Programs....Check.

Finally finished the programs (or finished my end of the deal anyway).

To save on costs AND ensure extra awesome-ness, Mom and I went with this idea (which isn't mine at all, and is completely stolen):

They are paperboard CD cases with velum/paper inserts for the program.  Cool eh?

We began our programs with creating a stamp image to emboss on the front (I did it all by myself, thankyou).  I then punched each case and inserted eyelets into each spine.

We then embossed 200 CD cases, which took FOREVER, but was completely worth it.

From there, I printed a velum coversheet and inner paper inserts for each program, also punched twice for spine.

Finally, I strung teal ribbon through the holes and topped it all off with a bow.

Next, Tay's fam will print CD's of our original music to insert in each case slot. 

Love it. 

I love it even more now that its done.

The last of the Bridal Showers has passed, and what a shower!  Not only did I score some great loot (Blender! Microwave! Salad spinner! Bowls! Trays!....you name it!), but I got to spend a few precious hours with some super fun ladies. 

I arrived Saturday morning at the church building to find a tea all laid out.  I love tea parties!  My wonderful hostesses, Donna and Judy really laid out quite the spread, even tiny fancy sandwiches.  It felt very special. 

We played funny wedding word games at the table while sipping tea (all of which I cheated on, and none of which I won).  My personal favorite had to be the fill in the blank love letter using only names of veggies and fruits- I put "leek"  in every blank.

When it came time to open the gifts, I was overwhelmed by the sheer size and number of all the wonderful gifts these generous ladies had laid out for me.  To my surprise, I received not only practical gifts, but also a beautiful pearl necklace from Patrice, and several...shall we say...more private attire-related items.  The most shocking gift of the day? Without a doubt the can of whipped cream and sprinkles from Andrea.  Boy was my face red.  Nice one, Andrea.  Some day, I'll pay you back.... In close second-  the smallest pair of underoos I've ever seen from, even more shockingly, my little sister. 

It all wrapped up with Donna, who (without my knowlege) had been writing down everything I said while opening gifts and who then repeated it out loud to everyone in a very scandolus fashion...

These Church of Christ ladies, they sure can party.

Progess

So busy these days!  It seems I have a month's worth of work to do and only 18 days to do it all.  Sigh.  Still, I am getting alot done.

The huppah is almost finished:

The hebrew scroll is finished and has been basted to the main pannel.  I now have to attach cord to the rim of the scroll and finish the lettering on the bottom of the pannel.  Then its attaching the thick canvas borders (for signing!) and the batting/backing then it'll be done.  Really done!

Next on the list:  the programs!  I've finished the first stage of our Program/CD wedding gift - inserting eyelets into the spine of the paperboard CD cases.  I've also completed the image for the front of the program, which is being made into a stamp as we speak.  Next up- embossing the stamp image onto each program...one by one. 

I've also nearly completed my veil/headpeice. 

I'm 95% done with this little puppy.  In fact, I'm hoping to finish it up tonight (while watching the season premeire of HEROES of course).  Once it's all finished, I'll post it!

Back to work.

RSVP Deadline Today

169 and still more to come! RSVP on the knotsite and you'll be my new best friend (Promise!).

Oh Dear!

Tomorrow is the RSVP deadline and I have only 158 Yeses!

You can still mail your RSVPs in and please do!!

Don't forget, you can also RSVP via our knotsite.

Hurry Hurry! Tickets are going fast, and this not one you want to miss!!!!!

Yet Another Shoe Post

Shoes officially done. Though not exactly how I thought....

I received the shoes from Oxford Heaven in the mail today. I was sort of pleased. The overall ideas were cute but weren't really executed very well. For one thing, She spray painted the shoes. Wha? Why? The original grey suede was perfect. The spray painting job is messy at best- the heels are a little puckered from the paint and there are silver fingerprints on the bottom. The glue she used was pretty weak, which in this case was actually fortunate for me. I was able to easily remove the bad ribbon job and pearls without taking any paint off the shoe or ruining the vintage lace (which I LOVE). Without the pearls all over the place, the shoe looks much better. I also removed the plastic leaves on the back since in person they looked a tad cheap. Finally, I removed the extra lace on the heel. It was just too much. Overall as is...a five out of ten. Cute, but not wedding worthy.

Fortunately for me...I'm crafty.

I whipped out my own high quality satin ribbon that is also featured in the boutonnieres and corsages and read: CAREFULLY attached it around the opening of the shoe. This covered up the rough edges of the awesome vintage lace that the wimpy "hand knotted" ribbon was exposing. I then added a little sprig of vintage millinery leaves on the side of each rosette (with ONE pearl and rhinestone each...not a dozen). I also added another leaf on the back of shoe and topped the whole thing off with a huge and superfluous bow in the same satin ribbon. I love them now!

AND they're actually pretty comfortable. Each shoe has extra padding on the inside. I'll still need to add more before the wedding, but its a great start.

The only problem left is what to do with the bubbled heels. The paint just looks bad. The fact that the silver paint is shiny only highlights the mess. I'm thinking of stripping the heels, sanding them smooth then painting them a matte black. Any better ideas?

Don't get me wrong- the price of the shoes, lace, and rosettes alone is probably worth the $40 they cost on Etsy. I'm sure Oxford Heaven makes better shoes when she's not so pressed for time. But I don't think I would consider buying her shoes for special occasions.

What do you think of my shoes?

Satisfaction Reached.

Today I'm multi tasking. I'm currently:

• soaking my feet as part of a home pedicure
• eating smoked oysters (my Uncle Terry would be SO proud)
• Blogging, of course
• Working on the huppah

And, to top that off, I've just finished my shrug! I had finished the lacy 3/4 cut sleeve one that I began last Christmas. However, I was unsatisfied with the fit. So the search began for a better pattern. I found a great one on etsy that knitted up quick due to the chunky yarn and large gauged needles. It called for crochet sleeves, which I had never done before. I learned this: crochet is really easy. So. Much. Easier. Than. Knitting. And quicker. Once I picked it up, it only took a week to finish the whole shabang.

I originally wanted 3/4 cut sleeves, which the original pattern did not include. Once I did a test sleeve, I found it looked too bulky. In fact, the cap sleeve looks really cute. So I'm keeping it. Here's my very first crochet:

Its hard to believe that this-Turned into this-
Love it!

Now something else occurs to me: A little grey crochet flower for the shrug? Also, the dress needs a belt of some kind. would anyone we willing to knit or crochet a little lacy belt for moi? Or, even direct me to a good pattern? I would be ever so grateful....

The Huppah Sage Continues

Been a while since I showed you any progress on the huppah.
Getting Closer......Good news! I found the backing fabric for the huppah. I had it the whole time! So that saves me a pretty penny. Whew.

I've been thinking of creative guestbook alternatives for a few weeks now. Mom said people don't really look at their own guestbooks very often and that having something for people to sign that we can display would be a more meaningful alternative. Signed picture frames are a little too common for the likes of Tay and I. How about signing the huppah? I've been thinking of sewing a sturdy canvas-like border around the main huppah panel that would signable, but thick enough so that ink wouldn't seep through to the backing. I did some poking around today and spied out some grey canvas at a fabric store that would work. I think we could probably display it before the ceremony on the gift table where people could sign it as they enter, use it during the wedding, then lay it out again at the reception so it can continue to collect signatures.

What do you think?

You May now Kiss the Wedding Shoes

Ladies and Gentlemen (though I doubt men actually read this blog):

My wedding shoes are complete!

I found Oxford Heaven on (again) ETSY. She takes great shoes and works her magic on them using any number of things. In my case, she used grey rosettes, pearls, rhinestones, leaves, hand knotted ribbon, and vintage lace. Aren't they cute?
The base is grey suede, looks pretty silvery, no?

I love how crazy handmade they are!

Corsages...Check!

Post # 100!

In other news, the bridesmaid corsages are all done. Yes! Mom, Olivia (bridesmaid #3) and I devoted the labor day afternoon to making these little suckers. And they really did take the whole afternoon, believe me.

A little back story: You may be asking "why corsages and not bouquets?" Well, since you asked, the bridesmaids are going to have their hands full. Not only are they my bridesmaids, they are official huppah holders. That is, they will be holding up the four poles of the huppah along with the groomsmen. So, no room for a bouquet in this wedding. Also...I just adore a good wrist corsage, don't you?
It took an hour or so of playing around with the materials to figure how to make them functional. The first hurdle: what to attach them to? Plain old ribbon didn't seem stable enough to really keep them in check. Fortunately for me, I have a super resourceful mom (two, actually, counting Cathryn). She talked a friend/flower lady into selling her some florist corsage bases. It was simple to insert a ribbon over the uggo elastic. From there, it was simply a matter of arranging all the flowers and doo-dads to make them look cohesive. We attempted to tie some elements together- my headpiece, the already completed boutonnieres, the huppah (in progress) and my professionally made paper bouquet. We used the vintage grey millinery leaves from my headpiece, the ribbon and feathers from the boutonnieres, salvage huppah fabric, and of course, the beautiful custom made paper flowers from St. Jude's creations to accomplish this masterful feat. Here's a look at the trio together- the maids on the outside, the maid of honor in the middle.

Yes, those are the vintage broaches I posted so so so long ago. Each of them are detachable so when the wedding is over, my dear sweet bridesmaids can toss the passe corsages and keep the awesome broaches. Booya, bridesmaids gift! I'm a genius. Also chock up another one for a vintage themed wedding.

And yes, mom's shelties did play an integral part in the making of these corsages. Witness:

Keep 'Em Coming

I'm up to 69 yeses so far on the wedding. Thats 30 paper RSPV's and 4-5 via the web. Keep 'em coming! Don't forget, you can RSVP via our knotsite on the top left. Only a very few more invites to send out then I'm all done.

Can't wait to cross it off the list!

In the meantime, what did you think of the invites?

Bridal Shower Numero Dos...Done

Wow. What. A. Haul.

Consider the towels, potholders, and aprons done.

The fabulous church ladies of the Rocky Mountain Church of Christ really outdid themselves on Saturday. We had a very tasty potluck brunch packed with THE BEST artery clogging goodness that church ladies can provide. I modeled my wedding dress, showed off the bouquet and boutonnieres and oh yeah: GOT TONS OF GREAT KITCHEN STUFF.

I got utensils up to my eyelids and its a good thing too- we were in serious need some whisks and wooden spoons! My grandma, the ever talented seamstress, hand made me some awesome one-of-a-kind place mats- our first, a vintage style apron out of vintage fabric and my wedding purse! Also made from a vintage brocade. She really is a super grandma. Brenda also made a really nice, earthy-colored apron. Its just perfect for Tay, and I know he'll love it! I was also showered with gift cards, which will be great for anything in our registries that didn't get purchased. Not to mention the great new recipes and recipe book that Carol gave me. She had all the ladies contribute some of their best recipes. What a creative and ck&tay appropriate gift! I would have gotten pictures but I was a little busy. Does anyone have any from Saturday?