DIY Wedding Decor

When you think about decorating for a wedding, it might be slightly overwhelming.. after all how do you buy enough to decorate a huge space and how do you make sure it will look the way you want?! Three words for you: DO IT YOURSELF. Seriously! If you can dream it, you can make it come to life, and probably better than anything you've seen on Pinterest.

Here are a list of non-negotiable things I HAD to purchase for the wedding:
- Candles (Candlesticks, tea lights, and big rounds for the lanterns)
- Greenery & Florals
- Rentals for plates, cups, silverware, etc.
- Brass Candlesticks

But the amazing thing is how much we DIDN'T have to buy or saved big on by doing ourselves:
- Chalk & Mirror signs
- Name Tags
- Picture Frames
- Lanterns
- Menus
- Bridal Bouquets
- Flower Arrangements

I started making signs (for the cake & donut table, our guest book, monograms, quotes, etc.) about two months before the wedding. I love that kind of thing! I decided I would just draw out the menu/programs that were double sided with one on either side, to save time dealing with ordering them, as well as money because printing at home was so much cheaper! The sign on our head table was made from layering a gold and white printed paper with black paper, then white again, and writing the letters in Sharpie on each triangle. Hole punch the top of each triangle & string them on a big piece of ribbon and you have yourself a banner!

I love gold and wanted the whole place to have details of brass & gold, and I think we achieved just that! Always remember.. spray paint is your friend! Using a bunch of old picture frames we had, or found for CHEAP at garage sales and Goodwill, we spray painted them gold and put engagement pictures in them. Spray painting wooden letters found at a craft store, making signs out of wood, and using pieces of birch driftwood for name holders were creative and easy!

The biggest tip I can give for saving yourself from spending money on things you will never use again is this: ASK for help! I used a ton of my moms lanterns and stands, a table my dads friend made, an old nightstand painted gold for the guestbook, the list goes on and on. DIY is easyyy.. just find some inspiration, give yourself time to work on each project, and you wil be surprised how much you can get done!