Lovey Dovey Wedding
Posted by Cristalier Design Team at 11/1/2007 2:05 PM and is filed under Crystal Wedding Trees,Cristalier Design Ideas 
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When Cristalier Designer #1 faced the challenge to create a Crystal Wedding Tree in one hour or less, the first thing that popped into her head was... | ||
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"I wish I had little mice friends to help me, like Cinderella had"
While no mice showed up to help, white wedding doves did.
Designer 1
Biggest Challenge:
I was thinking how can I possibly complete the task of setting up the metal tree, decorate it and bring a new look to the crystal tree idea all in one hour?
Inspiration:
I started thinking about different ways to muti-task, that's when I thought "the only way I could complete this task is if I had an extra set of hands or little mice like in the fairytale Cinderella". That's when I thought about the Disney cartoon and how the birds carried her wedding veil, from there the decision to use wedding doves was an obvious choice.
Favorite Feature:
I love the flying doves. They bring that unexpected touch to the crystal wedding tree. I think they really bring that fairytale feeling to a wedding.
Alternate Ideas:
If I would have had more time (lol) I would have had the crystal strands swagged from dove to dove. I also considered adding white silk ribbons with larger crystals hanging from some of the branches.
Final thoughts:
I wouldn't use Doves on every tree. If your using the crystal wedding tree during your reception, I would recommend only your feature tree have the doves actually flying in with the crystals. On any accent trees or smaller centerpiece trees, you may want to add one or two smaller doves to the branches. |
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Metal Tree Color: I wish I could say that I chose the ivory tree with some greater design in mind, but in fact it just happen to be the first box from the warehouse that I could reach without using a lift. To save time I used Classic Ivory, but I think it would have looked just as good with the Elegant Bronze tree.
Tree Size: I decided on our Classic Ivory Metal Tree in the 60” height. I felt that this size would be perfect for a room that has 10 foot ceilings. I adjusted the majority of the branches upwards with exception to the lower twigs, those I either bent slightly downwards or kinda kinky but straight out.
Crystal Type: I used Swarovski lead crystals for my tree. These have amazing sparkle but if your budget was tight, you could purchase Cristalier Glass garland which cost less than our Swarovski Strass crystal octagon Strands (which we purchase from Swarovski and then hand assemble in our factory)
Crystal Count: I used 20 Swarovski Strass crystal strands with silver bowties and 14mm octagons. They come in 36” strands and I separated all of them for a more custom look. This gave me 40+ partial strands with most of the strands between 15” – 20” long. The shorter pieces I used on the farthest tips of the twigs, this is only time when a 1 ft strand is useful. I was really pleased with the sparkle the crystals gave off with the candlelight. When creating a crystal wedding tree, the crystals should be delicate and give off lots of sparkles and twinkles. I found that when using larger octagon strands ( 24-26mm) the trees tend to lose that soft whispy, dreamy look that is so important to the overall idea of crystal trees.
Accessories: I thought the idea of having 5 doves flying in to decorate the tree would put a “wow” on guest’s lips. Due to time constraints I used 2 white doves hung from a spool of nylon thread instead of monofilament. I found this thread to be really strong but completely invisible. In fact it is so clear, that I had a time trying to tie it; it kept disappearing. (See below for instructions) The 60" metal tree comes with 5 really stylish votive holders. I used simple inexpensive tea lights in them. You could put larger votive candles instead.
Tree Base: I was really tight on time (less than 1 minute left) so I just sprinkled some of our 30% leaded Swarovski Scatter Crystals (these are the octagons that do not have any holes in them) around the root base for that added sparkle. In a real setting, I would have added something more in fitting with the theme... perhaps some low profile white roses with smaller doves in the centerpiece. |
I was going to have some doves carrying loose crystals while 2 others carried a strand of crystals in swag fashion, but it would have taken another 10-15 minutes to set that up. You could use alternate birds if you would like. |
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