Engagement Party Decorations

For the engagement party we threw the Saturday before last, I really wanted to recreate this fun, festive look from Martha Stewart weddings. But alas, time, budget, and putting myself in the groom-to-be’s shoes prevailed and I switched gears.

Instead of fun and festive, I went for simple and elegant. I ordered a bunch of photos of the couple from snapfish.com for nine cents a piece; shipping was free. I put the picture in frames we already had. I just slipped their photo in front of each of the photos that was already in there. I also framed the invitation to the party and their wedding invitation. I displayed all the framed items on bookcases and end tables. It was a big impact for only $1.17.

I got one big bunch and two little bunches of flowers from the grocery store and made five bouquets out of them which I placed all over the apartment, including the bathroom.

We scattered one to two dozen tealights (sometimes in votive holders and sometimes not) amongst the photos, flowers and food. We buy tealights in bulk from Ikea, so we already had them on hand. In my opinion, nothing adds ambiance like good lighting.

The cost for everything was probably $20-25, but the effect on our apartment was enormous. Because we moved so many things around, edited what was normally on display, and added so many elements that represented the couple we were honoring, the apartment was transformed. I think it really set the mood for the evening and made the couple feel special.