Monday, June 22, 2009

Back-up Plan

Our wonderful friends planned a garden reception for their newly married son and daughter-in-law. Several weeks before, they asked if I would be the "back-up plan" in case of inclement weather. I happily agreed. Unfortunately we have been experiencing unseasonably rainy weather and Saturday was no exception. At noon I was called when it was decided that the reception would be moved inside to a nearby church. The bride's parents had plenty of little lights, oodles of beautiful flower pots, and lengths of picket fencing to give a garden ambiance, but I wanted to add just a bit more. So with the wheels in my head spinning and my hubby as my creative accomplice, we went to work on Plan B.
We used four old and weathered porch columns given to us by our good neighbors. We added a top to attach them together. The columns stood firm and became a pergola over the wedding cake.
Then we pulled out two french doors (Yes, we really do have these things on hand---stored in our garage, where most people park their cars). We cut and painted a few pieces of wood to slip on top of the doors. This tied them together so they'd stand on their own to form a unique and pretty garden trellis; a perfect spot for the bride and groom to greet their guests.It was a whirlwind of a day, but I think the bride and groom were pretty pleased with the back-up plan.

22 comments:

  1. Oh this is the most darling reception I have seen in awhile. It is truly magical. Well done~!

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  2. That was so smart of them to have a backup plan...and so kind of you to agree to help! It could have been diappointing for them to have to move their reception into the church, but you made it absolutely beautiful and they seemed happy as can be. Great job!

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  3. Wonderfully creative as always!

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  4. Job well done as usual. I love the porch columns. They lended such elegance.

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  5. Now everyone will start asking you to help with their weddings! (That's how my wedding rental business got started!) Great job. Those antique pillars are a real good find.

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  6. I'm sure the bride and were thrilled! This is beautiful.

    How very nice of you to do this. What a kindness to offer to your friends. What a lovely expression of your love.

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  7. Wow, I am always impressed with your creativity. I'm sure they will thrilled that they asked you to help with their back up plans! Looks wonderful!

    Sheryl

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  8. How adorable all this is...just beautiful!

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  9. I love you blog, you are SO creative, because of this I gave you an award on my Digital Scrapbooking Blog, go check it out! www.heizzyscraps.blogspot.com!

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  10. Question:Do you ever use regular paint or stain? Or do you always use spray paint? How do you personally prep a piece of Furniture before you begin?]

    The wedding looks amazing. You REALLY are amazing I don't know how you think up some of these Ideas.

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  11. Wow! Great back up plan. It looks like that was the originally plan all the time. I'm impressed. And lucky you to have such great items on hand to use.

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  12. Wow you pulled this altogether starting at noon? You are a miracle worker for sure. It looks beautiful.

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  13. We attended a reception Saturday also. However, their backup plan (because of the rain) didn't turn out near as nice as yours! Good job!

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  14. Oh my goodness!!!! We have a wedding reception/BBQ out in our yard in Aug.....but we too have had rain the entire month of june.....I need a back up plan... How about it Joy, come be my back up plan! LOL........It looked so GREAT!!!! I loved what we saw in the pictures! GOOD JOB GUYS! ♥

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  15. So pretty!

    I loved the tour of your daughter's apartment. I'm sure she loved having you to help her!

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  16. That was amazing! You are an extremely good friend!!!

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  17. and what a fabulous Plan B it was, you are so very smart and more kind, great job

    Sarah

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  18. Joy,

    Thank you for your comment, my hubby added hangers to the back, no big deal at all. It was good for him to feel all manly and useful :)

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  19. Ashley,
    YES, I use regular paint and stain!
    I did a paint tutorial here:
    http://joysofhome.blogspot.com/2008/11/painting-novel.html

    And if you have more questions, feel free to email me at joysofhome@gmail.com

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  20. I wish you were close so you could help me with my daughter's in Feb. you did a great job....Barb

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I am truly humbled and thrilled that you read and comment on my blog. If you have a question for me, please feel free to email me.
Thank you so very much for inspiring me to be more creative!