Preparing for My Daughter's Wedding

So, my daughter, Cassie, is getting married in 20 days.  I have been so busy planning this wedding.  So many days I am out shopping for supplies and Cassie is out doing the same thing.  I have spent nights working on things.  Here is a little sneak peak on what we are doing.


The candy table has been a challenge.  We had to decide what types of candy she wanted and find the ones we could to match her colors.  We had to figure out what bowls we wanted and how much of each candy would fit in them.  I plan on making a chart to make this a little easier for other people, after the wedding.
I bought all the bowls at thrift stores.  I paid only $5.00 each for both of these bowls.  I found two other beautiful bows that I paid $4.00 each for and I saw them at Hobby Lobby for $40. 

 These letters will be used on the candy table as well.  I have been spray painting for weeks now.  

So much of the stuff for the reception is going to be sprayed with silver glitter paint.  

 Here's all the candy packed up.  It's in 2 bins.  We took pictures of how we wanted the bowls and 

candy on the table and placed them in here, so we know how we want it quickly on the big day.  

Of course, I bought two more big bowls since then, so there may be a little adjusting.

 Here's all the photo booth stuff.  Yes, those are glue sticks that I have painted.

 I have packed all the photo stuff in this box and it's ready to go.

 Here's the frames I have painted.  Can't wait to show you what we are using them for.

And here's some more of the stuff I'm working on.

Well, I need to get back to work.  I have much more do to.  I am looking so forward to this day and just praying we have everything figured out.

If you would like to see more, please go to How To Prepare a Wedding - Part 1

Decorating Containers for Bridal Shower

I recently helped with my daughter's bridal shower.  We were using real cups (that I got from the thrift store).  I wanted to put them in something nice.  I found this basket at a thrift store and the cups fit in it very nicely.  So, I just needed to figure out how to decorate it.

I had some fabric, it was actually a blanket that, yes, I got from a thrift store.  I cut it to fit the basket and then sprayed in with a spray adhesive.

Next, I put a piece of cardboard on the bottom, so it would be flat.

I cut a piece of fabric to go around the bottom.  Before I put that one in, I wrapped the fabric around all four sides.  I placed it on the bottom and brought it to the inside and then, under the cardboard.  I used the spray adhesive for this too.

 

I had a lot of help!

And here it is.  The cups fit perfectly in it and it matched the decor.

I, of course, bought these baskets from a thrift store.  I needed one for the bagels and one for the silverware.

I spray painted them white first.

I ended up just using the big one.  I found a basket I liked better for the napkins and silverware.  

I place fabric on the bottom, just to keep it smooth.

I measured the length of the basket, added 1 1/2 inches.  I measures the width of the basket, plus enough for the fabric to fold over on each side.  I cut two pieces of fabric this side, placed them together, right sides facing each other and sewed them all the way around, leaving a 2 inches hole.  I turned it inside out and then sewed a seam (see picture) all the way around.

 

Here's the basket with the bagels and muffins.  You can see the basket on the right with the silverware and napkins.  I made a cloth to fit inside of it, the same as the other one.  I think they add a lot to the table.

Pantry Remake on a Budget

On an earlier post,, I shared with you a bunch of things I had found on people's curbs. It was during bulk pick up. We had just moved into a house we are renting. 6 months prior, we had sold almost everything and moved in with my daughter. So, we are starting over again, on a very tight budget. We have a big pantry area, but no shelves or anywhere to put food. I found a couple of bookshelves, but they weren't very pretty.  I decided I would make them work.

On this one, we had to add a piece of wood to the back of it.  Of course, I found that on someone's curb as well.

I spray painted them all black.  I love the Rustoleum paint.  I had to buy 2 cans to paint all the shelves.

Just painting them made them look a lot better.

 

Next, I took contact paper and added them to the shelves.

Here's my pantry now.  I have shelves for my food and I think it looks so much better.  It cost me around $10.00 to have shelves and fix them up.

   

Tutorial for Making Food Trays

I made several trays for my daughter's Bridal Shower.  Making your own serving trays is easy and very inexpensive.  I saw a two layered tray in a store for $25.00 and I made mine for around $10.00 each.

This tray was made with two china plates, a glass serving plate on the bottom, a glass bowl on top, and
two candlesticks, that I bought from thrift stores.. I spray painted the candlesticks with a glitter paint.  To stick them all together, I used a glue called Goop.  You simply apply it to both dishes, where you want to attach them, and then wait 3 minutes before putting them together.  It holds very well. I love this tray and
it cost me less than $10.00.

 Here's the fruit tray with fruit and dip.  They were all so much prettier once the food was added. This one makes me really hungry.  The dip is awesome.  You can check out the recipe here

 

Here's another stand I made.  This was for the cupcakes.  Again, I used a glass serving plate 

at the bottom, a regular plate in the middle, and a white glass bowl on top.  I used wooden 

candlesticks and painted them white.  This one cost me about  $8.00.

  Here's the cupcake stand with the cupcakes.  See how much prettier it looks?

  

 Here's one I made for the pancake stacks.  I paid about $6.00 for this one.  It was just a glass 

serving bowl on the bottom, a large candlestick, and a small glass serving plate on top.

The pancake stacks came out so cute! See how easy they are to make over here

 Something else I did, was to put candlesticks on some of the bowls, in different heights.  

I think it looks so much prettier than just all of them being the same.

 I love the way all of these trays came out and they were so easy to make.  I think they are prettier than the $25.00 little ones I saw in the store.  You can get so creative making these.  I bought all the dishes and candlesticks at thrift stores.  I bought the little cupcake in this last picture at a thrift store too and painted it to match the colors of the bridal shower.  You never know what you will find, that can become a treasure.

So, go ahead, and give it a try!

Pancakes on Skewers

When we gave my daughter a bridal shower, we decided to do a brunch.  We had seen some cute ideas on pinterest and decided to make pancakes on skewers.

To make them easy, we used tiny frozen pancakes, placed a skewer in them, and added fruit on the top.  They came out so cute!

Yummy Fruit Dip

This dip is so easy to make and is so delicious!

All you need is two ingredients:  Cream Cheese and Marshmallow Puff.

Just mix the two together in equal parts.  Your family and guest won't be able to get enough of it.  Neither will you!

Look how beautiful it looks in this tray too.

If you want to know how to make a similar tray, please check out my tutorial over here.

Upgraded File Cabinet

We moved in to our home a couple of weeks ago and had very little furniture.  I'm working on my office right, which had no furniture, except for two orange seating chairs, a desk chair, and 2 lamps.  I found a large file cabinet at Goodwill for $15.00.  It's very large and very sturdy, which is great for storing my vintage dishes in.  Only problem is, it's ugly.

Here is is at my home.

I am trying to fix our house up, with spending as little as possible.  I went thru everything I have and came up with an idea to decorate it.  I have a lot of white wrapping paper from the dishes I buy.  I decided to try and use them.  I made a flour and paste mixture first.  I crumbled the paper up and then tore the paper so there was no straight lines.

 Next, I brushed the flour and water mixture onto the paper with a paint brush. 

 I started at the top of each drawer.  To get the crinkled look, I put it on loose.  You can see this better in the next picture after this one.  I patted it down with the palm of my hand.  Don't worry if you tear it, you can either push the paper up to cover the hole or add another piece.

This is how it looked after it started drying.  While it was drying, I took the handles and scrubbed them down before I put a metal primer on them.

I decided I wanted it to have some color, so I started looking into what I had.  I found some tissue gift wrap that I thought would look good.  I cut 4 squares, a little larger than the size of the doors.

 

 I applied the flour and water mixture to the back of each panel and then placed it over each drawer.  I folded the ends in all the way around.  Once they were all dry, I sprayed them with several coats of lacquer.  I think this will give it more durability.  While the drawers were out, I scrubbed this humongous thing down.  It really needed it.

And here it is, after the knobs were painted as well.

 

 I am very pleased with it.  I think it looks so much better than it did before.  Please feel free to ask questions in the comment box.  I look forward to hearing from you.