Vinyl Record Bowl Centerpieces (or Fuck the Flowers)

As you may have noticed from a tweet last week, I am completely obsessed with record bowl making. What prompted this, you may ask. I'll tell you: flowers are freaking expensive.

If you are planning a wedding, a wake, a large-scale mother's day event or an epic apology, you may already know this.

If you are, as I was, a novice to the whole floral industry, it may shock you to find out that if you want anything beyond what the Piggly-Wiggly is carrying that day, you will be asked to pay in first-born children. Because of a long story that I will not bore you with here, I am obliged to have flowers for my and my bridesmaids' bouquets. I selected a single rose "bouquet" for each of 3 ladies. The total was $60. For 3 roses. Yup. And that is CHEAPSIES, friends.

Because I am not a millionaire nor insane, I decided that there had to be a more budget-friendly and interesting non-floral centerpiece that I could create. Knowing my and my boyfriend's love of music, as well as our black & white theme (sidebar: why does anyone NEED a theme? isn't getting married enough?) a friend of mine suggested vinyl record bowls.

I have been obsessed ever since.

So I thought I'd help out and post some instructions in case you too want these little babies on your tables - event, home or otherwise.

RECORD BOWL INSTRUCTIONS*

* Each oven is different. I recommend trying with a record you don't mind ruining first, then moving on to the "real" record(s).

(If you do not have a cookie tray, line your oven rack with aluminum foil before beginning.)

Pre-heat the oven to 210 degrees Farenheit.

Place your record on a ceramic bowl that is large enough for the record to balance on easily but still small enough that the record will be able to hang over the edge a bit as it gets warm and plyable.

Place the ceramic bowl on a cookie tray or the aluminum foil. If you put it on the cookie tray, put the cookie tray in the oven. (If you put it on the foil, your bowl is already in the oven. And if you need me to point that out, you should probably have some supervision.)

Keep the record in the oven for about 5-8 minutes. KEEP AN EYE ON IT. Seriously. Once the record starts folding down towards the cookie sheet or foil it is plyable.

Remove the cookie sheet/ceramic bowl from the oven. Place it on a towel or safe surface. Use a small ceramic mug or bowl to press down in the center of the record so that the record falls inside the ceramic bowl and folds up around the smaller mug or bowl. (See photo at top of this posting for what it should look like.)

Let it hang out for about 10 minutes until completely cooled.

Bowl made.

Hope you enjoy this!!!

(p.s. my boyfriend is totally singing "feed my breast" to the tune of beauty & the beast's "be my guest" while i write this. ladies and gentleman: the man with whom i will be spending the rest of my life.)