Wedding Series - DIY Confetti Cones

When envisaging my wedding, even from a very young age, I pictured that truly celebratory moment of having an abundance of colourful confetti floating around me on my way back down the aisle, hand-in-hand with my new husband. I was what you could call a bit ‘deflated’ to discover that it isn’t like it is in the movies! People don’t just spontaneously throw endless amounts of confetti at you once the ‘I do’s’ are done: They wait politely, until they are told to throw pre-approved (biodegradable) confetti at the pair of you, once the photographer has arranged the guests (that actually remembered to bring along a boxful of the stuff) in to two neat lines.

Matt Ethan

Well, I wanted it to be like it is in the movies! Admittedly, I was very lucky that my venue allowed any type of confetti to be thrown at any time I wished, anywhere I wished. So I decided to put some confetti together myself. Mainly because I knew that many people do forget to bring their own – yes, I have been one of those guests who have very good intentions but then ditch it at the last moment when it takes up too much space in the clutch bag.

I went for a mixture of colours and textures; bright circles cut from tissue paper, dried and tissue paper rose petals in neutral colours, dried petals and foliage (from a colourful bouquet I had been bought a few weeks before the wedding), and the most original choice – brightly coloured hearts cut from traditional Monopoly money and cards.

Okay, I know it sounds pretty bizarre, but as we got married in London I liked that it gave a gentle nod to our ‘theme’, as well as it adding lots of colour to the confetti. I‘m also pretty sure that every single guest would hold a fond (or not so) memory of playing this particular board game at Christmas time so it provoked a little nostalgia. And what better time is there to take a trip down memory lane than at a wedding?

They were extremely quick and easy to put together and not half as fiddly as they look. I used a piece of kraft paper measuring 15cm x 11cm for each one.

Simply roll each one and fix with a small piece of sellotape – or even better, these glue dots from Pritt (they stick anything and are practically invisible - a MUST for your wedding DIY kit).

I attached a little tag to each one, some with our names, and others with the date. I then placed them standing in a wooden crate made for Kilner Jars. This meant that the cones stood up straight and could be stuffed with confetti well in advance (one less job to get done on the day – winner!).

Matt Ethan

The cones were handed out during the ceremony, just before the big announcement. You know the one where the registrar says “Can I please present to you, Mr and Mrs ...”? So that when we made our way back down the aisle as husband and wife, we were showered with fluttering confetti.