Saturday, October 20, 2012

The Life of a DIY Bride

I wanted to document some of the DIY projects I put my blood, sweat and tears into (not really any of those... but I did work hard on them) leading up to our wedding day.  Although I didn't come up with an original, whole DIY crafty wedding (because I would have killed myself with all of that planning and work), I did steal some ideas from Pinterest as well as come up with a few of my own.  

My very first wedding project was a prop for our engagement photos, which I intended on also using for decor for the wedding reception.  Even better, it was something we could easily display in our home after we used it.  All I used was a paper mache letter K, some yarn, and a tulle flower- super easy!





The next thing I made were my bridesmaid cards.  I knew I wanted to ask my girls in a special, creative way.  After searching Pinterest for some inspiration, I decided to make my own version of the "Will you Be My Bridesmaid" DIY found here.  I used the colors of our wedding palate, and tried to create each "bridesmaid" to represent the girl that was receiving it.  Each card had information about the wedding details (that were known at the time); my promise to not be a psycho, crazy, Bridezilla, the attire that I was imaging for them to wear at the time, and each of their contact info.  I was so happy with how they turned out and the girls loved them!  
Cards completed and put together
Chain link bride and bridesmaids
Front of the cards
3 additional cards with all details information


Photobooth props were a must on my DIY to-do list.  We booked Shutterbooth (amazing vendor!) and props came with the package that we purchased, but I still felt the need to create our own little touch.  One of my close friends, Bobbie, helped out with this project (love you, girl!)  Pinterest linked me up to these sites for the props and inspiration for the Team Bride/Team Groom fingers: Propsmore propsFoam Fingers










 The Mr. and Mrs. sign (which I created myself) also had a "Thank You" on the back, which we used for our wedding thank you cards!  Again, thanks to our awesome photog, Jennie Slade Photography for taking some amazing pictures!


I also created our own photobooth sign to direct our guests to use the props that we made, which we displayed on the table next to the actual booth.  


I also made another photo prop for our wedding photos after the ceremony.  I also thought of and created this myself, no inspiration necessary!  Just some scrapbook paper, some burlap and some string.  So easy!


I bought a bridal hanger from the etsy site here and decided to add a little of my own flair to match my decor of the wedding.  


Similar to my bridal hanger, I made my bridesmaids their own for their dress the day of the wedding, and it was something they could use later, as well.  I also wanted to get them gifts that they could reuse, and not just have for one day and never look at it again!  So I went the Toms route, and bought each of them a pair of ivory Toms to wear for the reception, as well as a cute necklace with their initials from another Etsy site here.





I also made favors gift bags for the kids at the wedding.  We only had about 10 or so kids that were on our guest list, so I figured it would be an extra special favor for them since the adult favors weren't exactly kid friendly (we did our own DIY cigar tubes and chocolate candy tubes in our wedding palate colors... wish I got pictures of them, but I didn't).  I printed off this coloring book that I put together for each of them, and added in some crayons, some snacks, a magnetic doodle board, silly straw and funny glasses for the photobooth.    




 Just like the yarn wrapped Letter K I made for our engagement photos, I also made all of our table numbers the same way.  Paired with wheat bouquets and some simple hydrangea on every other table, they made a understated, rustic touch to the reception decor.






Finally, the last project I did, literally three or four days before the wedding (last minute, much?) was write out everyone's escort cards for their reception table.  We had assigned seating with both a seating chart as well as escort cards to distinguish each guests' meal choice.  I placed them in corks that I ordered off Etsy, again (source not available).  This by far took the longest of all of my projects and I for sure thought my hand was going to fall off.  Again, I was completely satisfied and happy with how the final result came out.


Sorry for such a long blog post today!  Just wanted to share a little glance into what it took to put together some extra special touches to add to such an amazing day!  















Thursday, October 11, 2012

Hawaiian Honeymoon

Jason and I decided to honeymoon in Oahu and enjoyed every second of it!  We stayed in both spectrums of the island while we were there: Waikiki for five nights and North Shore for two nights.  It is an amazing island and I couldn't get over the many facets it has to offer.  One second you can be at the beach in Kailua and not even 20 minutes later, up in the jungle-like mountains.  The water is always warm, the weather is never bad, and the culture and food is awesome!  It's a breathtaking place and I would recommend anyone to visit if they are given the opportunity!

I'm providing a picture description of our stay, it makes it much easier, less to read and better to look at!  We can't wait to go back one day!


The view from our room at our hotel in Waikiki


Snorkeling Cruise (where I may or may not have gotten seasick...)

Mid-action snorkeling

Swimming with these guys!

Hike to the top of Diamondhead

View from Diamondhead

Lanikai Beach- my favorite 

Kailua Beach

Turtle Bay Resort in North Shore

The view from our room at Turtle Bay

Photography fun at Lanikai Beach

On our adventure to the banyan trees... our walk was a little further than we thought! (see our resort waaaay over there!)

Well worth the hike- LOST Banyan trees in North Shore


Mai Tais and Blue Hawaiians all week

Snorkeling at Hanauma Bay 

Sunset at Paradise Cove Luau
Traditional Luau at Paradise Cove
Beautiful dusk at Paradise Cove on the West side of Oahu

Waterfall at Waimea Falls

When Jason lived on the military base on the island, his family used to come eat at Jameson's, so we had lunch here one day.  

Rave-reviewed shave ice... was a must try.

The real deal: Hawaiian shave ice.  Jason got Mango/guava, I got raspberry/guava, both with ice cream and a snow cap!

More Banyan Trees at the Honolulu Zoo

Visiting Chinaman's Hat

Kualoa Ranch- many movies & TV shows have been filmed here: Jurassic Park, 50 First Dates, LOST, and many more!

Kualoa Ranch 

Sunset at Turtle Bay.  Favorite moment.

Many dinners oceanside, like this one.

Enjoying fireworks on the beach in Waikiki.


Leonard's Bakery, best malasadas ever made.

YUM.  Malasadas!

Turtle Bay Sunset.  I could watch this every day for the rest of my life and it will remind me of how amazing this place was!  Pure happiness and so relaxing!