Reusing Wedding Decor as Home Accents

If you were a DIY bride like myself, most likely you still have an abundance of vases, candles and votives stored in your closet collecting dust. Well, pull those babies out, because it's time to put them to use!

White Lanterns
For our outdoor/indoor wedding and reception, I had Ikea white lanterns as the centerpieces for the outdoor cocktail hour after our ceremony. 

After the wedding and them immediately moving into our new apartment, the lanterns have been moved from one cluttered closet to another. Last night, I decided it was time to make these lanterns into something that we could enjoy...and something I would enjoy making.

I gathered some of my acrylic paints and paint brushes and got busy.

While my husband was cooking dinner, I sat at the kitchen table and started painting whatever came to mind, keeping in mind something bright and colorful and all the while enjoying the experience.

About an hour later, that plain ole white lantern was now a beautiful, colorful spiral of colors, perfect for our screened in porch overlooking the lake.

Clear Vases and Votives
After the wedding, I ended up with nearly 20 clear vases and, surprisingly, all but one made it safely in our move. I knew I wanted to use some of them in our new apartment, since 1) I didn't want them to go to waste, 2) we had a ton more space to fill and 3) I wanted to put my craft skills to the test (watching Lynette Jennings during my teenage years has got to count somewhere, right?).

Here are a few ideas I came up with:

Round Vases
Adding your favorite potpourri to these vases and putting them in a bathroom (I have them on the back of the toilets) can not only keep the room smelling pretty, but also adds a bit of color to a sometimes not so colorful space.

Tall Vases and Votives
If you have tall, cylinder vases that are too big for everyday flower arrangements, filling them with sand and shells or stones is a great way to accent small corners. This project idea actually killed two birds with one stone for me. I wanted to use the shells and sand that we collected on our honeymoon somewhere and this was the perfect way to do it. I filled the bottom of the vase with about 1/4 sand and added the shells to the top. I placed this beautiful "beach" in the corner of the guest bathroom counter. I accented the vase with three votive candle holders and battery operated candles (both also leftover from the wedding).

Thanks to this little idea, the guest bathroom is complete in full beach theme.

What have you done with your leftover wedding decorations?