A lot of our couples have questions about the use of candles in the ballroom. Follow these simple do’s and don’ts when mapping out your décor for the big day:

Do:

Use real flame

It looks absolutely beautiful in the ballroom to dim the lights and rely on candle light to light the room later in the evening.

Contain them!

Having wax drip on linens, the floor, and walls is a big no-no. While we love candles, we love them being contained in some sort of vessel more.

Put them in the windows in the sunset room

The effect is just stunning! However, we recommend not putting them on the very top and bottom rows for safety and maintenance purposes. If the sun comes shining through we may need to blow out the candles and pull the blinds and since we can’t reach that top row without a stool or ladder, (and we don’t want to be pulling them out during your reception!) we ask no candles be put on that top row.

Be aware of where the A/C vents are

This seems like the head table candles are always placed under the vent…map it out strategically so your candles don’t blow out in 2.5 seconds

Test the candles beforehand

Not all candles are created equal. Make sure 5 hours means 5 hours. Also, make sure they are burning how you want and it’s somewhat even so the wax doesn’t pool to the point of covering and suffocating the flame.

Don’t:

Use tapers

This is all about having that wax drip down on the surfaces. We love the tapers that are filled with oil and don’t drip at all. But beware; dripless or drip resistant don’t always follow through with their promises.

Use scents

This is more of a suggestion. Sometimes scents can be too strong for guests and cause them to get a headache because of the heavy scent. Also, some scents can mix with the scent of dinner and interfere with the taste buds and cause the food to taste differently! If you want to add a subtle scent to the room, we recommend using them on cocktail tables and not on the dinner tables where guests will get bigger and more constant whiffs of the scent.

Put candles where kids can reach or around kid tables

Little fingers have a way of finding the most dangerous thing in whatever room they are standing in! Just as a precaution, it’s good to leave flames out of reach of the little ones.

Put candles on candy tables… and be careful how close they are to the cake

Again, this is more of a suggestion in just thinking out the logistics of things. Candles produce heat. Heat melts candy and sugar based things. Putting candles where the flame may melt your beautiful candy display or putting them too close to the cake frosting is just asking for a gooey mess. It could also possibly mess with the structure of your cake, making the bottom weak and not able to support the weight of the whole cake. Also, be aware of how tall the flames are and making sure they won’t catch any floral or paper-type things on the tables on fire. We don’t want your day to be memorable because the Fire Department got called in!

By keeping these tips in mind, you are sure to have a beautiful reception site anywhere, but especially at The Shadowland Ballroom!

Photo Credit:

Featured Image: Echo by Design

True Photography

Maiko Media

Hopkins Studios