Vintage Carnival Circus Magic

Wedding DIY Inspiration. HIP HOORAY for more great DIY ideas! The vintage carnival and circus theme is all the rage right now for creating spectacular wedding occasions! From bright and beautiful wedding decorations, stationary to quirky bouquets,  boutonnieres and fun carnival games, ensure that both you and your guests experience the time of your lives with a wedding filled with vintage glee!

Stepping up from our former Vintage Carnival Wedding Decor feature filled with wedding printables, our childlike fascination with this super fun theme is shown in all its glory by a collection of our fave 20 DIY Carnival Theme Wedding Ideas below. ENJOY!

1. (Above) DIY Vintage Carnival Marquee Letters – Hang a glowing marquee sign with lightbulbs like this one seen here from KBD Rustic Vintage, pictured above, to be used as a great backdrop. Brave enough to attempt something similar yourself? Get the DIY here. Otherwise, check out these ready made marquee lights here. (If you love any of the items we’ve featured and purchase them via ourlinks, you’re helping support our blog. In some cases we’ll get a small percentage of the sale for sharing them with you, which helps us pay the bills. Thank you!)

2. Circus Carnival Birthday Party Signs.  These fun signs are just what a carnival wedding needs: Popcorn, Tickets, Food, Step Right Up and Games signs! Plus, they are super easy to DIY when grabbing the downloadable printable here. 

3. (Below) Paper Straws: These chevron striped and star spangled paper straws in red, blue and white add a touch of vintage whimsy to your DIY carnival wedding! Grab them here.

4. DIY Vintage Carnival Wedding Stationary – Order these customizable vintage carnival stationary printables, which can be ordered, printed and snipped from home! Update: The pictured designs are no longer available, but we’ve found something just as cute! Get the DIY Printables here.  

5. DIY Carnival Popcorn Cupcakes – Designed by Cakes By Jen and snapped by Jennifer Larkin from The Paper Peony, serve these cute popcorn cupcakes in red and white striped cupcake sleeves or liners. Juneberry Lane shares the full tutorial and free cupcake wrapper printable. Get the DIY here.

6. DIY Vintage Carnival Wedding Decor – For a truly vintage carnival and circus-themed wedding spectacular, get your hands on these wedding food and decor printables from Vintage Wedding Press, which includes everything you’ll ever need! The 48 piece decor printable set includes table numbers, bunting, photo booth sign and props, ticket-style seating cards, food and drink labels and cupcake toppers. Update: This set is no longer available but we’ve found another cute set – get the DIY Printables here.

7. (Above) DIY Carnival Ring Toss Game – Allow your guests to score some points with this all time classic crowd pleasing party game. Using bottles, labels, rope and tape and the free downloadable printable labels for the bottles from ArMommy. Get the DIY here.

8. (Left) DIY Carnival Refrigerator Box Ticket Booth – From Buckets of Grace, learn how to create your vey own ticket booth! {DIY Tip} If you don’t have a large enough box lying around, contact your local appliance stores and ask for an empty refrigerator box that can once wrapped or painted in red and white stripes, can be decorated with little flags, bunting or even multicolored colored lights. Get the DIY here.

9. DIY Circus Tent – As seen on Little Miss Momma, create this no-sew circus tent canopy that can be hung from a lovely shady tree. Provide your guests with some treats to enjoy while they take refuge inside! Get the DIY here.

10. (Above) DIY Fabric Tassel Garland – From Prudent Baby, get your hands on some fabric and learn how to create this non-sew fabric tassel garland in any colors that you fancy, which can be used as hanging wedding decor. Get the DIY here.

11. (Above) DIY Carnival Photo Booth – As seen on Bird’s Party Blog, convert a large wooden frame into a photo booth that can be adorned with mini curtains, rosettes, bunting and a photo booth sign. Get the DIY here. 

12.  DIY Striped Photo Booth Backdrop – Create a red and white striped carnival backdrop,as seen here from Amy Jean Blog and shot by Red Heart Photo. {DIY Tip} Using a striped plastic or fabric tablecloth material and hang as a backdrop.

13.  DIY Vintage Circus Kissing Boot – Set up this romantic vintage kissing booth for your guests to get snapped while puckering up! As featured on OffBeat Bride and snapped by Ben Herman Photography, Hostess With The Mostess shares a great DIY for a kissing booth that can be customised in any color and can also be used for capturing great photos. Get the DIY here.

 

14. (Above Left) DIY Photo Booth Sign – Display this groovy photo booth sign to guide your wedding guests along their way to the photo booth with this easy printable that can be displayed anywhere. Get the DIY here.

15. (Above Right) DIY Vintage Circus Photo Booth Prop Set – Ensure that your guests have a fun time with these downloadable photo booth props from Vintage Wedding Press, which can be printed, cut and secured onto skewer sticks before being displayed at your photo booth. Update: Although this printable is out of stock, we found one we love even more here. 

16. (Above) DIY Paper Rosettes – Buy a selection of custom created paper rosettes from Party Fetti here or head over to the Babble Blog, learn how to create your own pretty paper rosettes to use as stunning wall decor, to decorate prize bin or sweetie jars and more. Get the DIY here. 17.  DIY Prize Bin or Sweetie Jar Decoration – Decorate your prize bin or sweetie jars with mini paper rosettes. {DIY Tip} For each of the prize bin jars, the  Confetti Sunshine Blog suggests adding a number on the rosette of the jar that corresponds with the number of tickets your guests need to exchange to get the prize.

18. (Above) DIY Pinwheel Bouquet & Boutonniere – A unique alternative to using flowers for your bouquet or boutonniere, add a lovely handmade touch to your wedding with these decorative paper pinwheels from Rule 42, snapped by Laura Marchbanks Photography. (See the idea on Rock ‘n Roll Bride, snapped by Gucio Photography.) Best of all, they can be co-ordinated to match the vintage carnival theme or your wedding colors. If you’d still prefer to DIY it and have some flowers, then incorporate a few pinwheels into your flower bouquet. Get the DIY here. 

19.  DIY Circus Tent – Drape your wedding venue ceiling in striped carnival colours that creates the illusion that you’re inside a circus tent as seen here by Donna Keefe. {DIY Tip} From the corners of the ceiling and meeting in the centre, drape red and white striped fabric or table cloths that are cut into broad strips. 20. (Above) DIY Fortune Teller Booth – Impress your guests with this wonderful fortune teller booth. From Matsutake Blog, learn how to transform empty boxes, a balloon and a collection of tarot cards into something they will never forget! Get the DIY here.

20. DIY Vintage Carnival-Style Tin Cans – As seen on Catch My Party, create these vintage carnival-style tin cans made by Jodie of Party Nv to use as decor or for carnival party games. {DIY Tip} Collect empty tins that have been cleaned. Using vintage and carnival-style wrapping paper with letters, stripes or dots to fit the height and the circumference of the tin. Using cold adhesive, paste the paper onto the tin and allow to dry. 21. DIY Striped Paper Hanging Decor – Created and photographed by How About Orange, create this circus spaceship-shaped hanging ornament with pretty beads. Get the DIY here.

23. BONUS find: We just love this DIY Printable Carnival Game set from Sweet Boutique to keep your guests entertained. Check it out here.

Ready for more DIY wedding theme inspiration? Check out our glittering collection of 20 DIY Glitter Wedding Theme Ideas & Inspiration!