Thursday, August 29, 2013

DIY Groomsmen "ask" cigar cards

Again, another pinterest find! What did women do before Pinterest, seriously?

                                                                 Credit: Marrygrams

We wanted to have some Ybor flavor in these as well so we went with the cigar card ask. We wanted Ybor cigars but could not find any with plastic wrap around them so went with another brand that cost around $5/cigar.

I purchased a pack of 49 cent unlined index cards that had over 100 papers- we used these papers for other things later as well.

I found some edge  clip art and printed them. I then made two hole punches, cut some left over ribbon from the Save the Dates to size and ta-da! They took then less then 5 minutes a piece and cost was $5/piece plus shipping.
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DIY Bridesmaid "ask" boxes

So I wanted to do something more then just be all " hey, be my Bridesmaid ( BM ) so I saw this cool idea on Pinterest, it was literally the first thing I pinned onto my " Future Day" board well before the engagement!
                                                              Credit: RinseRepeat
 
Since we live near Ybor City and most of our relationship was in the area we wanted to have a little Ybor flavor so using cigar boxes was a great idea! I found boxes at the local flea market 2/$5 . They had a wood piece that lifted out of them so it had a "secret storage" area that was even better.
 
My mom and I took an hour and painted ( from my stock) pieces of the inside added some ribbon ($1) for "lift ups" and added some adhesive jewels from Joannes ($1) .Now the colors weren't exactly to match of my palate- but they were close enough.
 
I wanted to add some Catholic spice so I purchased these St. Francis - saint of travelers,  since many people will be traveling to our wedding - cards and bracelets. On the bracelet I added a key charm again to hint at our theme.
 
On the inside I added an introduction page, general info, etc.
 
Final product:
 
 
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DIY Wedding Invite Envelopes and Wax seals

We were looking to WOW our guests from the beginning and since the first thing they will see is the outside of the envelope- that was important to us. Now, there are MANY printing services online that you can purchase from but again, cost was a big factor. I specifically wanted red, but no BRIGHT red envelopes- harder to find then you would think!'

 I finally purchased the actual envelopes from Office Depot: Gartner Studios in size A-9. WARNING: some size envelopes will make the cost of shipping go up so do your research prior! If you need a sizing chart for envelopes look here.

When designing the envelopes I gathered inspiration from a Pinterest posts: see here

I decided to download ( for FREE!) two main fonts that are not standard :

                    Yummy Cupcakes ( photo credit and where you can download : DaFont )
Yummy Cupcakes


                             Mad Beef ( photo credit and where you can download : DaFont )

Mad Beef


I used Microsoft Publisher to play around with everything. The circular numbers are from the font "Wingdings 2". Many hours of playing around and I came up with this:
 
Final example product:
 
 
 
 
The best part was going to the post office on two separate occasions with these and BOTH persons I worked with ( different offices) saying these are the best invites they have ever seen and easy to read!


Oh! We also decided to put fancy wax seals on the envelopes in a silver color . I found both the seals and wax/sealing glue sticks at Michaels.  The difference between wax and sealing glue sticks process:

Wax:  it has a string in the middle you hold it up to fire and it melts

Sealing glue sticks: you stick it in your hot glue gun and it heats its so you can use it. I opted for the sealing glue sticks. Very easy to use- drip glue/wax, wait a few seconds to slightly cool,  press on stamp and hold it there and then SLOWLY let up.
 
Good luck!
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DIY Save the Dates /luggege tags

So I saw an adorable "Save The Date" idea on Pinterest but they were going for $3/piece!  I decided to recreate it with my wedding theme " Key to your Heart/ Beauty and the Beast" and hopefully save some money. I admit when I first started out the trial and error took some time and bought some extra stuff I didn't need, but I had one of my Bridesmaids help me and between her and I we knocked out 80 of these in around 3 hours and total cost came to around less then $1/piece!
                                                                     Pinterest Idea ( credit:SunshineandRavoli ):
 
Mine:
 
Step #1: decide what colors you want to use! Michaels and Joanne's sells pre cut luggage tags but none were the size or color I wanted ( although you could just lightly spray paint them if you wanted too) so I decided to cut my own out of the open stock scrapbook paper available at Michaels when they were 4/$1. I used a luggage tag template that I found and just cut around it. I opted for the "boysenberry" color from the brand "Recollections" and cut!
 Step #2: gather supplies. SO MANY OPTIONS- I probably spent 2 hours in stores deciding exactly  what color combos, things I wanted. I opted for:

Martha Steward Glue pad- this is the Bomb.com!  pour a glue onto the pad and you are able to press your stamps onto it without getting excess glue, it also comes with a refill  tube. And, no, the pad doesn't dry out ( so far!) between uses.

Recollections Glitter- Michaels brand glitter in " EXTRA FINE" size. This is a silver glitter that has a rainbow effect.   I opted for this instead of the Martha Steward glitter due to cost. It was around $3- and I had a coupon!

Mixed Media White Ink- It was surprisingly hard to find a white ink ( their name is "Jasmine")- but this one was on clearance, also at Michael's and is/was great! Also in a pad- just press your stamp onto it and VOILA!

Ribbon- Choose any ribbon- I opted for a slightly thicker size- but make sure if you fold it in half- it can still fit into your punched hole you will be making later


 Step #3 : Stamps! I purchased alphabet stamps for $1, number stamps $5, the "Join Us/Memories"( not pictured here) set for $1.50 I believe and lastly the decorative edging for around $2- all at Michaels- with coupons of course!

Stamping with wooden blocks is hard as you can not see if you are lining up correctly- and we sure didn't line them up perfectly by ANY means, some were better then others- but we went with the phrase of it gives them CHARATER! 

If you want to spend a bit more I recommend finding the sticky versions of stamps that you adhere to clear acrylic blocks so you can see exactly where you stamp will be laying.



Step #4: Add your picture- we are going with a KEY theme so I opted for a key stamp to add a hint of what people might see at the big day! I recommend choosing a stamp with less details- as you won't see a ton of it once the glue and glitter get onto it.
 You will take your stamp and LIGHTLY press it onto the glue pad and then LIGHTLY but at the same time ensure all parts of the stamp have touched the paper PRESS.
 
You should be able to see a shiny outline of where the glue is on the paper once you remove the actual stamp.
 
Then add your GLITTER!! Make sure you do this step on top of a piece of paper  so you can pour your glitter back into your container afterwards and waste less glitter
 
Then shake off and you have...
 
Step #5: add your ribbon!
 
First you will want to hole punch in the top middle of your tag and then cut approximately 5-6 inch pieces of ribbon like such:
 
 
 Then fold them  in half over themselves to make 2.5-3 inch pieces and then fold the tip in half ( so it can fit in the hole!)
 
 Put it in through the hole:
 
 
 
And then take the two "fish tails" and put them through the ribbons hole you just created
 
Then pull to tighten ( be careful not to do it to hard or you will rip your paper!)
 
 
Step #6 : add a piece of magnet! You can either purchase the small round disks of magnet or the long strips and cut to size. You don't need a strong or big magnet as the paper isn't that heavy.
 
Final outcome:
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6 months post engagement- and so many DIY!

Timeline:
It has now been 6 months since being engaged and I thought I was on track- turns out- I am SOOO behind! We agreed to a date of Nov 15, 2014 ( our current anniversary!)  and going back to where we both grew up for our middle/HS years and where both our families currently reside to have our wedding.

We created our guest list around 80 guests- but not sure if all will actually come, of course. So we created a back up list as well - those that we really want to invite but had to cut due to budget- so when the time gets closer and others cannot come- we can invite them instead :)

We finished the "Save the Dates" and already sent them out- to discover we  missed a few people by accident! So know I have to take out all the supplies once again to make 4 more- that will be project #1for this week. 
Process was simple!  Scrapbook paper cut to size,  hole punch on top, red ribbon through the top.  Stamps and ink and the key part was a stamp that was with glue and poured glitter on top! We put a magnet on the back so it could be put on the refrigerator. Total cost was less then $1/piece. I will post another blog with the specific directions later.


I got my bridesmaids "asks" out- they turned out FANTASTIC!  Pictures to come- but I got the idea from Pinterest and made something similar to one of these: http://pinterest.com/pin/2885187230856279/

As well as the groomsmen's "asks" - they are pretty fancy as well! I used  a pack of 49 cent index cards with no lines and printed on them- two hole punches and ribbon. The cigars cost the most as they were individually plastic wrapped $5/piece



I DIY'd my garters as well- that was super easy and FUN!


We chose and already paid for our Reception venue - The Hendry House in Labelle, Fl!

We are still deciding on which Catholic church we want to have our ceremony in- each one we look at has key elements we like- just not 100%.  Some had chairs vs pews-others didn't have attractive outside features, etc.  Project #2 for this week.

 My next project will be to create our DIY Rosary Wedding Cord! I got the idea and plans from Life as I know It blog. I have some basic beads but am deciding if I want to go with Swarovski or glass. Project #3 this week!

Discussion: Any brides out there getting married in Fall 2014? How far along are you?

Future:  Next steps will be to find a caterer and DJ/music! We are just delaying those due to trying to purchase a home right now too!

Tuesday, July 2, 2013

A little bit of this, A little bit of that

Holy, it has been 1 year 5 months since I last posted via blogger. Shame! Update: Engaged in February 2013, Left Girl Scouts in June 2013, looking into purchasing a home within the next few months. Cat passed away this year, still have 2 dogs and 3 turtles.  25th birthday TOMORROW. Off to Georgia for some family time and the Georgia Aquarium :)
Selfie 2013

Bike ride with my love 2012

Gold & Silver Gala June 2013

Roomie visit summer 2012

Klay RIP

xmas 2012

Thursday, January 12, 2012

Ye haw junction

6 month update:
  I am still working with GS. Love it, hate it, enjoy it, pushes me to my limits.
I am told I am a prodigy and all the volunteers I oversee think i will leave due to the fact someone bigger will want to hire me haha! Me and my 20 something self had an ego boost.
Most weeks are 40+ hour weeks but I love it. I miss veterinary. Mixed feelings. I still drive to work and walk myself thru mentally how to place cathathers, IV etc. I do not want to lose the skills I have spend years refining. But others skills I ddnt know I had, have come into light.  Conflict resolution and   creativity/ alternative methods being primary contestants.


 I got to spend Dec. being pre and post excited over Bel- my college roomies wedding. Sheer bliss, and jealously mixed into each other. She was gorgeous, him handsome. Dresses amazing. Plus we had a great after wedding party with my S.O and bels cousin and Tam*college roomie/fellow bridesmaid*