Rehearsal Dinner Decorations

December 8, 2014 Jennifer Davenport Leave a Comment

I am so excited to show you my rehearsal dinner decorations I made for my oldest son’s wedding. And, YES, I did them on a tight budget!

Our rehearsal dinner was in a local restaurant in town. The separate dining room had a fireplace, so I knew that would be the focal point.

If you are having your rehearsal dinner in a restaurant, be sure to find out the decorating restrictions, and the time you will be allowed to decorate.

Flower Garland Cost?
$60

This garland, not including the candle holders and candles cost $60. I purchased everything on sale.

Of course, you may not have a fireplace where you’re going to have the rehearsal dinner, but you could make a garland to lay down the middle of the bride and groom’s table like in the photo below from Nancy, of Oak and The Owl.

So, how did I make my wedding garland for only $60?

I used BOTH artificial flowers, FREE hydrangeas, and miniature roses from Kroger for $9.99. If you are getting married in early spring or summer, find someone who has a yard full of hydrangeas! Or you could pick some wild flowers.

Where to Start

Purchase an inexpensive artificial garland. Next, hot glue, or use floral wire to attach your artificial flowers. Go ahead and add your lights, be sure to wire them in place.

Because I had a very small window to decorate the restaurant, I pre-made everything I could beforehand. The only thing I added to the garland later, were the real hydrangeas and roses.

Now, make your bow, and add your sheer ribbon to the garland.

I wired my ribbon to the garland in a few places.

After I wired the bow to the garland, I hot glued pink artificial roses in the center. One of the smaller ribbons had sparkly swirls. When dining in the evening, adding sparkle to your rehearsal dinner decorations really shows up in the candlelight.

See how there is some flower vines hanging down from the bow? This is really easy to do.

You can use pipe cleaners or floral wire to attach the vines to the back of your bow.

To keep your flowers fresh for several hours you need to purchase floral water picks. They are inexpensive and easy to use. I found mine at the craft store for a pack of 12 for $1.99.

Pop the rubber lid off, fill with water, place lid back on, and slide your flower into the floral water pick. Easy!

So, once you arrive at the restaurant the only thing you need to do is add your real flowers to the garland.

Inexpensive and Beautiful Door Decoration

Make a burlap bow to hang on a door. Then place real baby’s breath and greenery at the top of the bow. So beautiful, so inexpensive!

Table Decorations for Rehearsal Dinner

Again, I kept it simple and inexpensive. We had four large tables that would seat 10 guests. I made two small arrangements for each table, then placed two small candle votives on each side of the arrangement.

Again, I used my FREE hydrangeas around the outside of the square glass vase, and the little roses in the middle. You can also add baby’s breath, and other greenery to your arrangements.

I found the square glass vases at the pottery store for $2.50. That made each arrangement cost under $5.

I added some rose petal decorations around the candles and vases. This is an actual photo from the rehearsal dinner.

One More Rehearsal Dinner Decorations Idea:

I used PicMonkey to add the date to the photo, then sent it to Wal-greens and had them enlarge the photo. I thought it turned out great!

Here is a photo from our special evening. I hope these rehearsal dinner decorations help you create a special evening for you and your family.

Return from Rehearsal Dinner Decorations to Wedding Decorations on a Budget

My Linking Party Friends

Elegant Party Ideas

December 8, 2014 Jennifer Davenport

Tips to help you throw a fabulous party!

Are you looking for easy elegant party ideas? Entertaining friends and family is one of my greatest joys. Good food, laughter, and pleasant conversations over coffee, is the true meaning of living simply. This is what life is about, isn’t it?

I am a southern girl at heart! While I love an elegant party, I want my guests to feel relaxed and happy. Do you get stressed out and anxious before you entertain? And then do you end up not having fun at your own dinner party? Well, this page is all about helping you have a successful and relaxing party!

My Two Most Important Pieces of Advice When Entertaining

I would like to offer some advice on entertaining. I love talking elegant party ideas, and I can get totally wrapped up in all the ideas, but before we get into all that, I would like to talk about a valuable lesson I learned on what it is to be a true hostess.

When I was young and would have a dinner party, in my mind nothing but perfection could be accepted. Everything had to be done to “magazine photo” perfection. I stressed myself and my family out by trying to reach this unattainable goal. I realized I made the act of entertaining about ME! I made it about how I looked to my guests, and how I came across to them!

This is embarrassing, but I will tell you a true story. When I was much younger, I was preparing for a dinner party, and running around like a crazy woman. When I went to vacuum, my vacuum would not turn on! So, I did what any insane, self-absorbed person would do: I vacuumed with it broken! It made the vacuum marks on the carpet, and it gave the “impression” of perfection! I know, I know! I said it was embarrassing!

Entertaining is about serving others. A party will always have some sort of hiccup. But, when you adopt the attitude of “it isn’t about me,” you relax. And, your guests relax and everyone has a much better time!

Proper Planning

NOW, having said that, the flip side is doing a good job at planning for a party. Another important lesson I learned was to keep it simple! Don’t go out of your comfort zone on your menu. A simple well-prepared meal is better than a gourmet flop!

Do your grocery shopping and cleaning the day before. Set your dinner table the night before, or in the morning. Don’t leave all the work for the day of your party. You will only be frazzled and exhausted, and you won’t be able to enjoy your company!

Table Setting Diagram

There are many different table decorating ideas that are fun and easy. But, I want to show you a correct example of setting an informal dinner table.

Table setting diagram

1. This is your bread plate. You can place a bread knife on the plate, or leave a bread knife on your butter dish. You can also place a salad plate here, or add both a bread plate and salad plate next to each other. I find it gets too crowded on the table, so I like to choose one or the other.

2. Dessert Spoon

3. Beverage Glass

4. Coffee Cup

5. Napkin – you can also place the napkin under the forks, or try your hand at some fun napkin folding ideas.

6. Salad Fork

7. Dinner Fork

8. Dinner Plate

9. Knife – always have the sharp side facing toward the plate.

10. Spoon

Dishes and Silverware

Beautiful silverware

Your dishes don’t have to be a perfect match! I think it is fun to mix and match! I love going to an outlet pottery store and purchase plain white dishes. This way you can mix and match plain white dishes with dishes with patterns.

Place Cards

Place card

One of my favorite elegant party ideas is to make some place cards for my table. They add a touch of elegance, and come in very handy when guests are ready to be seated.

I make my place cards using card stock. I print the names out from the computer, and then cut them and fold them. I like to add some detail, so I usually stamp something and color it with watercolor pencils.

Unique place card idea

There are a lot of fun ideas for place cards. I found these grapevine pumpkins at the craft store and used them for place cards.

Table Centerpiece Ideas

Flower centerpiece

For table centerpiece ideas, again keep it simple. Opt for a simple flower arrangement and candles. If you think elegant party ideas have to be over the top and expensive that just isn’t so!

If you are wanting a homemade centerpiece, or your are purchasing a store bought centerpiece, make sure the flowers are low enough to not obstruct the view of guests. You can make your own stunning centerpieces! Always choose non-scented candles. You don’t want a scented candle to interfere with the aroma of your food.

Dinner Party Music

This is a MUST when I have someone over for dinner. I do not play the music loud, just soft enough to float in the background. Great dinner party music soothes guests, and promotes a relaxed environment for conversation.

Graduation Party Decorating Ideas

Graduation Centerpiece Idea

Throwing a graduation party, and need some easy decorating ideas? Come check out these creative graduation decorating ideas.

More Entertaining Ideas

Here are 5 fabulous elegant party ideas from HGTV! I love these!

Good luck with your party, and remember–entertaining guests isn’t about perfection, it is about the art of giving. You don’t have to spend a ton of money to come up with elegant party ideas.

I would like to say a thank you to my mother who taught me as a little girl, how to entertain, cook, but most of all bring joy to others over a home cooked meal.

Bridal Shower Centerpiece Ideas – Affordable and Adorable!

December 8, 2014 Jennifer Davenport

I have had to come up with two bridal shower centerpiece ideas in one summer? Why? My two sons were married six weeks apart! I know! Don’t get me started.

Two Beautiful Bridal Shower Centerpiece Ideas

This first bridal centerpiece ideas was a creation for my daughter-in-law. It was very easy to make!

I wanted to create a bridal shower centerpiece idea that was different than anything else I’d seen. So, it was off to the craft store where I wandered the aisles to see if some bridal shower decoration ideas floated into my cluttered mind.

I spotted this in the metal decor aisle, and knew exactly what to make. The first thing I did was take metal wire cutters and remove the metal bow that is attached at the waist.

I used Krylon “Sterling Silver” spray paint. This paint is fantastic. I only needed one coat!

Spray painting this dress figure silver softened the look. I think it turned out beautiful!

I purchased 5 yards of white tulle. I kept it folded in half, then took a needle and thread and gathered the top half of the tulle.

Once, all the tulle was gathered, I hot glued it evenly around the waist. Then, I trimmed the dress to the perfect length.

Next, I added a satin bow that matched the bride’s wedding colors. For the bodice of the dress I used hot glue to attach the small fabric roses. (I found the little white roses in the fabric trim section. They were sold by the yard, and I simply cut them into separate pieces.)

For the back of the bodice, I only applied a few roses. Don’t you love the way the satin bow makes the whole bridal gown come alive with color and elegance?

Here is my finished bridal shower centerpiece displayed in the center of the dining room table at the bridal shower. Everyone LOVED it! And, they will love the one you make also!

Here is my sweet daughter-in-law, having a little fun at her bridal shower.

A Cinderella Centerpiece

I ordered this white metal Cinderella carriage online. Then I placed wet foam in a small bowl, placed it inside of the carriage, and filled it with flowers. To finish off this bridal centerpiece idea, I wrapped tulle around the bottom of the carriage and tied a beautiful bow to complete the look.

The Perfect Pair

This bridal centerpiece ideas was easy to make, but this one took a lot more time. I love making and crafting things, so the time put into making this was fun and therapeutic.

Purchase a cheap pair of white shoes. If you can’t find any white shoes, which was the problem I ran into, you can spray them with a can of white spray paint. I went to the bridal section in Hobby Lobby to find all the accessories and bling.

I glued lace onto the shoes with craft glue. I had to cut the lace into small pieces before applying onto the shoes. Next, I added little pearls with hot glue. The wedding colors were teal and light purple, so I added just a touch of the colors onto the side of the shoe.

Next, I painted a paper mache hot box white, and then gathered tulle with a needle and thread, and attached it with hot glue.

Next, after the lid was placed on tightly, I hot glued little white roses and a string of pearls all around the hat boxed edge.

Wet foam was cut into smaller pieces and placed inside the shoes. Carefully add water to the wet foam, and then cut the rose stems 2″ long and begin placing them in the foam. Add the roses right before your bridal shower so they keep fresh.

I found a paper mache cut out, painted it white and added glitter. You can use your computer to find beautiful fonts for your happy couple.

The bridal shower centerpiece looked perfect next the silver plate of chocolate bark. (yes, I had quite a few pieces)

If you would like to make a beautiful flower arrangement for your bridal shower, here is my video with easy instructions!

Or, you can read my page about floral arranging! I will guide you step-by-step in a photo tutorial. You can do it! Really!

Want to learn to make your own bridal bouquet?

Need more wedding ideas, stick around and click around!

Graduation Party Decorating Ideas – Easy DIY ideas!

March 12, 2014 Jennifer Davenport

Are you looking for graduation party decorating ideas? My daughter recently graduated from high school, and our church threw a party for all of the graduates. I was in charge of decorations, so off to the craft store I went!

I’m also sharing some graduation cake ideas, and party food ideas. (Cake, my favorite!)

Fun Graduation Centerpiece Idea

Here is the main centerpiece for the graduation party . I know it looks a little difficult, but I promise it is easy. Everything was purchased on sale. The total cost was around $20.

Supplies:

square chipboard
gold glitter
wood numbers representing the graduating year
tassels
two cardboard books – different sizes
acrylic paint – Burnt Umber, Soft Black, Red, and Off-White
white paint pen
hot glue and Elmer’s glue

Chipboard

The first thing you want to do is paint your square chipboard using an off-white acrylic paint color. Give your chipboard two coats. Let dry completely.

Antiquing the Chipboard

Once your chipboard is completely dry, you can antique it with the color Burnt Umber. Whenever I do a paint project, I love to add texture and depth. This is done by antiquing something you have painted, or adding different tones of the same color.

How to Antique:

Pour out a little of the paint onto a plate. Add a few drops of water to make the paint very thin. Wet a paper towel slightly. Next, dip your brush into the paint, and brush over a section of the chipboard. Then take your paper towel and gently wipe the paint off. It is that easy!

Making the books look real

Time to paint the books. Paint the pages of the book with off-white, and paint one of the books with soft black, and the other with red.

Making the book pages

Here is the red book after it has been antiqued. It really makes the book look real!

A well written word

Grab your white paint pen and write the word English on the red book, and Math on the black book. Write in all capital letters. Don’t worry about being perfect, I have a little trick that will make your letters look fabulous!

Making Printing Letters Look Fabulous!

My secret to neat handwriting

Tip: Make a straight line where the sections of the letters end. It makes all your letters looks straighter. Easy idea that makes a big difference.

Neat handwriting secret

Glitter, all a girl needs.

Now it is time to glitter your numbers. I brush on Elmers glue, then sprinkle on the glitter.

Graduation Centerpiece

Now, all you have to do is hot glue the tassels onto the books, and hot glue everything else onto your chipboard!

More Graduation Party Decorating Ideas

Easy Graduation Centerpiece

I needed several table centerpieces for our graduation party. These were easy to make, and very inexpensive. Each centerpiece cost me $5!

Glass Jars

I found the glass milk bottles at the craft store half-off for $2.00 each.

Elegant Flowers

My favorite flowers to use in live arrangements are called Alstroemeria. They are inexpensive and last a long time. This whole bunch cost me $7.99.

Arranging flowers

Adding a fun tag

I purchased chalk labels and a chalk pen to make these tags on each bottle.

Chalkboard fun!

Another cool idea is to purchase a cheap chalkboard and place it on an easel! Don’t forget to use my letter technique to make your printing neat!

Graduation Cake Ideas

Graduation Cake Idea

Take a good photo of your graduate and have it put on a cake. I loved the way this cake turned out. The blonde is my munchkin. We kinda look alike!

Fun Graduation Cake Idea

This graduation cake was made by Erin of The Three Little Blackbirds.com. She makes fabulous cakes, and has great tutorials and recipes. Stop by and say hello!

Two Fun Graduation Party Food Ideas

Graduation Party Food Idea

Yummy Ho Ho Diplomas

Use ribbon in the schools colors and wrap around each Ho Ho. What a fantastic idea.

This is a photo I saw on Pinterest. I would love to give credit where credit is due, so if this is your creation, please let me know!

Cap and Gown Desserts

This is simple and easy! Use small Reeses cups for the base and Lindt or Ghirardelli squares for the top. Then purchase a small tube of red icing for the tassel. One of my friends made these for the party. They are so cute!

I hope these graduation party decorating ideas help to make your party turn out fantastic! Ours was a ton of fun! This graduation party was for my last chick leaving the nest. I may have cried a little. Okay, maybe more than a little.

Link Party fun:

Tiny Side Kick.com

Flower Garland Cost? $60