DIY Candy Buffet – Part III {The Details}
Now that you’ve got all the important things for your candy buffet (containers, scoops, and candy of course), it’s time for my favorite part – the details! {This will be a slightly longer post as there are lots of fun details and DIY instructions, so prepare yourself. ;) }
{Naming Your Buffet}
Since you already have a theme in mind, it’s time to come up with a name for your candy buffet. Here are a few of my suggestions:
- “Love is Sweet” – The most popular name (which I’m sure you’ve heard before), and can be paired with, “take a treat.”
- “A Sweet Ending to a New Beginning” – also very popular.
- “Love Sweet Love”
- “Sweet Shoppe”
- We named ours “Carlson’s Sweet Boutique” because I thought the name was elegant, and different from any name I’d seen before.
- “Sweet 16” – obviously for a 16th birthday party ;)
These are just some ideas to get you going, don’t be afraid to get creative in coming up with a name to match your theme!
{The Sign}
Photo by: Love By Serena
For our sign, I purchased a wooden plaque from Michael’s, painted it in our colors, and then had my husband who’s a graphic designer {lucky me ;) } design and cut the letters out of vinyl, and place them on the sign.
The most simple, and probably least expensive, way to do a sign would be to type your desired name into Microsoft Word in a pretty font, print and cut it to size, and place it in a picture frame. Very easy and cost effective!
A second option, that works better if you don’t have a long name, would be to purchase wooden letters (found at your local craft store) and paint them in your colors. An example would be to purchase the letters for the word “love” or “sweet,” and then you can paint them in one color, or you could get fancy and paint a pattern on them!
{Labels}
Now that you have all the candy, you need to label it so guests know what they’re taking!
There are ways you can design your own labels in Microsoft Word, or you could even buy escort cards from a store like Michael’s, label them with your candy, and attach them to ribbon.
If you are interested in purchasing custom labels, we have several for sale on our Etsy shop!
{How to Attach the Labels}
I used two different ways to attach the labels, depending on shape of the vase.
For containers with lids or more of a “vase-like” shape:
- Cut a small horizontal slit (approx. 1/2” long) above the text on your label.
- Use your spool of ribbon and wrap a length of ribbon around the vase, and cut to the desired length.
- Thread both ends of the ribbon through the slit on the front of the label.
- Place a small piece of double sided tape on the back of the label and secure the ribbon to the double sided tape so the label won’t slide off.
- This will create your loop, and then you just place the loop over the jar or lid
*If you don’t want the label to hang so low, you can always cut the ribbon shorter in the first step so that the label is on top of the lid, rather than in front of the jar.
(click on photo to expand)
For “bowl-like” containers without a lid (where the first method isn’t possible):
- Cut a small horizontal slit (approx. 1/2” long) above the text on your label.
- Cut a small piece of ribbon from your spool (approx. 4”). I used a thicker (5/8”) ribbon so it didn’t feel as flimsy.
- Thread one end of the ribbon through the slit on the front of the label.
- Place a small piece of double sided tape on the back of the label and secure the ribbon to the double sided tape so the label won’t slide off.
- Attach the other end of the ribbon to the inside of the container with a piece of regular tape (you won’t be able to see this because the label should hang in front of it on the outside).
*If you find that the label “pops out” too much from the jar, you can use another piece of double sided tape to secure the label/ribbon combo to the outside of the jar.
(click on photo to expand)
Of course, there are other methods to attaching the labels, but these are the two I chose to use for my own buffet. :)
{Decorating The Scoops}
We wound up buying the inexpensive plastic scoops rather than spending the money on a more expensive metal scoop.To dress them up a little, this is how I decorated them.
Photo by: Love By Serena
What you’ll need:
Ribbon
Hot Glue
Flower or other small embellishment (optional)
- Starting near the scoop, on the back of the handle, begin wrapping the ribbon around the handle until you get to the end (DON’T GLUE OR CUT ANYTHING YET). The ribbon will overlap itself slightly. This will give you an idea of how much ribbon you need.
- Cut the ribbon slightly longer than you think you’ll need to allow some room for error.
- Using hot glue, attach the ribbon to the back of the handle near the scoop (just like you practiced), and allow a few seconds for it to dry.
- Wrap the ribbon all the way around the handle one time.
- Begin wrapping a second time around, this time placing a small amount of glue on the ribbon that’s already wrapped.
- Press the ribbon down onto the hot glue and allow a few seconds for it to dry.
- Repeat this process all the way down the handle.
- Secure the end of the ribbon neatly to the end of the handle with hot glue.
- Cut off any excess ribbon.
- Hot glue your embellishment on the end of the handle nearest to the scoop.
Here is a close up picture I took so you can see exactly how I wrapped the ribbon:
Simple. Easy. Cute. :)
{Creating Visual Interest}
There are several ways you can create more visual interest on your table. The first of these ways is to use a variety of table linens. My reception venue provided the white tablecloth, but I was able to find extra fabric in my colors and draped the fabric across the table. This helps to tie in your color scheme, and is much more interesting than having a white tablecloth!
The second way to create visual interest is to play with height. I found several sturdy boxes (it is important that they are strong and sturdy enough to support a glass jar full of candy, as you don’t want the jar falling over!), and placed them under the table linens. Obviously, it’s best to put the boxes in the back so that the height of those containers doesn’t make it difficult to reach the other containers.
Some other ways you can add to the table would be to include another centerpiece, candles (that people can’t knock over easily if they’re getting candy!), or even sprinkle some crystals around the table (I found my crystals at Michael’s).
I’ve already shared a photo of my candy buffet, but I’d like to share it again to demonstrate some of the things I just mentioned.
Photo by: Love By Serena
Now that my series on The DIY Candy Buffet is complete, I’m giving you a PDF checklist of all the things I mentioned in my last 3 posts. Hopefully this will help you to remember all these little details!
Tired of seeing the candy buffet? Here are some fun alternatives:
- Make Your Own Sundae Buffet (this will take A LOT of planning, and could be tricky, but a cute idea)
- Cookie and Baked Goods buffet (great because you can save money by doing your own baking)
- Snack Bar
- Create Your Own Trail Mix
- Decorate Your Own Cupcake (or cookie) Bar
- Popcorn Bar
- Make Your Own Candy Apple Bar
- S’mores Bar
Up Next: DIY Origami Greeting Card Boxes
