Welcome to the twelfth edition of “a thousand words”. This story is called “Hand-Painted Party Lanterns”. No matter how you plan to celebrate your wedding, documenting it correctly is important for your memories. Though photography is widely regarded as the best option, adding some notes or a description is even better. So, instead of just saying that a picture is worth a thousand words, we like to add those words in, too. This edition is all about wedding lighting; specifically hand-painted party lanterns and how they shaped one couple’s wedding. Hopefully, this combination of photos and words can serve as inspiration for your upcoming event!
When it comes to choosing the right lighting for your wedding, you have a ton of options. Some people prefer candles while others prefer LED lights or chandeliers. For Mark and Jane of Springfield, Illinois, party lanterns seemed the most appealing from the start. But before they made the leap, they wanted to explore their options and determine if they were, in fact, the right fit for their celebration. Here is the story of their journey.
Mark and Jane’s Story
To start, I find it’s helpful to give some background on the happy couple. Mark and Jane had been engaged for over three years, and it was finally time to set a date! Mark works in finances, but Jane has a more artistic job as an interior decorator. Immediately, they agreed that the lighting and aesthetics of their wedding were extremely important. After much searching on the internet, they settled on white LED lanterns for their “canvas”. However, party lanterns are quite plain out of the box; so they wanted to decorate them. But, before they could choose how they would decorate them, they needed to see what the venue would look like. So, they loaded into the car to take a little field trip.
Assessing the Venue
Upon arriving at the venue, they noticed it had a very classic charm to the layout. As an interior decorator, Jane wanted to enhance the décor of what was already there. There are oriental vases, decadent rugs, and the tables and chairs were leather and dark wood. With that in mind, she deduced that hand-painted party lanterns were the way to go. She hadn’t decided yet is they would be spray painted or painted with a brush, but she knew what colors she wanted. With their brains full of inspiration, it was time to start looking at which lanterns would be the best choice for their design.
Choosing the Right Party Lanterns
Now that they determined they wanted to paint them, they needed to settle on the perfect version for the job. Overall, there are two versions available; white or color LED party lanterns. Each version has pros and cons, so they made a list of what features they wanted the most and began weighing their options. Here is a quick breakdown of the two types.
Color Lanterns
Color lanterns are by far the most popular choice because you can match your wedding colors. Whether you want blue, red, green, or any other color, there are plenty of options from which to choose. However, since it was a very elegant venue, Mark and Jane didn’t want to get too crazy on the colors. Additionally, they didn’t want the colors to take away from the hand-painted look when they were completed. So, they decided against the color version and looked at something more classic in design.
White Lanterns
Fortunately, the other option available is white lanterns that match the romantic feeling of a wedding much better. They are clean, simple, and elegant; which are all the key ingredients of a romantic theme. Additionally, the paint would show up much better on white LED party lanterns compared to the color options. Lastly, they wanted to pick a brand that had just the right amount of light. They were after a soft ambiance, and some brands are much too bright for that look. So, they ordered a few samples from a variety of vendors to compare. Once they found the perfect option, it was time to figure out what they wanted to order.
Determining How Many Lanterns They Need
Once they settled on white lanterns, Mark and Jane needed to decide how many they would need for their event. Unfortunately, there is no set rule for this. However, they were able to test them out at home and figure out how many they wanted per square foot. To keep it romantic, they determined that one lantern for every 50 square feet was the perfect amount of light. Since their venue was around 1200 square feet, they determined that around 24 white LED party lanterns would be the right amount. Fortunately, since they are sold by the dozen, shopping was quite easy for them. Now that they had their lanterns ordered, it was time to figure out exactly how to decorate them.
Deciding On and Creating Hand-Painted Party Lanterns
Once their shipment had arrived, they decided to experiment with designs. First, they tried using some high quality spray paint and a stencil to achieve the desired look. The result was nice, but it wasn’t exactly what they were looking for. Next, they decided to get some cheap acrylic paints and brushes to make hand-painted party lanterns. It took about an hour to paint the first one, but he result was amazing; as you can see in the main photo above. Once they had their template, painting the other 23 lanterns only took about 15 minutes each. After the job was complete, they sat back and enjoyed the results in their living room before packing them into boxes for transport on the day of their wedding.
And that’s the complete story about how Mark and Jane created beautiful hand-painted party lanterns for their wedding. Hopefully, you found this story inspirational and fueled some creativity of your own. Remember, we want to share your entertaining wedding story, too! Just put together a photo or two and write a short version of your story. Then, just contact us with that info and our writing team will review it. If you have a fun enough story, you might be featured in our next edition! Until next time, have fun and good luck planning your wedding!
