6 Days - Gettin' Crafty

My sister came down today to help me finish up the different odds and ends for the wedding.  We finished putting the ribbon on the cupcake tower.  I am really proud of the end result.  I only burned myself on the glue gun once, too!  The blister on the tip of my middle finger is awesome. . .

Elise indulged me in my latest craft hobby of stamping and embossing by helping me make some more thank you cards.  I plan on bringing them with us on our honeymoon road trip so we can work on them when we get some downtime.  My goal is to get them done and out the door before the holidays.  Here's hoping!

I put together all the gift bags for our groomsmen and bridesmaids.  I personalized each bag by stamping names on the front of the bag.  Elise said it looks very "anthro".  I hope that our team really likes what we put together for them.  Our goal was that our gift be something they can use over and over again.

Check out my hanger!

I've been packing and organizing.  I love packing and organizing.  LOVE IT!  Packing means this stuff will stop cluttering our apartment soon!  De-cluttering the apartment is a close second to the excitement of getting married.  Less awesome than marriage, but the chance to see the top of our dining room table again will feel pretty f-ing fantastic. Things are organized in boxes by destination - ceremony, hotel, rehearsal dinner, and reception. 

11 Days - Feeling like crap but there is still work to do

Holy nauseous, Batman.  


Unfortunately, programs don't wait for migraines to end when you're working under a tight timeline.  Tonight, we are printing our wedding programs.  I wrote them a few weeks ago and the paper came in soon thereafter.  I was thinking they looked a little plain, but on a recent trip to Michael's with Marisa and Mia, I found a cool stamp (I have a slight craft obsession) that will add a little flourish to them.  I have been a little concerned that my new crafty hobbies might come across as kitschy instead of cute, but I have to trust my instinct that I am editing my homemade touches the right amount.   


Eleven days!

12 Days - Another craft, Rach?!

I'm glutton for punishment.

So I was looking at Paloma's Nest - home of the adorable ring bearer bowl that I covet. (No ring bearer = no ring bearer bowl.  It's a sad truth.)  I also spotted this little number:

I saw it, and maybe I got a little caught up, but I immediately thought, "I could totally do that! I have stamps and wooden hangers!" So, I went to work. 

Please note that I realize that Batkins is missing an "s".  I only have one "s" stamp. 

Same with "A".  

I've seen the options.  Now I just need to decide what to stamp on the hanger. . . 

29 Days - Damn, I'm productive!. . . and tired

I am knocking tasks off my wedding to do list like it is going out of style!   

Tonight, we went to dinner at our good friends'--Andrew and Marisa-- house.  They have this little thing that Sam and I dream of called "a yard" that allows you to do crafty things,  like garden or spray paint wedding stuff.  I alternated between discussions of a potential trip to the Bahamas in the Spring (yes, please!), chasing my baby love, Mia, around, and spray painting the cupcake tower and some other wedding decor on their sidewalk.  With exception to Marisa's and my 30+ bug bites, the endeavor was a huge success.  (Mia also got to see four doggies, which sent her into baby heaven.)  

I also crossed programs off my to-do list last night.  I remember when my sister's wedding came around, the programs were kind of a panicked afterthought.  I wanted to avoid calling my eight months pregnant sister in tears for programs, so I knew I just needed to get them done. Of course I didn't want to pay for them either, so I spent an hour and a half last night searching for a free template for wedding programs.  Boring! This yawnfest plus my 10 hour day at work resulted in me falling asleep sitting up, but I am proud to say that once I woke up, I found a template and typed up the programs!  Once I get paper, we will be golden.

You may be thinking, if Rachel is falling asleep while sitting up, she may need more sleep.  I agree with you and have instituted a new 11 pm bedtime.  Of course, its 11:26 pm right now, so that shows you how well I do with bedtime schedules. . .

99 Days - Signed, Sealed, Delivered. . . All most!

Invitations are ordered!  I budgeted for the wedding stationary the same way I budgeted for all of the wedding expenses.  I saw what The Knot recommended to budget and then I cut that amount by 20 percent, at least.  Ruthless, I know.

For individuals looking to save money on wedding planning, I can't stress to you enough going the DIY route whenever possible.  The easiest way to save money on invites is to design your own.  However, last time I checked, I have negative experience in graphic design and not surprisingly, its not a skill that can be developed overnight.  That didn't stop me from trying, of course.  First, I googled and tried and tried again.  I debated stamps, word docs with clip art, and hybrids of the two.  Realizing my efforts were in vain, I decided I needed a reality check and the help of a professional.  Step one: Find a designer.  Chelsea, of SeaRaine Designs, is a new designer recommended to me by my very own, KB.  Chelsea listened to what Sam and I were looking for in our wedding stationary and designed our invitation suite for a very fair price.  I worked with her for about a month over email to create downloadable invitations and RSVPs.  She was receptive to my changes and offered me great advice when I was scratching my head.  We took Chelsea's designs to Zazzle.com and printed up 120 sets at a savings of over $200 dollars.  They should be here later this week!  Now I just need to remember how to do a mail merge. . .