Pile o' Wedding: Chandy Edition

Weddings. Who doesn't love them? The summer of 2010 was truly the summer of love as we came together TWICE in less than two months to celebrate the addition of new members to the family. The planning process was fun, intense, and sressful but the challenge to create the look without busting up the budget really stretched us all to the edge of our capabilities. Many hours were spent via long distance phone calls to brainstorm ideas, beg for assistance, and maybe sometimes vent like there was no tommorrow. But we made it through, and even came up with some amazing ideas. Some of them worked, some of them didn't. And so, from these learning experiences we bring you our first ever blogging series....

We're going to showcase some of the crafts that went into the wedding planning last year, give a how-to if necessary, and show you where they are now (because what's the point of all that crafting, if you're not left with awesome stuff to put in your house??) Every project was done with a very specific budget in mind, and will maybe offer you some ideas for your own party planning and decorating self.

To kick things off I'm going to show you one of the first projects: The Trashy Chandy. This project began in the Good Cents store (It's where the Good Will reject items are sent to die) and seeing a beautiful, albeit broken, brass light fixture in the $2.00 bin. It looked much like this one:

Photo via YoungHouseLove

Our lovely little light fixture still had the jagged wiring exposed at the top, as if someone had ripped it from the ceiling in a home reno rage, and most of the little candle light parts (technical term) were broken. It was beautiful. I snatched that bad boy up with plans to give it some TLC and hang it in my bedroom.

Our Dad helped me remove the wiring, the whole thing got a few light coats of Valspar Porcelain spray paint, and we exchanged the broken plastic light bulb candles for the real thing.

Then the perfect opportunity to use it came in the form of our engagement pictures with Kim Brock, and then it was officially a "wedding craft."

Photos via Kimbe Photography

This cute little light also made an appearance at our wedding reception in July. We hung it up over the dessert tables (Stay tuned for the dessert table edition coming soon!) in the arbor at our parent's house. Kourtney added the touch of light blue satin ribbon to fancy things up. It really added a little romance to the table, dontcha think?

Photos via Kimbe Photography

 It held up beautifully to all the wedding abuse, but where is it now you say? Finally hanging up in the corner of the bedroom! Where it was always meant to be. Here's our little $2.00 chandy today:

Photo via yours truly. ( me)

Cost breakdown:
$2.00 Chandalier
$0.00 Left over spray paint
$2.00 Taper candles
$4.00 TOTAL

Tips for spray painting your own chandy:

• Take a little bit of sandpaper and rough the metal up a little bit before you paint. The paint will stick a little better, and chip less.
• Hang it up while you paint. It makes coating it evenly a breeze.
• Light coats. If you spray it on too thick you'll get some nasty runs. It probably took about 7 very light coats to cover it all evenly.

Good luck!

Lindy

Linking this project up to Frugalicious Friday and the Shanty Sister's I Made it Without My Hubby!