Different ideas for confetti at your wedding
Where did the idea of confetti start?
The tradition originated in Italy, where small sweets were often thrown at carnivals. ‘Confetti’ in Italian refers to sugar-coated almonds, which are often given as favours to wedding guests. Normally five almonds, are given out at weddings, which stand for happiness, health, wealth, fertility, and longevity to the newlyweds. This tradition also represents that life is both biter and sweet. Giving confetti is customary at all of life’s special celebrations.
The throwing of seeds and grains over newlyweds dates back centuries in England, traditionally thought that it will make the marriage as fruitful and abundant as the grains.
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Will my venue allow confetti throwing?
Traditionally thrown when a couple leave the church or venue. With confetti moments becoming increasingly popular, most venues do now accept wedding confetti. Always check with your venue before purchasing any confetti. However, most venues today will accept environmentally friendly confetti.
If your venue is hosting both the ceremony and the celebrations, you might not have this natural “exit”. But there are many opportunities for a confetti moment later on the wedding day. For instance, how about when you gather together your guests for drinks on the terrace or photos in the garden? In a wood, it can be thrown as you walk out.Likewise, you can turn a planned formal entrance on the grand staircase into the perfect confetti moment! Alternatively, if you plan on making a proper departure at the end of the night, an evening confetti moment is great fun!
Photo by Chris Dickens on Unsplash
Confetti throwing at weddings
Throwing confetti at weddings is a great way to signify the end of the ceremony and the beginning of the party. Biodegradable confetti create a stunning confetti moment without harming the environment or wildlife. Most eco-friendly confetti are water-soluble, non-toxic, biodegradable. Biodegradable petals are the eco-friendly choice of wedding confetti; the petals blow away shortly after being used to create your confetti moment; the venue can simply hose the confetti away or let nature help with the clean-up!
Confetti cones – make your own
YouTube have many videos you can watch to make your own cones.
Is it cheaper to make your own confetti?
July sees most flowers in full bloom in all their glory, especially roses, the staple of most confetti. Making your own confetti is cheap, the resources are in your garden (or a friend or relative’s garden if you live in a flat!) and, best of all, it’s free!
How long will homemade confetti last?
Dried petal confetti will last a maximum of four months if it is stored in a chilled, dark place away from moisture. Collecting petals in spring will ensure they stay perfect for weddings up until September
Making your own natural confetti
- Choose fresh flowers in full bloom. Avoid petals that are turning brown on the edges as these become very brown on drying. Free the petals from the stem.
- Line a microwave safe plate with a piece of paper towel. Place the petals onto the paper towel in a SINGLE layer. Any over lapping will stick together so give them some space!
- Cover the layer of petals with a second piece of paper towel.
- Place the plate in your microwave and heat on high until the petals are no longer damp to touch
- You will need to experiment with timings as each microwave is different. For us and our 800 watt microwave, it took about a minute and 30 seconds. We ‘cooked’ our petals in 30 second increments until we found the perfect drying time
- Remove the plate from the microwave, check your petals are all dry and store in a sealed container. Keep them in a dark cool place until your wedding day!
How much do you need?
Using a one litre measuring jug. One litre provides about five or six large handfuls. Therefore for 60 guests you will need 12 litres, 100 guests 20 litres and 140 guests 28 litres. It’s worth noting that this measurement is for dried rose petals. Smaller flowers such as delphiniums will probably require a smaller volume.
If you want to scatter dried (or fresh) petals along the 14-metre aisle of the you will need around half a litre per metre.
One last word of warning, be aware of red petals when you make your biodegradable confetti as the colour can sometimes stain clothes if they get damp.
How much confetti do I need for 100 guests?
As a general rule of thumb, typically around half the guests will choose to throw confetti. So, one litre of confetti should provide around ten handfuls. Therefore, if you have 100 wedding guests, assuming that 50 will want to throw confetti, you should buy at least ten litres of petals.
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Rice paper or tissue paper confetti
The only thing to remember with paper confetti, especially rice paper, is that it is water-soluble, so on one hand it is easy to clean up as it will dissolve immediately when in contact with water on the other hand it’s better to use on a dry day, as it becomes slippery on a wet surface.
Confetti Balloons
Balloons can be purchased in a variety of colours such as gold, rose gold, silver, rainbow and glitter styles that are sure to add excitement to your celebration. You can even make your own.
Confetti Cones
Confetti cones are a great way to dispense wedding confetti between your wedding guests. The Confetti Cone Company have a large range of confetti cone styles to choose from, whether it be classic white wedding theme or a chic boho theme, they’ve got it. You can personalise most of their confetti cones with your names and the date of your big day. They also have confetti envelopes and confetti jars available to purchase on their website so if confetti cones aren’t for you, they have other options available. By providing confetti cones to your guests, you are ensuring that each guest is given an equal amount of natural confetti petals.
https://www.biodegradable-confetti.co.uk The Confetti Cone Company
Photo by coco tafoya on Unsplash
Leaves
This is another great natural option and apparently growing in popularity – the likes of eucalyptus; it’s a more natural alternative that’s fitting for an outdoor event. You can buy them from dried flower confetti suppliers.
How to use lavender on your big day
Did you know that lavender represents beauty and femininity? It is considered to be the ‘grown-up’ pink! So, what isn’t to love – with its pretty purple shades, using it to add some colour and detail to your big day is simple!
Lavender Confetti
Lavender grain is perfect to use as alternative to confetti. You can also add lavender grain to your favourite natural petal confetti mix, which will not only look great on your photos, it will also smell amazing too!
Photo by Léonard Cotte on Unsplash
Confetti throwing songs
To name just a few:
Happy – Pharrell Williams
Dancing In The Moonlight – Toploader
Marry You – Bruno Mars
Walking On Sunshine – Katrina & The Waves
I Gotta Feeling – Black Eyed Peas
Your Love Keeps Lifting Me – Jackie Wilson
Tips for the best confetti photo
Be generous with the confetti. Either supply each guest with a bag of confetti or have a groomsman/bridesmaid pass around to your guests a basket or two of confetti. Don’t use cones as these can be thrown very high in the air.
Large confetti look best on a camera. Petal are perfect as they make a gorgeous array of colour.
Ensure your guests throw upwards and not at you – you wouldn’t want a mouthful of confetti.
The last step is very simple – enjoy the moment! If you’re walking through the tunnel, walk slowly, keep your heads up or look at each other so you don’t close your eyes when confetti are close to your face. At the end stop and kiss to give your guests a chance to throw the last of their confetti for a great photo opportunity.
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Making Memories Memorable.