying your beautiful blooms locally from a grower or flower market.
Displaying your choice of flora can be done in many personal and budget friendly ways. Recycling and decorating tin cans ahead of the big day is a fun way for everyone to get involved. Painting each tin to compliment your colour scheme and adding a pretty rag ribbon for a decorative finish can have a stunning effect.
Recycling doesn’t have to stop at tin cans. Glass jam jars and small bottles collected in advance make wonderful flower vessels. Maybe a friend who writes beautifully, could lend a hand and scribe the wedding couples’ names on torn strips of fancy paper as their wedding gift. Try typing simple messages directly onto scraps of pretty linen and cotton and attach decoratively with ribbon or glue. Use in groups or individually for flowers and essential candles on your tables.
Another simple and effective idea for table décor is beautiful decoupage on tin cans. Decorative paper napkins, tissue paper and pretty gift wrap are all suitable materials to use and each tin will look perfect complete with colour co-ordinating string. Use to hold essential cutlery and napkins on tables or food and drinks stations. These versatile vessels can be used to store bright paper drinking straws or pens and crayons for younger guests. And filled with small sticks of rock or sweets, these tins would appeal to guests of any age.
And if children are joining your special day, remember to keep them occupied throughout the speeches. Try dressing your tables with rolls of brown parcel paper or simple white disposable table cloths and encourage a game or two of snakes and ladders, dot-to-dot or maybe even a happy drawing of the special couple. You may end up with some portraits that make you smile as much as the official wedding photos.
When it comes to decorating your room or gazebo, bunting and garlands are always a clever choice. For an inexpensive option, invest in or borrow a large hole punch; a star shape, flower or heart makes a perfect template. Keeping your own theme in mind, choose from newsprint or brown parcel paper for a rustic look or candy coloured card or floral paper for a more vibrant decor and get punching. If you are handy with a sewing machine or know someone who is, join the shapes together in a simple running stich to your required length. A similar effect can be achieved by sticking two shapes either side of clear wire or twine with PVA glue. String and layer lots of bunting for a fuller effect or stick to one single length if your look is more minimal. Add fairy lights to create a magical mood as the evening draws in.
You could try your hand at a more traditional fabric bunting, choosing colours and textures to suit your day. Leave simple raw edges showing or tidy up with a quick running stitch on the machine or even by hand. Remember your resource and time rules and maybe ask a crafty friend to donate their time as your wedding gift.
And as dusk falls on your magical day, remember to subtly light up trees and magical pathways as well as your tables, with the help of decorative tin cans and glass jars once again. Your choice of jars will look particularly effective decorated with glass paint selecting a design as flamboyant or simple as you like. And if you don’t have resource or budget for glass painting, simply reach for delightful rag ribbons or simple string once again.
Search for more creative ideas on-line; Pinterest is a fabulous search engine full of wedding ideas. Create an old-fashioned scrap book with endless magazine cuttings and leaflets you collect in the build up to your big day. This could also become the prettiest and most personal of keepsakes for the future. And don’t forget your local library for a wonderful selection of old and new books packed with ideas to make your wedding day as unique and as special as you would like it to be.
Many of the ideas in this blog spot can be found in Helen’s blog, Whitewood & Linen. Helen writes weekly stories full of ideas for individual crafts, up-cycling furniture and styling as well as design tips for special events and the home all from her beautiful Shepherd’s Hut, Belle. Visit whitewoodandlinen.com or follow Helen on her Instagram page for more creative and inspirational ideas for your special day.