Table Decor on a Budget

This last week I was in charge of the food for a women’s event at church.

The theme of the event was preparedness and food storage – the event was called “Stockin’ Up!”  There was a great guest speaker from Arizona who shared with us her method for storing food and being prepared.

Since we were unsure how many people would attend we decided to go with a dessert bar.  We did bar cookies because those would be easy to cut into smaller pieces if we had more people than we expected.  We planned on 200 and had over 350 people there so we quickly cut all the bar cookies in half and it worked great.

For a list of the bar cookies served and the recipes go here.

Of course we had a budget to work with for the event and bar cookies are great way to stretch your budget because you can cut them big or small. 

I also came up with a few fun ways to stretch that budget with the table decor.

One of my favorite things to use on a serving table is cake plates.  Not only are they pretty but they create nice height on the table.  So using the theme of the event – food storage  and stocking up I created my own cake plates out of canned food and other items found at the dollar store!

I used a combination of clear plastic and silver serving plates from the dollar store along with some canned food I bought there.  Our color scheme for the night was green and pink so I found some canned fruit with pink, green and yellow labels – perfect!

 

Because the plates were fairly lightweight we used some duct tape to attach the plates to the cans so they didn’t topple over when people reached to get a bar cookie  – thanks to my husband and friend Jeannena for figuring all that out for me!!

 

I always like to lay out the serving table with all of its serving pieces beforehand – to make sure that it looks good and the table is well balanced.

 

Of course a centerpiece of flowers in a large can added the perfect touch!  The flowers and the pink and green ribbon came from Costco and helped tie everything together along with the pink and green sheer pieces of fabric we already had from another event.

 

I also created little place cards in my Creative Memories Storybook Creator software that sat on little stands I found at the dollar store!!  I like to know what I’m eating!

The total spent on table decor was very little and was created mainly out of things from the dollar store!

Of course the table always looks prettier when it is full of food!

 

 

What’s your best budget saving table decor ideas?

Tween Birthday Party

Today’s featured party is one I consulted on.  It was the 12th birthday party for my sweet next door neighbor Molly.  When her mom, Katie, contacted me about helping with the party she told me the party theme was “blue and peace signs.”  Not your everyday birthday party theme but we can work with that! 

Katie wanted to do cupcakes and a candy bar.  White cupcakes with all kinds of blue toppings looked very festive and made a great centerpiece for the table!
 

Oreos dipped in white chocolate with blue sprinkles were also very popular!  Katie used the peppermint Joe Joes from Trader Joes – so yummy!
 

The candy bar consisted of lots of fun candy.

Since Katie conveniently lives next door to me so we used my collection of white and clear glass containers to give a cohesive look to the table.  We grouped the candy into color themes – there was the blue and white/silver candy…

 

the blue and yellow candy….

 

and then the bright, rainbow colored candy….

 

We almost forgot the red licorice!
 

There were cute little Chinese take out boxes for the girls to fill with their candy and fun little smiley faces and peace signs to decorate the table.

 

The table looked darling!
Anchored in the center of the table were some balloons to help carry out the Blue/Peace theme.

 

What would a party be without balloons!
 

Other fun decor included this clothesline full of photos of Molly through her long 12 years!

 

When the girls returned to the house after a few games of bowling they munched on pizza and treats from the candy/cupcake bar.

 

The girls answered some questions to see who knew the birthday girl the best….

 

and played some other fun “tween” girl games like two truths and a lie!
 

Of course music and a little bit of dancing made for a fun party!

The girls each went home with one of these darling party favors.  I’d been looking for an excuse to use these darling Jones Soda labels I had seen over at Karyn’s shop – Pixel Perfect Boutique.  

 

Katie emailed Karyn some photos of Molly and some words that decribed her and Karyn personalized the labels.  Aren’t they cute!!!  What a fun party favor!

  

Thanks to Katie and Molly for letting me help with the party and Peace Out Molly – we love you!!

A special thanks to Karyn of Pixel Perfect Boutique for helping us create the perfect party favor!

Thanksgiving Table Decor

Do you have your Thanksgiving menu planned?  How about your table decor?

Sometimes we spend so much time planning the menu, shopping and cooking that we end up with little or no time to think about table decor.  Setting a pretty table helps to create a mood for your special celebration just as much as the menu does.  Many times we already have items around the house we can use to add those extra touches to our holiday table.

Here’s one that I enjoy using that is easy to do. 

 

You can use any of your fancier stemware – I used a martini glass here but you can use whatever you have.  If you don’t have any fancy stemware check out the dollar store.  This martini glass came from there and of course was only a dollar!  Just fill your glass with water and then float a candle.  Floating candles can usually be found at your local craft store.  You can use one at each individual place setting or if you don’t have enough glasses use them in between place settings and then you will only need half as many.

Nothing sets a mood better than candlelight!

 

Another way to add that special touch to your holiday table is by creating place cards for each of your guests.  Who doesn’t like to see their name in print?! 

 

You can create your own or if you want a quicker and easier option check out the cute ones over at Pixel Perfect Boutique.  You just download them to your computer, print them and then add your guest’s names!

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