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Hi Ladies! This is my first post. I just wanted to share how I will be asking my bridesmaids, since I am pleased with how it turned out! I wanted to give them something special for the money they will be spending to attend. Most of their husbands/bfs are groomsmen too, and my fiance isn't doing anything special to ask them. I ended up assembling a box containing a funny luggage tag that says "be my senorita?", a 2 year pocket calendar with the dates marked along with special dates in their lives - birthdays, anniversaries, upcoming weddings etc. and phone numbers of the travel agent and the bridal party in a little note section the calendar has, a mini bottle of champagne and a starfish! It cost me about $20 per bridesmaid. For the calendar I used a template on Microsoft Publisher but i followed the directions from this website: http://diyfrugalbride.blogspot.com/2013/10/how-to-make-your-bridesmaids-planner_24.html I will attach my template as well. Supplies Blank Calendar -- http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00D3XH716/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1 ($35) Funny luggage tags -- http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss_1?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=anne%20taintor%20luggage ($63) Mini Champagne ($20) Pack of 6 starfish - ($9.99 @ Michael's - I used a 40% off = $6.00 total) I can email pictures if anyone needs, since I know I can never open attachments. final calendar.pub
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This is 2nd round of engagement photos. You can visit my gallery and see the story behind the first photos that necessitated a second shoot. For this shoot, we went to Las Vegas, the place where we got engaged and will be married, to get some great photos. I decided to make some props for sharts & giggles! Tickled at how they came out. I actually left them with the photographer because I didn't want to haul them back to Cali!
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tag - palm tree.doctag - palm tree.doc This is my first post. Wanted to share my DIY luggage tag std with glued on sea shell pieces and sand taken from my neighbors kid's sand box
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I just wanted to post my first completed DIY project and hopefully share some inspiration or ideas. I always knew I wanted to get myself and my girls the cool wedding hangers from Etsy but didn't really want to spend over $100 on 9 hangers that really they are only going to use for the wedding. I thought of doing the hangers and doing the wire name part myself but I didn't think they would come out that great and I didn't want to do this for 9 hangers. Then I found someone on Etsy who did vinyl decals for the hangers and bingo that's a much better and cheaper option for the same effect. I bought the vinyl decals from https://www.etsy.com/transaction/182853456?ref=fb2_tnx_title and 9 sets came out to $27.00. You can customize the decals with different colors and fonts to match your wedding style. The shipping took a little longer than expected so I would order in advance so you aren't rushed to get the hangers done. Next I bought the hangers I needed 9 one for myself, groom, maid of honor, 4 bridesmaids, and mother of the bride/groom. I found a pack of 20 good quality wooden hangers from Walmart for $12.00 (I have 11 left over) and coral ribbon from Michaels for 80 cents. Assembly was super easy and the instructions were very clear, I finished all 9 in under an hour. I love the way they came out and think my girls will love them too. The total for all 9 hangers came out to $39.80 so each hanger comes to $4.42 much cheaper than getting customized wire hangers for anywhere to $10.00 to $20.00 each. Here are some pictures of the finished product.
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Hi All! So i figured I would start a thread that has my projects as I work on them, since I have a LONG engagement and plan on having some unique DIY projects and details that would be worth sharing. At this point- We are in the early stages of the process, and just got back from the Karisma Bride's Dress Rehearsal where we confirmed that this company is the one for us. and the property we selected was Azul Sensatori in the Riviera Maya (Or now called Sensatori Riviera Maya) We asked our bridal party with the following... the wine bottles for the girls, and tequila for the boys We have chosen to not do Save the dates, but rather are sending out invitations early, and then will be using our wedding website to gather RSVP's and correspond with guests who confirm, as the date approaches. They were DIY using paper ordered online via papercircle (Canadian online retailer) and Michaels supplies. Here are the invites.... They are all directing guests to our website with both the QR code, and the website address: http://KimiandMark.com We will update it with more fun information and itinerary as the date is closer- but right now, we are keeping guests focused on the booking and RSVP process. My next project will be ordering my wedding dress, which I plan on ordering via Jasmine's Bridal for a custom recreation... well actually 2 dresses, one for the ceremony and one for the reception. I will be making place cards that are inspired by these: along with other projects like passport programs (that will be mailed out with everyone travel documents by my TA), OOT bags, door hangers, programs, felllow guest ice breaker info, etc... Any feedback on the website? Or on my progress thus far? Im happy to have a lot of time to do many of these projects... it will keep me busy for the next 18 months!
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Hello Brides! I'm curious how I should word my invitation so that adult guest are invited to wear black, white or beige, Children can be colorful. This is because our wedding party is colorful...my dress is red, the girls are in turquoise and the dudes in silver. I want our colors to pop in our pix and want the guests to be in colors that will compliment ours. A few friends have said it's in bad taste to tell people what to wear. I'm actually inviting them to wear one of 3 colors) I figured I was making it easy on them. I'm anxious for your opinions 1) Is it ok to ask guests to wear desired colors? 2) What's the best way to word it?!
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Hello all, I wanted to share my semi-DIY passports with yous.. I say semi because I didn't actually print and assemble them myself. I started with one of the templates I found on this board, but I felt the passport was a little to plain and I didn't have time to find and add a lot background images. So I ended up buying a template from Vanessa at weddingpassports.com for $15. The template is awesome and I was able to implement the stamps from the other template into this one and they cam out perfect. If you're not a crafty or DIY person I recommend this company. They have great customer service and will answer all your questions along the way. Their print and/ or assembly service is also bonus. I originally intended on just letting them print the pages and I do the assembling myself, but I said wth and let them do the whole job. Another plus is I got them in mail in less than a week once I sent them my finished template. Sorry for the repost, I posted the previous one in the wrong section.
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If you’re tying the knot, or helping a loved one plan a wedding, hosting the nuptials in your own back yard is a great option. Garden weddings have a lot of things going for them: privacy, flexibility (you have full choice of dates and no time restrictions), and they’re inherently beautiful thanks to the natural setting. Getting married at home also saves a lot on a venue rental. And just as there are many types of gardens, there are many types of garden weddings. Dress up your garden, dress it down, or simply leave it as is for a picturesque natural backdrop. After all, they are naturally romantic, with lush surroundings and fresh plants and flowers bursting with life. Large or small, formal or informal, you can set up your garden to host any kind of wedding. Just don’t forget to take the following things into consideration. Tidy things up Just like great makeup begins with a good foundation, you’ll need to prep your garden well in advance. Take a look at the lawns; do you need to fix up any bare patches? Prune back overgrown trees, shrubs, or other areas? Rake up fallen leaves and loose clippings? Plant extra flowers? Take note of any damp, swampy areas and consider whether you should provide guests with an advisory note about suitable footwear. If your patio or driveway is due for some maintenance, now’s the time to get it done, so grab those garden tools and get going (or set some of the younger members of the family onto the task). Remember to also consider accessibility for any elderly or disabled guests. Decide on the theme Having a central theme allows you to create a consistent look. A garden wedding should make the most of nature, using complementary color schemes and making the most of the surroundings. Decorations Try using fresh cut seasonal flowers for centrepieces – you won’t need to look any further than your own flower beds. Daisies, dahlias, peonies, roses and hydrangeas are all commonly grown in household gardens and are also popular wedding blooms. You can also place bunches of fresh flowers all around your garden on the day to add color and enhance the special, festive atmosphere. Don’t go overboard, though – your garden’s natural beauty should be allowed to shine through. And why not use fresh herbs from your garden in the meals and drinks on the day? Mint can be used to infuse cocktails, for example. Have a back up plan Outdoors events always require a weather plan. What if it rains? A Plan B could include a marquee or tent for shelter. It also pays to provide some light blankets or other warm wraps for people to cover up in case it gets too chilly, particularly towards the end of the night. Food If you’re self catering, consider whether the in-house kitchen is large enough to provide for the number of guests. If you’re hiring a caterer, discuss how much space they will need for preparation. Choose your menu carefully, as you want to avoid items melting or drooping in the heat. And plan to keep your guests well hydrated – beverages should be available from the start and throughout the event. Music Will you be having a live band at the wedding? You’ll need dry and solid ground for the musicians to play on. If you don’t have a patio, look into erecting some kind of temporary platform for the band to set up their equipment on safely. Logistics Don’t overcrowd the space – invite only as many people as your garden can comfortably hold. Don’t forget to account for catering staff, photographer, musicians and any other vendors. Plan to provide easy indoor-outdoor flow with access to all garden areas so guests can mix and mingle easily. Make sure there will be enough seating, including some in the shade (you may also want to provide sunblock and insect repellent for guests’ use). Lighting is vital if your garden wedding will extend into the evening. Outdoor weddings lend themselves to tasteful, understated elegance. Candles and paper lanterns, or strings of colored lights are a great way of illuminating your garden. Determine if you’ll need any extension cords, how many outlets you’ll need, or consider installing solar lighting around the garden. As for power, it may pay to obtain a backup generator in case you need an emergency electricity supply. Parking is another matter to consider. You might want to inform your neighbors ahead of time if people will be parking in the street. Finally, you’ll need to provide bathroom facilities. If you’re making your indoor washrooms available, ensure they are well stocked with toilet paper and soap. Alternatively, you can rent portable toilets. -
I cannot believe we are less than 3 months away from our destination wedding at Now Jade Resort in Riviera Maya, Mexico! The planning has gone by so quickly!! I am finally beginning to feel like I have a lot accomplished, until I look at this site then I feel behind again! Ha-ha! HOW WE MET Christopher and I met in the fall of 2006, when I started as a sophomore in high school. I was 15 and Christopher was 17, a junior in high school. We met one night cosmic bowling with mutual friends at the Bowling Lanes. A mutual friend, Slade, gave us each other’s numbers and we have been inseparable ever since. We officially starting dating on December 3rd, 2006, so this December will mark 8 years together as a couple! OUR ENGAGEMENT When it happened: Saturday, June 15, 2013 I woke up to a note and a bouquet of flowers sitting on the island in their kitchen. The note read "Kacie, Good Morning Sweetheart! As you can see I did get that switch to the day light shift. Please do not make any plans for this afternoon! All I can tell you is to sit back, relax, and wait for further instructions. Love Always, Christopher" Then I received a phone call from Christopher around 2 P.M. and he told her to go downstairs and look in the laundry room cabinet. Another note was placed there with a rose. The note read "Kacie, Hope you had a relaxing morning. This note is to inform you that you should pack an overnight bag with clothes and toiletries for the Pittsburgh area. Once again, after you have that finished sit back, relax, and wait for further instructions. Love Always, Christopher" I thought that, that was the last note and he was going to meet me at home and take me out to Pittsburgh for the night but that wasn't the case. Christopher then called again shortly after 5 P.M. to tell me to go out to the shed and look down to my left. Here I found yet another note! The note read "Kacie, This is the final note for the day. By now you should be all packed up, relaxed, and ready for the Burgh. Now comes the test! Come find me. Do not cheat and use your phone! You should know this; meet me where we first met, leave now! Hurry, Hurry, Hurry! Time is of the essence! Love Always, Christopher" I then drove to the Bowling Lanes where Christopher got down on one knee and proposed. I said 'Yes!' and now we are planning a destination wedding! THE RING The diamond is actually the center diamond to my grandmother’s ring. Chris had me pick out the setting to set the diamond in since it had such a special meaning. This is what I picked; it was designed especially for us! The picture has the wedding band on as well! I love it! NOW JADE RESORT The hardest part of the planning process was picking my resort. My sister got married at Dreams Palm Beach in Punta Cana in 2011, and it was gorgeous! That is when I knew that I was going to have a destination wedding, as well. However, that also means the pressure was on for mine to be just as nice! So, I did a lot of research on the price, location, wedding services, and I came upon Now Jade and fell in love! As you all know, there are so many conflicting reviews about every resort! It is so challenging to go with one without visiting, when my sister picked hers she was never there before and I found that to be crazy but then I did the same! My fiancé and I did, however, visit Now Jade in November 2013, after we already had around 60 people booked! We loved the resort and were very happy about our choice, luckily! The food was amazing, the beach was gorgeous, the pools were awesome, the bars were great, and the rooms were really nice! My biggest concern was food because at Dreams in Punta Cana a lot of her guests got sick, including me, and I didn't want that to happen at my wedding. Although, I am sure someone will have some complaints, they always do! In addition to the great food, I loved the garden area for our reception, and the beach for the ceremony! TRAVEL AGENT We choose the local travel agent that works with Apple Vacations, who also did my sister’s wedding. The rates we got for direct flight, round trip airport transfers to the hotel, and hotel were $1449 per person for 7 nights! I also had an option of 5 days, 4 nights for $1049 per person, which I thought were both very affordable rates for the package! Children under 12 were about $200 less on each package. We have filled all the spots that we had held for guests which bring us to about 80 guests! ASKING OUR WEDDING PARTY We simply sent these cards in the mail to our bridal party and most of them called to respond or sent us a text accepting! We had one groomsmen so far that informed us after he accepted that he could no longer make it and I believe that deserves great respect because a lot of people would just avoid you and not tell you until it was too late, but I respect him for giving us a great amount of time to ask another person. TO THE GROOMSMEN: Pack up your bags, Let’s head to the beach. Have a drink and some sunscreen, Well within reach. The crystal blue waters, The warm Mexican sun. A wedding in paradise, A week full of fun. In just eleven short months, I’ll be marrying my bride. Nothing would make me happier, Than to have you by my side. -Chris TO THE BRIDESMAIDS: Pack up your bags, Let’s head to the beach. Have a drink and some sunscreen, Well within reach. The crystal blue waters, The warm Mexican sun. A wedding in paradise, A week full of fun. In just eleven short months, I'll be a "destination" bride. Nothing would make me happier, Than to have you by my side. Love, Kacie TO THE FLOWER GIRLS: Your uncle and I, Would love to have you by our side. Under the Caribbean sky, you would lead the way for me, the bride! Will you be our flower girl? Love, Kacie and Uncle Christopher TO THE RING BEARERS: At my wedding, under the Mexican sun. I have a BIG & IMPORTANT, job that needs done. And I think you're JUST the big guy to do it! Will you be my ring bearer? Love, Uncle Christopher and Kacie ENGAGEMENT PICTURES We hired Jessica Fike; she serves West Virginia, Maryland, and Southwestern Pennsylvania. http://www.jessicafikephotography.com/ Here are some of our favorites! SAVE THE DATES We ordered our save the dates from Magnetstreet.com, here’s the link to the one’s we got. They are magnets and they are great quality! http://www.magnetstreet.com/devoted-save-the-date-magnets MY ACCESSORIES I ordered this clip for my hair on Etsy! I love it! It matches the lace detail on my dress perfect! I got these barefoot sandals for the ceremony and then I am going to change into flip flops for the reception in the garden. My earrings are borrowed from my sister; she had ordered them for her wedding and did not wear them. The garter also came from Etsy, again with the lace detail. I also ordered a hanger for my dress on Etsy. This is the inspiration for my hair! MY BRIDESMAID DRESSES I chose four different dresses by Mori Lee for my 9 bridesmaids. I left them pick the one that they wanted out of all four, it came out fairly even. I picked the Turquoise color but it is darker than normal turquoise and more elegant looking, in my opinion! FLOWER GIRL DRESSES We ordered these from Etsy. We have 3 flower girls, two are 5 and one is going to be 8 months old. We thought this would be adorable for all of them. These are bags that the flower girls will carry petals in, also from Etsy. GROOM AND GROOMSMEN ATTIRE We ordered the their outfits from Island Importers. I went with the natural colored pants and ivory linen shirts, and the Groom will be wearing a jacket over his shirt so that he stands out from the group. http://www.islandimporter.com/Grooms_Outfits/ WEDDING INVITATION Below is a link to the design we used, I received so many samples from many different websites before deciding to use this one! I am very happy with my choice, it is a beautiful invitation and I got it at a pretty decent price with coupon codes. I would highly recommend ordering samples of invitations because they always send coupons for future orders, and if you are inviting a lot of people, it’s a great discount! http://www.magnetstreet.com/details/market/517/productId/50949?colors=i%3AAAAYh0kUABFkJCoAAAAYpAAPZAAAYSkcAAAYhAAAAAAAAAcC%3A Here’s what ours looks like! OOT BAGS We got bags at Silk Letter and tumbler Cups at Silk Letter and they are both great quality! I didn’t really have a ‘logo’ like some brides do; I just went with a palm tree and our names. The bags are good quality for the beach and we went with the natural color just in case if it would get wet the water wouldn’t make the color fade. The cups are a lighter plastic then normal tumbler cups, but they seem pretty durable and the lids snap on instead of screw on, so they are really easy to use because I always have trouble with the screw on lids working correctly. https://www.silkletter.com/bags/tote-bags/imprinted-colored-cotton-tote-bag.html I got 55 bags for $187.55 and 55 cups for $303.95. We ordered different cups and bags for our wedding party. https://www.silkletter.com/drinkware/travel-cups-mugs-1/plastic-travel-mugs-tumblers/custom-logo-16-oz-economy-double-wall-tumbler.html Also, in the bags we are putting a note in the cups, shown below, with our favorite drinks. I thought it was an inexpensive personal touch! A lip balm, with 15 SPF is also in each of the cups. I got the lip balm from The Knot. http://weddingshop.theknot.com/personalized-lip-balm-tube-favors.aspx Luggage tags were placed on the handles of the bags, as well. For couples, I just did one bag with two cups and an extra luggage tag inside, because I figured most men won’t use a bag. I ordered the luggage tags from: http://www.specialistid.com/Rigid_Plastic_Luggage_Tag_Holder_p/1840-620x.htm I got the clear ones, they came with the address side of the tag and I ordered Avery labels to put our ‘logo’ on the opposite side, as shown here. The Avery labels I used were: Avery Name Badge Inserts, 2.25 x 3.5 Inches, Box of 400 (05390). I will attach the format I used to print these. I went with black and white to stay neutral and not too flashy. I got the labels on Amazon for $14.99 and I got 85 luggage tag holders for $59.56. So I spent $0.88 per luggage tag, which was great! For new travelers I provided a brochure from Vistaprint, they turned out nice, and they also come folded, if you are wondering! If you want the info in a word document I have it, just ask! I ordered 100 and they were $42.40, with a coupon. We are giving these the guests at our couple’s bridal shower two weeks before departure, to save us the hassle of transporting all that stuff to the resort. BRIDESMAID GIFTS The bridesmaids will each be getting a personalized beach bag, their earrings for the wedding, a personalized tumbler, their updo for the wedding paid for, and a credit towards their vacation. I made the box decorations with my cricut. GROOMSMEN GIFTS The groomsmen will be getting their attire for the wedding, an OOT bag, a personalized cup, a bottle of tequila, and the underage groomsmen and ushers are getting a multi-tool pocket knife. FLOWER GIRL GIFTS The flower girls are getting personalized beach towels, a pearl bracelet, their flower girl dress, and personalized cups. Here's a link to the personalized towels: http://gifts.personalcreations.com/flowers/Kids-Name-MicroFiber-Beach-Towel-30076444?viewpos=3&trackingpgroup=psektwl RING BEARER GIFTS The Ring Bearers are getting personalized camouflage backpacks, their wedding attire, and a personalized cup. (Photo Above) PARENTS GIFTS I got the women (my mom, his mom, and his grandma) a necklace, personalized cup, and personalized bag. Our dads are getting handkerchiefs from etsy and personalized cups that match the Groomsmen. SPECIAL GIFTS We only have 2 Aunts and 2 Uncles coming so we wanted to give them something special so I made these cups with the help of my cricut! FLOWERS This is my inspiration for the flowers at the wedding! CEREMONY LOCATION The Beach! I am using this photo as inspiration to how I want the chairs to look for the ceremony. CEREMONY DÉCOR I ordered this starfish garland from Etsy for the ceremony. Also, I have a sand ceremony kit I ordered online, they have the same one at Michael’s for much more. CEREMONY PROGRAMS I am getting ceremony programs that are fans, and they came assembled from Magnet Street that matches our invitation. CHAIR SASH AND TABLE OVERLAYS Instead of worrying about if the colors were going to match or if they will have enough I went ahead and ordered sashes and table overlays to take with us. The color we are using for the girls dresses is unique but I found it on Wedding Linens Direct. http://weddinglinensdirect.com/8xorsaol.html http://weddinglinensdirect.com/ortaovja1.html These will cost much less then renting the chair sashes for $4 each and $15 for the table covers! TABLE NUMBERS Since Chris and I have been together for a little more than 7 years and we are having 7 tables at our reception I decide to put a picture of us from that year in our relationship coordinating with the table. I ordered these Tolsby picture frames on eBay for the table numbers, and used my cricut to put numbers on the bases. http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/30151035/ RECEPTION DÉCOR We got dinner napkins to add some color without paying $4 a napkin, we are still going to use the plain white napkins provided as well. Our guest book was made on Shutterfly using our engagement pictures. I am not completely sure on what we are using for a seating chart or escort cards yet. I will probably do a starfish with a ribbon and a tag that says their name and table number. Also, this adorable cake topper! SIGNATURE DRINKS We are having a Signature drink for the reception and the cocktail hour. The cocktail hour signature drink will be the Something Blue and the receptions will be a Blue Hawaiian. PHOTOGRAPHY We are hiring Del Sol Photography for our wedding and reception and the resort is letting us use our photography credit for a Trash the Dress! Del Sol is AMAZING, I can’t wait to work with them! Here’s a link to Del Sol’s site! http://delsolphotography.com/category/weddings/ VIDEOGRAPHY We hired Cancun Wedding Video’s Mike Cantarell, he has a great reputation among brides on here as well! http://cancunweddingvideo.com/index01.php (more planning to come!) -
So, even though my wedding is still in the U.S. I fell in love with the passport invitations and figured it was a clever way to get the guests info into the place we were staying and other information about the area since all my guests will be traveling for the wedding still. When I mentally decided on doing the message in a bottle and passport invitations I didn't realize how much my guest list would grow. So 115 message in a bottles later, I nearly gave up on the passport idea but couldn't bring myself to give up on the idea. I still have over half of the passports to finish but I figured I was far enough along in the process that I would share some pics. I don't think I would have been able to do it if it wasn't for this website. The quality of the shimmer of the paper doesn't show up in the pictures. If anyone has any questions feel free to ask!
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Hi! Im new here, all the way from Australia but living in Ireland now. This site is awesome. I was hoping to get some ideas on templates and maybe some instructions on how to make a Boarding Pass Save the Date. I haven't posted enough times to download what people have put on here :-( Do I need particular software to create the invite? Feel quite lost .. any help would be appreciated!! My email is [email protected] if anyone wants to email me something ! -
Happy Holiday~~ I have come across some really cute ideas of wedding favors. I will choose one to DIY this week with the help of my mom and my sister, so I need your advice on WHICH is your favorite favor. I will post my invites later when I finish the project. Figures crossed ~~~Thank You! http://www.fotavo.com/photos/photoFgWpjydEqGv4hAcXJwx7DUSMIVno9kBmPrlit8Qu http://www.fotavo.com/photos/photozwkRQSxcvtNqGa2fY1TgFBJ6K0DuiP9EHpCyZnhM http://www.fotavo.com/photos/photobwg7NsDVQPOtovEXkLUfYlJ3jKeMBCGcq9hzn86R http://www.fotavo.com/photos/photohTUDt0G2jKrEcCHQnv715OeuRoBqmyAINgsYzFd9 http://www.fotavo.com/photos/photoJRiUxshYFBCc87jLzHKXDWPM0r5G3Avkb2IVQn4f
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Hi Everyone. I am struggling with my DIY Invitations. We are doing pocket invitations and I need assistance with wording, etiquette, and general objective thoughts on our invitation and then an added enclosure..I would really appreciate some advice as these need to be sent out very soon. My invitation reads as follows, can anyone tell me if it grammatically correct? A beautiful beach. A clear blue sky. A love united with waves crashing by. Please join us, as well as our parents, as we Bride Name and Groom Name Unite in marriage. Wednesday, the twenty-second of April two thousand fifteen at four-thirty in the afternoon. Resort Name Dominican Republic Here is the enclosure...I need a title for it and I can't think of anything that sounds great... Is it ok to ask people to donate to a charity verses sending gifts ... help please. Our personal note... We would like to thank all of our family and friends for sharing in our joy, as we begin our journey to unite as husband and wife. It is our hope that you are able to join us in paradise for this special occasion. Although it would be fantastic to have all our loved ones with us on our special day, we do understand the burdens of travel outside of the United States.We appreciate your thoughts as we join together as one. We are beyond blessed with all that we have, so in lieu of gifts, we ask that you consider donating to one of our two favorite charities: Hope for Steve: Website: HopeForSteve.com or St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital Website: stjude.org With love, Bride & Groom
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Lily and Rune - getting hitched! My planning thread. Phew! I've looked through what feels like the whole forum at BDW, and decided to make a planning thread of my own... Mostly to get everything out there, and to make sure that I don't forget anything! You ladies have inspired me sooo much, and I probably would be panicking by now if it wasn't for all the ideas and the amazing inspiration in general that you have brought me! Meeting and engagement. Rune and I met four years ago, on a new years eve party. We got together about 6 months later, and 3 months after that, we moved in together. He's the one, most definitely! Our engagement story is rather boring, because we aren't really engaged... Not officially, anyway. In August 2013 we were relaxing in our apartment - he on the x-box, and I was sitting in the office on the computer. Suddenly I got a mail from a travel agency that specializes on travels to Fiji, and package trips around the world. So I showed him the mail, and jokingly commented that we could do a trip around the world the next summer (June-August 2014) if we started saving in the next couple of weeks. He barely looked up from the mail and just nodded. "I see they do weddings in Fiji..? Geesh, I'd rather get married on a beach than having a big stuffy party here..." was what came out of his mouth next, and since that sentence, everything just came to place. We agreed on keeping it a total secret, and to this day, the only ones who know, are our two best men (what do you call a male maid of honor? Man of honor? Bridesman?), our photographers, our videographer, and you ladies in this forum! We're getting married on Taveuni Island, Fiji, July 14th 2014. Rings. Since he never proposed with a ring, I get two now when we get married! I'm not much of a bling-girl, so I wanted it simple but beautiful. His ring is a plain yellow gold 5mm band, which he loves! Getting him to wear jewelry is a project, believe me... So when he found something he liked, we shopped for me accordingly. The pics are taken with my iPhone, so sorry for the bad quality! Attire. When I first started looking for a dress, I didn't want anything overly special or expensive, as long as it was white/ivory. But as the months passed, and I didn't find anything I really liked, I went by a bridal shop in my home town, just to see what all the fuss was about. I tried on one dress... THE dress. I'm wearing some awesome cobalt-blue shoes, silver jewelry, and my mothers veil (which I borrowed from her closet three years ago, and she still hasn't noticed). My hubby to be is going to wear almost all black: Black shoes, tight dark blue (almost black) jeans, a black belt, a black shirt with the sleeves rolled up to the elbows, a cobalt blue tie, and a black vest. Colors. We chose colors based on my favorite pair of shoes, actually! They are a cobalt blue with a silver sequin heel. So the colors are Ivory, shades of blue and shades of green (because I want to use as much greenery as possible to decorate, and that is a rather safe color to go with... Every island has something green!). Here are two inspirational pictures: Cake. I've actually just mailed an inquire to a Fijian bakery, and what I want is a one tire ruffle cake with a blue ombre. Starting with a deep cobalt blue on the bottom, gradually turning lighter and lighter, until the top is in an ivory fondant. Something like this: And we're also bringing a cake topper. This I bought from an Etsy shop on inpulse, but I'm still overly happy with it! I think it will look gorgeous on the blue cake, which will be 6" wide, and 6" tall! Flowers. We'll be having silk flowers for my bridal bouquet and grooms boutonniere, and fresh flowers (white and ivory) for our centerpiece on the dinner table and the wedding arch for our ceremony (resort takes care of that). I've ordered a bouquet and boutonniere from http://www.hibiscusflorals.com/ and they will be arriving in may. This is what we sent for inspiration: -
Hello Brides To Be!! Even though my wedding has since come and gone (I know it’s been over 6 months!!!), I still wanted to share my planning and DIY projects with future brides looking for ideas and inspiration. This site was super helpful to me during my planning days and had inspired me to do things on my own rather than spending a ton of $$ on things. In the end, I wouldn’t have changed a thing!! Here we go…. Hope you find this helpful Engagement My then Fiancé and I were celebrating our 5 year anniversary in Puerto Plata, DR. During dinner, we exchanged cards as we do every year. The card he gave me was for a 25th wedding anniversary, where he wrote from the future looking back at all the years we’ve been married and together. Funny enough, the idea of an upcoming proposal didn’t even cross my mind. He suggested that after dinner, we could take a walk on the beach while listening to music on his iPod (the songs he wanted to listen to were ones we used to listen to while we were first dating). At first I was like “Meh… that’s ok” But he pushed for it and I reluctantly obliged. LOL. So we’re on the beach, the music is playing… he skips a couple songs and I’m like “I thought you wanted to hear these songs..?” Next thing I know he skips the last song and I hear a recording with his voice! He was professing his love to me! My eyes instantly filled with tears as we listened to his recorded speech. Once that finished, our song came on next and I watched as my Fiancé reached into his pocket for the ring, get down on one knee and extended the open box towards me. There it was - The Proposal. I was literally speechless and bawling my eyes out. I never thought I’d be so emotional (although I’m not surprised, as I’m such a sap). I must’ve kept him waiting in suspense for what he felt was a lifetime but was probably a good long minute.. before I said “YES!”. The Rings My husband knows me so well – he chose the perfect engagement ring for me: Simple, yet beautiful! It’s so me! For our wedding bands, he wanted a plain white gold band and I again wanted something simple that would fit perfectly with my engagement ring… et voila: Ocean Blue & Sand Resort (Punta Cana, DR) We thought a beach wedding was the best way to get hitched, as we both LOVE the beach and the heat! Not to mention, we knew that an all inclusive destination wedding would be financially more feasible for the both of us. Since our very first trip away together was Punta Cana, we decided that would be the perfect destination to tie the knot. J After doing research on a bunch of different resorts on our own and with our Destination Wedding specialist (Karen from MyWeddingAway.com), we stumbled upon Ocean Blue & Sand. This resort looked beautiful and offered amazing wedding packages! After reading people’s reviews and having received great feedback from friends who’ve been, we decided that OB&S was THE resort for us. THE Dress I looked at several different dresses before I found THE one. I knew I wanted one that beautiful and simple, would be easy to move around in, not too heavy, and still look like a traditional wedding dress instead of one typical for a beach wedding. His Suit He wore a white dress shirt under a khaki coloured 3 piece suit custom tailored from Empire Customs. Accented with blue tie. Save the Date I designed our save the date magnets on Vistaprint.ca using a picture I had taken from our first trip to Punta Cana as the background and just added text. DIY Passport Invitations & Boarding Pass RSVP The first of many DIY projects… I loved the idea of using Passports and Boarding passes as invitations. I personalized all of these for our guests (Husband’s amazing idea ) The passport pages were designed on Microsoft Word and printed onto white cardstock purchased from Michael’s. I hand stamped a palm tree using a gold stamping ink and printed out the text in black and went over it with gold marker I perforated each boarding pass using my paper cutter… tedious but did the trick! LOL I found pictures of the resort and used them for the front of the luggage tag.. on the back I made the template for people’s address Pocket folds to hold the Passport, Boarding Pass, Luggage tags, & RSVP envelope Made these ribbons with our monogram to bundle our invitations Final products DIY Bouquets & Boutonnières I ordered artificial flowers from eBay and efavormart.com and spent approximately $145 to make 6 bouquets and 7 boutonnières. Best part of this is that I can keep my bouquet forever! Here is my bouquet Bouquets for the girls Boutonnières for the boys DIY Dress Hangers I found an awesome tutorial online so thought I’d give it a shot on my own. They turned out pretty good for a first timer. I made one of myself, and each of the girls in the party. Hot glued a flower head on top to finish them off. DIY Centerpieces Artificial rose petals and diamond table confetti were from eBay, flowers and floating candles were from Michaels, vase and mirror plates were from Dollartree. DIY Table Numbers We decided to use Chinese words appropriate for a wedding as our table numbers and quotes that I found that related to each. We also add our own personal thank you message. DIY Menus and Programs Fans Both designed with Microsoft Word and printed on white cardstock from Michael’s OOT Bags We purchased plain white paper bags to put all of the goodies in for our guests. List of things we put in: Welcome letter, Wedding Day Schedule, Empty sand bottle, Personalized tumbler, Pashmina & purse holders (for the ladies), Cigar & condoms (for the gents), Chapstick, Immodium, Tylenol, Moist wipes, Glasses wipes, Bandaids, Candy and Gum. Well, that about sums up everything for my planning thread. I hope you all enjoyed the pics and details and that they are helpful in your planning. Jade
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Hello fellow DW Brides! I typed up a DIY tutorial for the giant crepe paper roses on my planning thread. You can find it here. Happy DIYing!!! -
I recently found out that my wedding package doesn't include centerpieces & the resort charges an outrageous amount for them. To top it off, I am not allowed to use an outside flower shop unless I want to pay a lovely $300 USD penalty. So since I have tons of time I decided to come to this amazing website and search for inspiration I came up with a sample centerpiece that I want to share with you. If you have made your own centerpieces and feel like sharing them please post them here. I bought everything from dollar tree (all amounts are in CAD eh?) fake flowers $1.25 long stem candle holders $1.25 each x 3= $3.75 vase $1.25 all 3 floating candles $1.25 tealight candles $1.25 TOTAL $8.75 I was also thinking of buying rose petals and scatter them around the vase. Also, I am not 100% convinced on the colour of the floating candles, but for now it will do. (Wedding colours are coral and gold) One of my bridesmaids suggested using gel instead of water, so I may play around with that and see how it turns out. Another thing I was thinking is getting submergible LED lights for the vase.
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So I have looked on the forums and it seems that every year the dollar tree tote bags come out around this time. I was just hoping someone new more information about the large tote bags from the dollars tree. -
Ktchi Passport welcome packet Template.ppt Hello ladies!! I just wanted to re-share an amazing template that I found for a passport welcome book!! It really is amazing the information that brides share on here!! I'm so glad that I cam across this site and searched through the older posts!! I found this template from 2010 which was originally posted by Ktchi-- THANK YOU!!! and reposted by jackie_c-- thank you!! I just thought I'd re-share to make it easier to find! ENJOY!!!! 431 posts @Mention Posted 17 July 2010 - 11:16 PM Just finished my Passports, I've been putting off printing them for a long time. I did it the super budget way so the inner pages are computer paper, glued back to back and the cardstock for the covers was on sale. I'm happy with how they turned out. BIG thanks to Becks who posted a template a few years back that was a good jump off point for me. Took a lot of editing and learning some new skills on Powerpoint but I think my guests will enjoy them. I'm so sick of cutting paper for all the pages, haha! Like This Quote MultiQuote Blog This Rep- 13 replies
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Hey all! I'm new on this site! I am planning a wedding at the majestic colonial in Punta Cana in August 2014. I'm trying to DIY lots and keep my costs down! Any suggestions would be SO appreciated! Thanks for all the tips ive gotten so far!!
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Hey ladies!! I was just wanting to share my DIY vinyl MR and MRS bubba mugs we're using for the wedding!! I have a mug for everyone for the OOT bags... I'll post a picture after they are all finished!!! I used my Cricut to put on the names... I am going to have our wedding logo on the backside. I was just so excited I wanted to share!!!
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I etched the glass with each bridesmaids initial and a butterfly (since my fiancé proposed in the butterfly house at the zoo), I then added a mini champagne bottle a candle and aloe for the beach along with some candy on top which you can't see. I then got pretty tissue paper to match our colors which will be a lilac color and I got each bridesmaid a different decretive box and found poems to fit for all of them so that each one had a different poem. This one was the one I made for my fiancés sister. Anyways I thought I would share and maybe give someone else some inspiration as to some cute ideas on how to ask your bridesmaids to be in the wedding.
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Hello all and Congrats! When I knew I was going to have a destination wedding, I decided I would create a blog to capture my feelings, share ideas, and have documentation of my 1 year planning process. It's an exciting time and I'm really sentimental so I figured it was a good idea. I really did have good intentions. Unfortunately, I didn't realize how much time this process would consume and much of that time I was not just sitting twiddling my thumbs. I was researching, running around like a chicken with her head cut off, trying to keep the million and one fabulous ideas that popped into my head separate and retained. All of this was done while taking caring for others, taking graduate classes, and maintaining a household. Needless to say, the blog idea fell wayside, not intentionally. I find myself now less than two months from the big day- June 21, 2014. I'm anxious but regretful about not noting things like I wish I had. So I'll start but work my way from the beginning (June 2013, one year before our wedding) up to the present. First things first! Choose a location. We decided to have our ceremony in Punta Cana, one of our favorite places, I started researching places online and reading reviews, LOTS of research and reviews. I would suggest anyone doing a dw do the same. Believe it or not, some people don't! They choose a place purely based on price, the name, or pictures on the internet. I wouldn't recommend this, particularly if you have expectations. You need to get a composition book or spiral notebook and make this your wedding book for planning purposes. Grab a two-pocket folder and designate that your wedding folder to store things. This helps you keep all of your info and ideas together. You will have a lot, trust! These have become my best friends through this entire process. Jot down all ideas you have, whether you plan to execute or not. You may change your mind later and it's a pain if you don't have the website, info, number, idea or whatever. (You can thank me later about this ) Just remember to stay calm and don't get overwhelmed. It all works out in the end. Next, choose a wedding date. Now sometimes the date is chosen before the location which is fine. Whatever works for you, (not judging.) WE actually knew our date first because it has meaning for us. Luckily the resort we selected had that date available. But have a backup date just in case the date you want is booked already. In June 2013: Now as for me, I emailed & called (yes, I'm anal too), the resort and booked my own date with the wedding coordinator. You can also go to a travel agent and they will handle that for you. I discovered this after the fact. The travel agent will help you with group rates, booking rooms, and arranging travel with your guests. Oh yeah! ...Somewhere in there, we decided upon our wedding colors. I wanted turquoise. He didn't have a preference. So we are doing turquoise and royal blue, ocean and beach colors. This leaves us open to incorporate a pop of color if we choose. I'm happy and have found plenty of inspiration. At this point in the journey, I was so excited and hyped up that I decided to send out our save the dates (std's. I wish that abbreviation didn't remind me of diseases everytime I say or write it. EWWWW!). My fiance is really sweet and laid back so he let me have most of the say & he just co-signs unless he thinks it's a dumb idea or I'm going overboard. Then he'll speak up. We knew we wanted most of our guests to have enough notice to save money, make plans, take vacation days from work, or whatever they needed to do in order to be able to attend. We figured a year's notice was perfect (for us). I fell in love with so many invitation ideas. I narrowed it down to incorporating 4 things- some kind of invite/std in a bottle, a passport, a boarding pass, and a luggage tag. Basically I wanted to do everything except a traditional invitation. lol. I priced out invitations and such online and was blown away by the prices of these things. Don't get me wrong, I'm not a Martha Stewart or master crafter but I am an elementary teacher! I'm creative and have been known to imagine and produce some pretty good stuff. So I figured, how hard could it be? I was a girl scout growing up and I spent my summers doing arts and crafts...I'll give it a shot and save some cash for other things. (Not tooting my own horn. I'm way more ambitious than I should be in many aspects of my life.) Okay, so once I made the trip to the craft stores buying materials, I ended up scratching the message in bottle idea due to mailing headaches. Cute but not ideal to send to guests & I wasn't spending a fortune for boxes and shipping. Remember, I was trying to save a buck or two. So I was left with the other three ideas. And we decided this would be it. The std was created with the help of my teen son who is a technology genius. We made magnet luggage tags for guests to stick on the fridge. They were in cute cards & envelopes with beach colors. We also made beach themed address labels and used post office stamps that said Celebrate. We had guests calling, texting, and telling us how cool they were as soon as they received them. YAAAYYYYYY! We wanted everyone to be as excited as we were so mission accomplished! After that, I created our website. I can't share it because it has our very personal info but there are some great websites out there that you can use. Many are free. Don't think you have to spend money for this. Our website is destination wedding beach themed and shares a welcome to the page note, info about us, our story, ceremony, reception, wedding party, info for guests about the resort, travel info including travel agent, pics of us, and a page for guests to sign in and leave messages. You make your page what you want! This is very helpful to your guests and saves you from numerous questions if you use it effectively and put most of your info on the site. Next was the passport invites which I actually designed online and purchased for a decent price. Our website url was included on the invite. They came quickly & we LOVED how they turned out. They look so much like a real passport! We mailed them out in September (9 months before) while rates were incredibly cheap. Used the same beach themed address labels but with a love stamp from the post office. I also created a boarding pass which was our rsvp. It was perforated so guests would tear part off, and return in the mail the same way a post card works. Well, the feedback was crazy about these! People were commenting about how we had the most unique wedding invitations they had ever seen, they were so original, did I buy or make them, if this is the invite they can't wait for the wedding... It felt really good to know my hours of hard working making them had paid off. Our level of excitement was transferred through the std & invites. I hope this for every couple. That your guests will get a feel of what is to come on your big day from your std or invites. In my opinion, it should be a little preview to create excitement. Well it's a lot I gave (4 months) at once but I'm playing catch up (with a little bit of time). Hopefully this helps somebody get started. Stay posted for more real soon!
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- Beach Weddings
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It is about 2am, and me and three of my BM just finished making my STD's. I'm so happy right now. I want to thank all the brides on here for sharing there great ideas to that helped me make my STD's. They are luggage tag STD. I bought the paper from cards and pockets as well as the envelopes. I will mail them out this coming week. Very task that gets done brings a bigger smile it my face. Next up Invites.
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I managed to bang out a few of my DIY projects today and thought I would share the results. Excuse the poor iPhone photos. ALTERNATIVE GUEST BOOK Like my save-the-dates and wedding invites, I turned to a free printable to make our alternative wedding guest book -- wedding advice cards. This project came courtesy of Marry This! The colour combinations don`t match the rest of our DIY items or wedding theme, but we plan on framing some of our favourites and hanging them in our upstairs hallway -- where it will match the current artwork. Items needed to make them: White linen card stock from papercircle.ca. I bought 8-1/2" by 11" which let me print two cards per page. You could probably print four per page if you managed to export them from the Adobe file (which lets you customize your initials) but it wasn`t worth the hassle to me. Paper trimmer. Recipe box Cost breakdown: This was a fast one. It took a little over half an hour to print 40 double-sided advice cards (they have a pattern on the back) and the pop-up card. .20 per white linen envelope = $4.20 Wood recipe box with glass, patterned lid from Target = $14 Grand total: $18.20 I could have cut costs by finding a cheaper recipe/memory box, possibly from Michaels where I could have taken advantage of their coupons. BRIDAL PARTY JEWELLERY Items needed to make them: Resin cabochons from Etsy seller snapcrafty. Lace-edged settings (snapcrafty). Silver lead-free hairpin blanks (snapcrafty). Silver earstuds and backings from Etsy seller PrairieDogSupplies. ADH001 glue Leftover scrapbook paper (from another project) for packaging. I've seen these flower cabochon hairpins all over Etsy and in some of my favourite local shops but I didn't see myself coughing up $20 for three hair pins. It took me all of about 15 minutes, if that, to put the tiniest dab of glue on the earstuds settings and hairpin blanks and attach the cabochon. I let them dry for a couple hours and then used some scrapbook odds-and-ends from another project to make some packaging, which took me about another 5-10 minutes. I simply used a needle to poke holes for the earrings and a box cutter to make small slits on either side of the paper for the pins. Cost breakdown: 30 cabochons of various sizes: $18.18 total 12 settings: $6.30 20 hairpin blanks: $6.30 10 pairs of silver earstuds and backings: $1.50 (yes, you read that right) Glue: $3 Grand total: $35.28 This works out to $8.82 for each bridesmaid (2) and flower girl (2). KIDS`ACTIVITY BOOK Here's a DIY project that takes less than a couple of minutes. Simply download the free printable kids' activity book from Lovely Indeed and follow their printing instructions. I used regular computer paper. I then punched two holes in the spine and tied it together with leftover baker's twine from our wedding invites. NEXT UP: I'm in the middle of making laminated luggage tags to send with our pre-travel mailer along with these packing tips and their tickets. Here's my inspiration. I'll follow up with a new post when I'm done.
