so i'm marrying an a-hole. well, i mean. not really. but it gives me the opportunity to offer up this clip:

then i get to tell you this story:

matt and i decided to make candles while we were home for the holidays. and they turned out pretty well, actually. he was really great. helping me melt candle wax, plant wicks, and decide scents and colors. then he does this:

but, like he said, i'm doing it for the crafts. and i'm pretty excited about our candles.

so let's make some candles.

what you'll need:
heat-resistant containers (we used tea cups and wine glasses)
wax (we used soy)
wicks, trimmed with bottoms (the larger the container, the thicker the wick)
wick stick-ums
wick stabilizer sticks with rubber bands 
a double boiler (we used a pyrex measuring cup in a pot, set on a steamer and not the bottom of the pot. it worked.)

what you'll do:
1: wick your jars — take your wick and place a wick stickum on the bottom of the tab. push it down in the center of the bottom of your container, securing it in place.

2: melt the wax — put 1lb of wax in your pot and melt it until you have a golf ball size piece of unmelted wax left and turn off the heat. stir it until the ball of wax melts and add 1oz of scent and color (add small amounts until desired color) to the wax and stir it very well.

3: pour the wax — when the wax looks kinda like a slushie, pour it into your container to within a ¼ inch of the top of the container. 

4: adjust your wick — center it, then take your wick stabilizer and slide it over the wick and lay it across the top of your container. 

5: finish your candle — let it cure over night and trim the wick to 1/8 inch.

there's actually more funny story to that night:

after we made the candles, we made dinner. but i left the wax-covered candle-spoon in the spoon rest on the stove. and my dad "helped" by stirring the mashed potatoes with the wax-covered candle-spoon. then we had waxed mashed potatoes for dinner. and i quote, "these potatoes taste like deodorant."

but my dad ate all of his. and all of the rest of ours. right off our plates. like a child who's been told not to do something and does it deliberately to make a point. 

he ate the waxed mashed potatoes. with a smile.

so, the winmock at kinderton has a crapton of nooks and crannies to decorate. and i have my table decoration plan down for both ceremony and reception — even the guest book table and gift area. i'm covered. but all those nooks and crannies, and all those places you never think about but will need something the day of? i'm not so covered. or should i say wasn't so covered?

i looked around the apartment, and realized that matt and i have a ton of crap we don't need. you know, combining two adult apartments and all ... in fact, we have a crapton of promotional pint glasses.

a crapton of crannies and a crapton of glasses? they should meet.

as you know, we're doing bulk flowers in white and blue. maybe some succulents. but you gotta have something to put them in, right? something you can put water in. and in a nook or cranny, they won't have to withstand really close scrutiny. so i made pint glass vases.

what you do:
- clean the glass

- put the ribbon on with the hot glue gun, or just tie it. tying works.

and ... there you have it. "free" BACKGROUND vases that you can just throw away when you're done with them. i'm pretty brilliant.

xoxo,
the bride

ohmygod, hi. hyper-excited rachel here with the perfect way to start a d.i.y. post: "you'll think this is an amazing idea and i might recruit you to help even if you don't think this is an amazing idea."

ok, so. let's say we have 150-200 people at this shindig. let's just say. that's possibly 25 tables of 8. and we need to dress 25 tables of 8, possibly.

you can rent some really way too tall hurricane vases, 3 per, for $45 a table. then you have to fill them with flowers or rocks or floating candles. and for a long table, that's gonna feel pretty sparse.

i know, i know. i've already invested in the vintage mismatched china. (and i'm still over the moon about it, so excited.) but what if we make it a theme?

because we not only have the tables at the reception, but the standing cocktail rounds at the champagne ceremony to dress. not to mention all the nooks and crannies in that huge room.

my mom and i already had the stroke of genius to use plates (because there are extra plates) on stands — salads as table numbers and dinners as nook-and-cranny decorations. and, as luck would have it, she just happens to collect these totally cool rare vintage teapots.

why not use them? and if we're already using plates and pots, why not cups? and bowls? so i went to ebay, and had an ebasm. yes. an ebasm.

hello, mismatched teacups. i can float a single bud in them. i can make them into candles. i can pot herbs in them. and i can sell them all packaged with my china when we're done. because it's china. wow.

but that's just the reception decor figured out. what about the many standing cocktail tables we'll need for the champagne ceremony? i want them to feel like the whole event belongs together. enter, anchor hocking and hazel atlas. yes, depression glass. and 70's glass. sue me:

let's get some bulk gardenias, maybe some succulents. let's get some fancy white sand. let's make some candles. this wedding is decorated. and it feels like it has a theme. i love that.

oh, and crazy, you can get personalized teabags as a favor. thinking about it. also, excited to make candles.

xoxo,
a very excited d.i.y. bride