Creative Dining {Round 2}

Happy Wednesday! I shared last week a few images from my Creative Dining piece for LPF Mag featuring items solely from your local hardware store. As promised, I'm sharing some more insight into the shoot as well as some tips and tricks for recreating it at home with you today. I want to focus on the items used in the place setting. A great find was acrylic wine glasses on clearance from the summer. I was struggling with what to use for glasses until I found those. Next on the list to be found were plates, napkins, escort cards, and napkin rings. This is where the hunt began and where the tips and tricks jump in…

Tips and Tricks #1: A great option for plates are plant saucers. I used chocolate brown terra cotta ones that worked out fabulous. This was actually an idea from my mom that worked out perfectly. Another option is to use duct cap covers (like I used for a serving piece as seen last week). They are a bit deep but will work just as well.

Tips and Tricks #2: The painting section of the hardware store is your best friend! The napkins are actually cotton painters rags. I picked up a pack of 12 and used them for everything from napkins to decorative covers for the escort cards. Also found in the painters section are flat paint scrapers that make for excellent serving utensils. You can even wrap the base in twine to make it more decorative.

Tips and Tricks #3: The napkin rings are my favorite idea from the whole shoot. I found a medium gauge steel wire (with the screws, nuts, bolts, etc..) and bent it to spell out the word "enjoy". I then cut a 3" piece, bent it into a circle, strung it through the "enjoy" and connected the two ends. All that was left was to put it over the napkin. Another option is to spell out guests names with the wire. 

Tips and Tricks #4: For escort cards, I found cute little succulents in the garden section. From there I wrapped the bottom in 1/4 of the white rag used for a napkin and tied it with twine. I created the first letter of each person's name out of the medium gauge steel wire and attached it to the succulent to sit at each seat. 

Transformers

I know Issue 4 of LPF Mag isn't even out yet, but I've already began brainstorming for Issue 5. It might seem a bit far off, but my idea for the issue has me so excited that I couldn't wait to share my inspiration with you now. The concept is a gorgeous rustic chic dinner party set in a open field with giant old oak trees all around. Sounds pretty simple, I know. The part I haven't told you yet though is that I want everything (with the exception of food) to come from a hardware store wether it be Home Depot or Lowe's. The idea is to take what you might consider to be industrial and tough and turn it into something soft and beautiful. I'm still working out some details but know that I want to take rough materials and transform them into something you would never guess came from a hardware store. While places like Lowe's and Home Depot have started to include some beautiful pieces in the store, I don't want to use anything in it's original state. For example, a PVC pipe could be turned into a vase, washers into a metallic backdrop, or a paint can as an ice bucket.

The possibilities are really endless and I can't wait to get started. I hope you all enjoy the inspiration behind the project and look forward to seeing the end result as much as I do! Have a great Wednesday!