One of my best friends is getting married this summer! Celeste and I have been friends since 7th grade. We won’t discuss how many years ago that was! haha! Her wedding will be small, no more than 45 guests on August 20th. Our gazebo is the perfect spot for a for a small intimate wedding ceremony. 

Michaels’ Makers June Challenge: Summer Party.  A backyard wedding is the perfect fit for the June challenge. I got a big head start with ideas by browsing the aisles at Michaels. Celeste’s wedding colors are turquoise and purple and I’m having so much fun adding pops of color to our lush landscape. 

It’s always a challenge for me to decorate for someone else, infusing THEIR style rather than my own. Since this is Celeste’s special day, I wanted to add decorative touches that reflect her style. Here are a few ideas from my ‘dress rehearsal’ over the weekend. But I have plenty of time to tweak, add, take away and work on creating a setting for making happy memories. There will be a white tent for shade and chairs for comfort…well as comfy as folding chairs can be; hors d’oeuvres and bubbles too and more planters, flowers and landscape work as we get into summer. In the meantime, here’s my starting point and a few ideas for hosting a small outdoor wedding ceremony. 

Decorations:

• Aqua/turquoise painted flower pots (or tire planter and chandelier planter in my case) filled with purple flowers. I do this every summer anyway so coordinating my flowers and planters with her wedding colors works well. Last year I did reds, yellows and oranges. This year it’s all about shades of purple in aqua and turquoise planters and pots. 

• Decorative Letter Accent: I LOVE these circle wooden letters. I painted a “J” in her wedding colors (aged with a trans-tint dye technique). I wasn’t able to capture how colorful this truly is in real life in a photo. But it’s a pretty personalized gift that doubles as a decorative accent. 

• Michaels’ has SO many fun party decorations to choose from. Paper lanterns, paper fans, tissue paper honeycomb ornaments and poufs. I love the colors! I displayed them in the grape arbor/gazebo for this blog post but they’ll decorate a white tent with outdoor lights on the big day. Take a look at the outdoor lighting options Michaels’ provides too: pretty string lights, flameless candles, and my favorite solar options!

• Banner: Check out the wedding aisle at Michaels’ for adorable “Mr. & Mrs.” and other wedding banners. Mine is a DIY “LOVE” banner at the top of a curved gazebo frame … perfect for a photo opportunity. I’m going to layer it with a lavender and light aqua rag banner behind the l-o-v-e letters, around the top of the gazebo.

• Silk flowers around the grape arbor will add some color and romance to the greenery.

Chalkboard signs: So many to choose from. I love this framed chalkboard easel for instructing guests to take their “thank you gift”. One near the road to direct guests. One with their names and wedding date. I like having chalkboards on hand for labeling, designating areas, instructions, etc. for guests at parties. 

Party Favors: Michaels’ is the place to go for wedding favors. The best selection of little containers (glass jars with flip top lids or corks, heart shaped tins, cute cardboard boxes) for candy or in our case, lavender bath salts. 

Lavender Bath Salt recipe: Mix 1/4 cup of epsom salt with 3-5 drops of lavender essential oil into a mason jar. Shake and pour into glass container, top with a “thank you” sticker (included with the glass containers), embellish with coordinating decorative tape and ribbon. 

Since it’s an outdoor ceremony in August, I’m also going to create some hand held paper fans for guests by printing the bride & groom’s names, wedding date, a poem or bible verse onto card stock or scrapbook paper, cutting out a pretty and functional shape then glueing to a large wooden popsicle stick. 

Flowers: Silk flowers are budget-friendly and long lasting. If not for the bride’s bouquet, a great option for the “bouquet toss” at the reception, decor or a pretty accent to a table. 

Unity Candle: Michaels’ has a section designated to a stunning collection of unity candles or create your own set from the candle aisle with a pillar and two tapered candle sticks. Crystal holders and a beautiful charger complete the look. 

Refreshments: An August outdoor afternoon wedding ceremony calls for serving ice water and a few refreshments. A special occasion calls for glass. I love these mini glass jugs and coordinating straws. Any suggestions for finger foods? Dinner and reception are at another location later in the afternoon. 

Are you hosting a summer party? Entertaining guests? There’s so much to celebrate during this time of year! End of school parties, graduation, Father’s Day, Independence Day, birthdays, backyard BBQs and more.

For more summer party ideas: From paper crafts, party goods and baking supplies to new outdoor lighting, glass and floral, Michaels is your DIY destination for all of your summer celebrations.

Be sure to check out all of the other Michaels Makers DIY summer party ideas on the Michaels blog.

Visit these talented blog friends starting at 11 p.m. CST for more summer party inspiration: