DIY: A Family Affair!

The two apparent themes for my wedding can be summed up in 6 letters, FUN and DIY. I am very lucky to have two parents who have willingly joined in on the FUN with some awesome DIY projects. They share my practical views, and are loving the price tag even more then I am!

The Dress

It's a tease I know! :-)

After a great deal of craziness, disappointment, and excitement, I HAVE A DRESS! I knew my amazing talented mother could pull it off, even if she only had a couple weeks. Last weekend was supposed to be the final fitting, but in my mom's 40 years of sewing she had her first zipper BREAK (with me still in the dress). It was not fun. I made the trek to Gorham again after school today, to try it on with a working zipper. The dress couldn't be anymore perfect, even though it is very different from the first one. My memere is currently hand sewing the lining and hem to make it 100% done. I have always been a firm believer that everything happens for a reason, and I couldn't be any more certain of that at this moment.
DRESS COST: $35    COST OF AVERAGE WEDDING DRESS: $1,500

The Dessert Stand & Dessert

 This is the nearly finished dessert stand that was build by my very talented father out of leftover wood and other materials. He even ventured into a craft store to purchase the "Live, Love, Laugh". That is a true indication that he loves me! All it needs are some buttons to jazz it up. On this dessert stand will be some amazing goodies made by my very amazing mother.
DESSERT STAND COST: Few Dollars   COST OF WOODEN DESSERT STANDS: $70-$500
DESSERT COST: $50-$60   COST OF AVERAGE WEDDING CAKE: $500


We are now officially out of the double digits! See you all in 9 days!

What not to say to a SOON to be bride!

Being the planner and perfectionist that I am, I have had most everything planned out and ready for months. Now that the wedding is only 23 days away, I thought everything was good to go until the comments and questions started coming from others within the last week. Now my brain is playing cruel tricks on me. As a result, I've come up with a very important list of things NEVER to say to a woman who is getting married in near future.

http://profile.ak.fbcdn.net/hprofile-ak-ash2/48591_1801232083_2740_n.jpg

Question: "So, are you ready?" 
My Response: "Yes, I'm now just anxiously awaiting the big day!" 
My Brain: "Am I ready? Uh oh, I actually still have a lot to do! Can I get it done in time? Am I going to have time to sleep/enjoy the next 3 weeks? What if I forget to do something important? OH CRAP, we don't have a marriage license yet!"


Comment: "I don't see how you aren't stressed about not having a wedding dress yet." 
My Response: "I just have a much better feeling about this one, and I have full confidence in my mom." 
My Brain: "Even though I feel confident, what if it doesn't work? How will I get a dress with 2 weeks to go. This NEEDS to work!"

Question: "Are you getting Nervous?" 
My Response: "A little, I'm just excited for the day to get here." 
My Brain: "I'm marrying my best friend who I've been with for 6.5 years. Why should I be nervous about that? Wait, I'm going to have to be the center of attention in front of 100 guests. Maybe I should be nervous!"

Comment: "You must be freaking out!" 
My Response: "No, actually I think everything is all set to go." 
My Brain: "Should I be freaking out? Is everything REALLY all set to go? Holy CRAP I'm getting married in a few weeks. AHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!"


With that being said, I suggest the following comments when speaking with a bride to be about an upcoming wedding:

"It's going to be great, I can't wait."
"You are going to have a great time. Enjoy your day."
"Everything is going to come together beautifully."
"Just remember, the day is about you and __________."
...and what ever bride likes to hear: "You are going to be a beautiful bride!"

Everything Happens for a Reason: A dress Update

Not only was it my wedding shower this weekend, but it was also supposed to be my final dress fitting. First off, let me give you a run down of the dress making proccess:
   August: Tried on dresses to see what looked good
   September: Bought pattern/fabric from a very RUDE woman at Jo-Ann's in Auburn
   December: Practice dress was complete and a success
   February: Actual dress was complete, but did not fit right
   March: Second dress fitting, realized the entire thing needed to be taken apart and put back together
   April: Sewing machine died and had to buy a new one.
   Yesterday: Tried on dress again, after 4 more attempts to fix it, decided to cut our losses.

After 9 months of planning for this dress, we now have less then 5 weeks to begin a new plan. Here is how it happened:
   May 19th 9PM: Searched online for a new pattern
   May 19th 9:10PM: Were both drawn to a brand new pattern, and knew instantly it was the one
   May 20th 10:00AM: Bought everything needed at Jo-Ann's from Portland from the nicest, most helpful women.
   May 20th 10:45AM: Mom and I drove home with no more dress stress (hey, that rhymed) and with a tremendous amount of excitement
   June 2nd: First dress fitting (fingers crossed)
   June 8th: Final dress fitting (fingers crossed)

This time around my mom will be using a pattern, and we both see little room for error. While we were pretty bummed all that time and effort went down the drain, we are convinced everything happens for a reason. Nothing went well in the process the first go-around, and now everything just feels right. This dress is even more nontraditional then the first, and I couldn't be happier. With 34 days to go, I'm getting very excited, and it's feeling very real. A special thanks to to the many people that made this a FANTASTIC weekend!


For all of you who love a deal:
First Dress (R.I.P.): $25
New Dress: $35
That's a total of $60 for TWO dresses! I'm thinking that's still pretty fantastic!

Dream On

After 9 months of planning, we are officially at the 2 month mark! Time flies!

For as long as I can remember I have been a very vivid dreamer, with dreams that tend to have very odd story lines. My dreams have ranged from my dog being kidnapped by a tribe of cave dwelling trolls to a very sweet obese couple asking me to marry them. Weird, I know! Steve thinks a therapist would have a field day analyzing my dreams. Since getting engaged, I have had wedding dreams on almost a nightly basis. It occurred to me the other day that I should be documenting my dreams, and for your entertainment I will share them with you.  

Photo Credit: http://dreamstudies.org/

 Here is a collection of my most memorable dreams yet:

1. My mom changed the ceremony location last minute to a funeral home. When I asked my mom how guests would know where to go she said not to worry, they would figure it out. To my surprise, they all showed up. When it came time for the reception, only my parents and a family friend showed up. So sad.
2. Before the wedding we were setting up at the Phoenix and they brought the buffet food out. My mom was excited to try the food and ended up eating ALL of it. At least we knew the food was good!
3. My mom surprised me by making me a new veil. She wouldn't let me see it, but while walking down Main Street in my wedding dress I could see my shadow. The veil was a bird cage with a mini top hat on top. To make matters worse it was red!
4. The reception was held in a Bollywood themed reception hall. My brother organized it and was very proud.
5. I got to the wedding all dressed up with everything going perfectly and realized that I forgot to mail the invitations. Oooops!
6. My parents followed us to St. John on our honeymoon since we have 4 extra bedrooms. Our villa ended up having a giant furniture warehouse in the basement. Other then that, our trip was great!

I know there are plenty more that aren't coming to mind, so a follow up post might be in order!

65 days...

As we quickly approach the 2 month mark, I'm reaching a lack of motivation. I'm not sure if it's the nice weather or that I'm officially weddinged (is that a word?) out. Steve and I are at the point where we are ready for the wedding to be here and  to enjoy our time in the sun on St. John. Luckily I only have 2 more projects to do until crunch time (early June). Unfortunately, getting those things done during vacation has not been happening. I've found it much more enjoyable eliminating the invasive Japanese knotweed from my front yard. I think that right there proves my "weddinged out" theory. The only thing keeping my slightly motivated is the 1-4 reply cards arriving in the mail daily! Keep them coming people, I have craft project to finish!

Here is a preview to some of my FINAL wedding projects all made from leftover supplies and things found in nature:

Seating Chart Tree made from sticks and paper roses.  This will be much more exciting when the place cards are attached.

Just a few pieces to my ceremony decor.

Wordle Round 2

"Sign, sign, everywhere a sign"

PINTREST STRIKES AGAIN!

Since I have a lot of leftover materials from other projects, I have been going on a sign making rampage...all thanks to Pintrest. 

Here are my Pintrest inspirations:

http://media-cache.pinterest.com/upload/9640586672045121_oNo0ZpdV.jpg

http://karenpecora.com/2011/12/philadelphia-wedding-planners-send-summer-vintage-wedding-style/

http://www.projectwedding.com/photo/browse?photo_to_show=58168&tag=cake

http://www.etsy.com/listing/62840376/wedding-signs-beautiful-vintage-large

In my online searches I found many of these signs available on Esty for upwards of $49.99. With my leftover buttons, paper, and twine staring me in the face there is no way I could justify that expense. 


Here is a taste of what I've come up with so far:

I made one for each stairway leading to the deck where the ceremony will take place.

For our chairs and possibly a photo-op

For the "cake" table

Photo-op for our thank you notes and also card table decor

Once again, this was all done with NO additional cost to me!

Other signs include:
- Dessert table description
- Guest "book" direction
- Door hangers for hotel guests
- Wedding "favor" description

DIY Invitations

Cutting, and folding, and gluing, OH MY!

After a couple months of work, my invitations are complete. Now it's just a matter of adding postage and address labels. When determining what my invitations would look like I had 3 criteria,

1.  Completely DIY with a personal touch
2.  Use as little materials as possible to save on postage
3.  Cost less than $40 for 100 invites (not including postage)

1. Completely DIY with a personal touch:
I've received many different types of wedding invitations over the last few years. Some have so many bows, inserts, and frilly things it stresses me out a little me. It has always been the simple/well organized ones that have caught me eye. I really like the idea of having the invitation be all in one piece with with a pocket to hold all the extra goodies.  After a lot of time cutting, folding, and gluing, I got my one-of-a-kind invitations. With that being said, here they are:

I started with 12"x12" pink card stock (the pink appeared much darker online, but now that they are done I really like the color). I cut the card stock into two 12"x6" strips.

This began my folding marathon. I knew the textbook from my leadership course would come in handy again!

As a result, I got a nicely folded invitation with a pocket for the guest information and reply card. To secure the pocket I purchased round clear envelope sealers. I also glued a green backing onto the section where the actual invite would be placed.

The next step involved the actual invite. I am extremely lucky to have a bridesmaid who is a very talented graphic artist. She generously offered to design our invitations, and I couldn't be happier with what she came up with. She also designed the reply card. Without giving too much away, here is the final result:

2.  Use as little materials as possible to save on postage
 My goal was for the invite to weigh enough to just use one stamp, so I made sure to use as little paper and glue as possible while still making them look nice. I also made the reply cards into postcards to save on postage. Total I spent about $55 on postage, saving nearly $15 by using postcards and approximately $30 by only needing a single stamp. We're also planning on hand delivering invites when it's convenient. Hopefully we'll have stamps leftover.

3.  Cost less than $40 for 100 invites (not including postage)
$17 for 50 sheets of 12"x12" pink cardstock (used all of them) = $17.00
$11 for 250 sheets of 8.5"x11" green card stock (used about 50 sheets) = $2.20
$9 for 500 sheets of  8.5"x11" 28lb white paper (used about 75 sheets) = $1.35
Bottle of rubber cement given to me by my dad =  FREE
$5 for a package of 500 clear envelope sealers (used about 300 of them) = $3.00
Vista Print return address labels and printable address labels = $4.00
GRAND TOTAL: $27.55 for 100 invitations ($12.45 below budget)
PRICE PER INVITATION: 27.5 cents 

SUCCESS! :-)
In about a month we will be putting them in them mail!

The Fascinator

We are down to 119 days and just under 4 months to go! Just a couple updates before I share my latest project:

• If you are looking to book a hotel room for the wedding at the Grand Summit you will need to provide the code 8564QW in order to receive the room deal.
• My mom is 90% done with my wedding dress. I was able to try it on for the first time this past week, and I can't wait to see the final product! 
• Four months from today we will be jetting off to the island of St. John for 8 days to stay in a our very own private villa, all thanks to Kenny Chesney (it's a long story that I would be happy to share with you, just not in this blog :-D ). At this point, we just need to finalize our airfare. After going to St. John to take a "college class" back in 2006, I can't wait to show Steve the most breathtaking place I've ever been!

Reefside Villa – Chocolate Hole Harbor

Now that I've left you all wondering about the great Kenny Chesney, I'm going to share with you my latest DIY project: The FASCINATOR!

Just to clarify, when I say fascinator I do not mean a hat that resembles a toilet seat (sorry Princess Beatrice). However, I did want to make a dramatic flower to attach to the comb of my veil.

                                                   HELL NO!                         YES! :-)

 I looked online, and there are plenty that you can buy on Esty for $25-$75, but none of them had the price tag or personal touch I wanted. Here's how I did it:

1. I cut out 16 double petal shapes in various sizes out of scrap fabric from my wedding dress. I did not use a pattern making the petals look more natural.

2. To prevent fraying I melted the edges of the fabric using a candle. This also made the fabric sturdier and created a ripple in the fabric that makes it more flower-like.

3. I then arranged the petals to make the shape of a flower with the smallest petals on top. Folding the flower in various directions, I sewed the petals together. At Marden's I bought flower pendent that I sewed into the top.

4. I really wanted to add some feathers, so I bought a feather hair piece at Jo-Ann fabric that already had the alligator clip attached. So convenient!

5. I simply hot glued the two pieces together and VOILA! My fascinator was born! It attaches perfectly to the comb of the veil I got at David's Bridal on sale for only $9.00. This, unfortunately, you will have to wait until the wedding to see.

Now, (drum roll please) for the breakdown of costs:

• White Fabric Scraps: FREE
• Flower Pendent: $0.99
• Feather Hair Clip: $2.55
• Veil: $9.00
• GRAND TOTAL: $12.54

NEXT UP: The Invitations!

Wordle

Wordle was recently introduced at our school, and I had a chance to play around with it today and it is AWESOME! I created a "word cloud" for this blog to see what it would come up with and thought the results were pretty neat. It's very indicative of my wedding planning process. I plan on doing this every so often to see how it changes. ENJOY!

Luminaries

With exactly 5 months to go, I've come to realize that one of the worst things about planning a wedding over the course of 11 months is that you have plenty of time to change your mind. With that being said, disregard my post entitled "For the Love of School Supplies." The binder clips are no more. I now have new table numbers that I am very happy with, LUMINARIES! My inspiration came from the following blog post:

http://www.intimateweddings.com/blog/wedding-table-numbers-with-illuminated-numbers-and-monogram-diy-wedding-reception-ideas/

 Being the practical person that I am, my goals were to simplify the method used and not purchase any new material. Here's my project in action:

 1. First, I cut pieces of 8.5" x 11" card stock in half the "hot dog" way, and I folded 3 sections 3.5" long with a 0.5" tab on the end for gluing. The card stock is leftover from the invitations I will be making.

2. I printed out the numbers on the computer and traced them over the card stock leaving an indent, so I knew where to cut.

 3. Using an exacto knife, I cut out the number on each of the 3 panels.

4. I then added some much needed decorations (leftover buttons, obviously!)

5. I then put glue on the tab and glued the luminary into its triangle shape. I found a use for binder clips!

6. Here is the final product. I plan on using tea lights to light them up. I have tea lights leftover from a decorative candle tree that was in the fireplace at our old apartment in South Paris.

Here is my best attempt at taking a picture of one lit up!

Cost of additional materials used for this project = $0

SUCCESS!

"GREEN" Centerpieces

I've had a little extra time to get projects done this week with my 2nd snow day in a row. As of right now we have used 5/6 snow days. 2 more snow days and I will be in school the week of the wedding. I'm thinking the chances of that are pretty good! All the more reason to get things done now, right?

Today I put together my centerpieces, minus the supplies I will need to get at the time of the wedding. Here's a breakdown of my centerpieces which are both "green" and very budget friendly.

SUPPLIES:

Vases borrowed from my sister-in-law = FREE

Grass/Spring Greens from Yard = FREE

Water = FREE

Log Discs from Downed Trees = FREE

Mirrors borrowed from my sister-in-law = FREE 

Rocks from Family Camp = FREE

Floating Candles = $1 EACH

Recycled/Organic Twine = $4.99 for 200'

Buttons = LEFTOVER FROM BOUQUETS











That's a total of $17.99 and an average of $1.50 per centerpiece!!!! The only item that is not reused/recycled (insert Jack Johnson's 3 R's song here) are the candles. As for what I'm doing with these materials...happy guessing! You will see them at the wedding!

Say Yes to the Dress!

First, an update:

• A block of rooms will be available for the wedding for the nights of June 22nd and 23rd at the Grand Summit Hotel at Sunday River. Since Steve works for SR they are giving everyone a $95 deal! They should be ready for booking by the end of the week.
•  Our registry is up at Target!
• In case you weren't aware, it's officially the year we get married. HAPPY 2012 EVERYONE!

THE DRESS:
 The process of my wedding dress actually began way back in the spring of 2004. (Just to clarify, I have not been planning my wedding for the last 8 years...) I made a deal with my mom that if she could make me the perfect prom dress, I would let her make me the perfect wedding dress for when the time came. Being the VERY talented person that she is, she pulled it off (see photo below)! As a result, I am very lucky to have her make my wedding dress.

In August, I went with my mom, grandmother, and MOH to try on dresses and see what I liked. After watching one too many episodes of "Say Yes to the Dress!" I fully expected to have the "I'm a bride" moment when I put on a white dress for the first time. Sadly, all I saw was me in a really beautiful dress. It wasn't until I tried on a nontraditional dress that I fell in love. However, that emotional "Say Yes to the Dress" moment still did not occur. I figured I just wasn't that type of girl.

From there my mom decided she would try to mimic the dress I loved while adding/changing some things that I liked from other dresses (one added feature is POCKETS!). The fact that she decided to do this without a pattern had me a little bit nervous, but I knew I would have a one-of-a-kind dress. To  make sure I got the dress I wanted, she decided to make a practice dress out of some navy blue fabric she had laying around.

Over Christmas I got to see the complete practice dress. Even though it was navy blue, I finally had that "I'm a bride" moment. Not only did the dress surpass all my expectations, just knowing my mom had spend hours constructing the details and my grandmother was doing the hand sewing meant the world to me. With a few minor tweaks, she will be ready to start the final product! Seeing the dress finally made the wedding real for me.

Since this blog is about a bride on a budget, I figure I should lay out some numbers:
Cost of dresses I liked at David's Bridal = $300-$600
Cost of all materials that are going into my dress = $30 (Jo-Ann fabric sales/teacher discount is key)
Love, meaning, and originality of my dress: PRICELESS (<-- I had to throw that in there)

COMING SOON: Centerpieces and Invitations!