Thursday Thoughts: Autumn Weddings

Tomorrow I fly to Dallas for my friend's orchard wedding! There's something so special about autumn weddings that sets them apart in my mind. Perhaps it's because I love fall so much, but you really can't go wrong with your wedding design. This quote gave me a whole other perspective of autumn in respect to weddings. Nature gives us such a stunning backdrop this time of year, why not take advantage of it? This image is from my cousin's gorgeous October wedding in New England (swoon). Her ceremony was in the most perfect little white chapel where the light came in to cast such a warm glow. Her reception was held in a refurbished barn designed for events, so there was a wonderful balance between elegance and autumn charm. I loved how they used cranberries & apples on the tables to brighten the whole room.

Have you been to an autumn wedding that stood out in your mind? I'd love to hear your favorite part in the comments below!

Partial DIY Stationery

Today on Tuesday Tips, we're talking about how to create announcements & invitations for your wedding or event on a budget, and without losing your sanity! I love being able to help people create "partial" DIY invitations & announcements for their weddings & events because I've been there. On a limited budget, crunched for time, confused about the "vision" for your event and how to execute it. Here's a great article from Huff Post about how to approach DIY weddings.

Most people have never been in a situation where they've needed to create floral arrangements or design invitations before their wedding. You may want to have a DIY wedding, but you can't figure out how to overlay that awesome font over your engagement photos or why the printer needs a "bleed".

That's where I can help. Find a designer whose style you love, or find a pre-designed template on sites like Etsy. A good designer will walk you through how to send a high resolution photo, provide a proof for you and instructions on how to print the finished product yourself.

When it comes to printing, I recommend finding a local printer where you can see the paper samples, talk to real people and review a printed proof. This is a more expensive and time consuming option, but you can control the results and quality. There are online printers (like Vista Print and Moo.com) that I have not tested, but they offer economical solutions for those on a tight budget.

When it comes to a big event, we all want to save money however we can. But don't be afraid to rely on your vendors, the experts, to help you find a solution within your budget. Whether it's doing the assembly or printing yourself, there are many options between full service and DIY.

I hope this helps you with planning your next event! What partial DIY solutions did you use for your wedding or event?

Easy Scroll Wedding Programs

Welcome to Tuesday Tips! As we move into the height of wedding season, I wanted to share some tips I learned while working at a stationery store, as a wedding coordinator and planning my own wedding. One question I've heard a lot is how to create unique but affordable wedding programs. For me, programs were not a priority in our budget, but I still wanted them to tie in with our theme and be fun. This is a very specific idea that won't work with every wedding style, but they are super easy to make! Keep reading for instructions.

Thanks to our medieval, English garden theme, we instantly knew that scrolls would be a good fit for our programs. And by we I mean this was an idea my husband was really excited about, which only added to the pressure to make them great! I had some cream legal sized paper leftover from a previous craft project, so I knew I could make these super cheap.

One option that I didn't have the time or budget to include but wanted was wax seals. We had wax seals on our wedding invitation bands, but adding them to our programs was one DIY project I had to let go.

Without further ado, how to make some scroll programs!

Supplies Needed:

• Legal sized paper
• Decorative ribbon
• Container to hold completed programs
• Printer compatible with legal size paper
• Wax seals & hot glue (optional)

Instructions:

1. Design layout of text (I used Adobe design software, but you can easily use Word or an equivalent text software)
2. Pick a font to match your style, possibly from your invitations (I used Lucida Blackletter, very medieval)
3. Print at home or at a local printer
4. Make sample of ribbon tie & measure length
5. Buy enough ribbon, plus extra!
6. Pre-cut ribbon
7. Roll paper (text facing out) and tie with ribbon
8. (Optional) Create wax seals & attach with hot glue after dry
9. Place in container. Voila!

This is a great project to include your friends & family that are looking to help out. I hope you have fun making these easy paper scrolls for your wedding programs or other DIY project.

What ideas do you have for wedding programs?

Are you ready for the Kentucky Derby? FREE Download Inside

Check out the latest Kentucky Derby design with matching printables here!

Another reason I know I am truly Southern at heart is my deep love and obsession of the Kentucky Derby. My mom raised me to love horses, the Derby and the hats... ooooh the hats! The combination of tradition, prep and an excuse to party make my heart sing every year. One day I'll host a Derby party of my very own, but in the meantime I wanted to share with you all the Derby invite I would be sending. That way you can all have fabulous parties of your own!

After downloading the PDF file, enter in your unique text using the latest version of Adobe Acrobat (available to download free here).

If you need more inspiration, check out my Kentucky Derby Pinterest board for party planning tips, decoration ideas, recipes and more.

Now it's time to start perfecting your mint julep recipe before the big day. Cheers!

Behind the Scenes: How I Design Pugs

I thought it'd be fun to show you a little peek behind the curtain of my pug designs. I recently posted a new postcard to my Etsy site for the upcoming Easter holiday featuring my pug Maisy. I was actually born on an Easter Sunday, so this holiday is very special to me.

It took several photo shoots to get the right shots. I use actual photos of the pugs and the lighting has to be just right with their head & tails at just the right angle.

Then I take the photos into Photoshop to crop out the background, or crop out their little heads. This is my favorite part because I'm left with an adorable photo of my girls!

I use Illustrator to turn the photos into vectors, which are able to be stretched to any size. These usually require lots of tiny adjustments to capture the essence of the pug. After adding a border and some text, this Easter card was ready for press!

I can't wait to send this card out to my family & friends!

If you would like your own digital copy to print & send to friends, use this limited time code SPRINGFLING50 to take 50% off the Easter card in my Etsy shop, or any other item in the shop! This offer will be available through Easter Sunday, April 20th.

Sincerely,