I just bought a set of paper mache box. It comes in three 8, 9, and 10". I'm trying to do a DIY enve...
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04/27/2010
 Freak out |
FREAKING OUT!!!!
150 days until Wedding- where did the time go? AND I freaking HATE Staples!!
OMG- where did the time go? My last post was 300 days and counting- now I have half of that????
In addition to not posting for a while I have sort of let the wedding planning hit the back burner. The halt on the wedding planning started with a friendly enough visit to the staples, but before I get to that you will need a little back ground story.... I searched and searched and searched for the prefect invite and literally found NOTHING that I liked. So I did what every girl does and went to work and bitched about it. :) A co- worker of mine told me that she designed hers on her home computer and took it to staples to have it printed at a fraction of the cost of ordering, which seamed easy enough.... right? So I head off to my friendly neighborhood Staples and talk to them about this and they tell me, yes, yes, yes, no problem..... But we don't carry the paper that you want nor can we special order it. BUT go ahead and order it off the internet (from one of the web sites they suggested) and bring it back and you can print it here. So I order the ivory 11X17, red 8X11, vellum and all envelopes that I would need for my invites- basically ALL of the paper that I am going to need for ALL of my paper projects- total cost $200.00. I go back to the staples with my STD design and my paper and they print up beautifully. I laminated them and attached the magnet to the back and voila- they look great! (I will post pictures later, we moved recently and I haven't found them yet) Now is where the bitching starts!! I go back a month later to print out my invites (reply cards, directions, table #'s etc) and Staples has "changed their policy" and will no longer let paper that is not from staples into their copiers???? WTF!!! So I speak to the manager who reiterates the same crap. Now I have $200.00 worth of paper that I special ordered from somewhere else because they could not get it in and a $50.00 photocopy card from Staples and NO PLAN. After humming and hawing about what to do (and after a good solid afternoon of bitching) I put the invites on the back burner along with everything else wedding related. The good news is that after 150 days of stewing I am back on the wedding band wagon with a renewed positive outlook :) We have borrowed a printer from my sister and we are going to print them at home.... but I still hate Staples... lol |
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11/30/2009
 300 |
300 Days
Saturday marked our 300 days to go mark. I can't believe how quickly the time has passed!
So far I feel I have a good handle on my DIY list- next up are the invites (the last of the paper arrived on Friday) and the isle runner. Today is my last day at work- which is really sad :( I have made it until noon and have only cried once- which I consider a great hurdle as I am a crier!! -I cry watching General Hospital - which is the only real TV outside of sports and movies that my FH and I watch... and I know it is not real :) I guess the flip side of work being done is that I have tons of time for the rest of my DIY projects- so bring 'em on! |
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11/27/2009
 Garter_yankees |
My garter has finally arrived!!!!
MY FH is a HUGE Yankees fan, and I was super pumped when I saw this on Etsy!!
It arrived Wed and is FANTASTIC!! The shop is 'GartersByKristi' and she has a huge selection of sports garters as well as others. I recommend if you have a sports fan to stop and take a look at this shop!! The garter itself was a little pricier than I had planned but I feel it is so worth it!!! I am keeping the garter as a surprise for the day- but I am worried that once he sees it he will not want to toss it!!! Luckily I received a free pink garter at the Toronto Wedding Show so I plan to wear all 3 that day- just in case... problem solved. I can't wait for him to see it- I am soooo bad at keeping secrets like this from him (I get way too excited and spill the beans)... how am I going to last almost a whole year? lol :) EDIT- when I say 'finally' it didn't take forever- I had it in no time!!! I was so excited it just FELT LIKE forever :) |
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11/24/2009
 Parasol_1 Parasol_2 Parasol_3 Wedding pic Sandy Wedding_2      |
DIY Wedding
Thank You Parasol
This weekend I tackled my "Thank You" parasol. I plan to have the photographer take some pictures with this on our big day and then use those pictures for the Thank you notes that will be sent out after the wedding.
I used the parasol as a BM in one of my best girls destination wedding. I Printed off the 'Thank' and 'You' as large as I could on 11 X 17 paper at work. I then trimmed the words and taped them to the inside of the parasol. Using a black Sharpie I traced the letters on the parasol and then painted in the letters. I used the same paint that I will be using with my isle runner- the black acrylic mixed with the fabric medium. Pictures 1, 2 and 3 are of my parasol (by the newly designed fish pond) Picture 4- is a random off the internet- this is the idea of what I would like our thank you cards to look like. Picture 5- is my best girls Dominican wedding. I am notorious for the double chin.... The Parasols were initially to keep the bright Dominican sun off us during the day (so we were not greasy with sunscreen) but it ended up raining all day- and for the next 5 :( Regardless they were beautiful and handy :) You can't even tell in the photos that it was raining- and no one was squinty :) If I had it to do again, I would make the letters bigger- like the ones in picture 4. That being said I think it turned out pretty good. |
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11/21/2009
 Front 1 Back Side Bodice Front 2      |
Wedding Dress
Best for Brides- Mississauga
I had looked in several magazines at many dresses and did not find one style or designer that I was drawn to, because of this I figured that this day was going to be mainly to get a feel for what I liked and what I didn't like. I had it set in my mind that I was willing to pay no more than $800.00 for the dress. My mother was willing to match me dollar for dollar increasing my budget to $1600.00- I am a SUPER lucky girl :) Even knowing that I would be matched I just couldn't see myself paying more than $1000.00 for the dress.
Sandy one of my best girls, who is in the wedding party and lives in Mississauga put a dress day together for me- Keeping in mind I wanted beautiful but economical she made appointments at several off the rack shops around Mississauga." I am pretty tall and pretty picky so I truly thought his day was going to be an absolute BLAST- but not really too productive. Snacks in hand we started our hunt for "the dress," NEVER in a million year would have guessed that less than 3 hours late we would have found it. Best for Brides was store 3, I would absolutely recommend it to anyone looking for wedding or bridesmaid dresses. That weekend they were having a trunk sale, not only were there dresses but there was also a decorator and a cake baker on site- WITH SAMPLES- which was actually our first stop :) We looked through the rack and came out with a few that we liked, the whole team there was super friendly and asked lots about the wedding. (At one of the stores there were no questions asked- just a pushy sales clerk) When I tried on the sample of my dress, I just felt "IT"- I knew it was the one. Which is really funny because I didn't think it was going to be like that- the dress felt it too because what happened next was really funny!!! Once I decided that this was going to be the dress the woman helping us went down to the basement and brought up a dress in my size for me to try on. (off the rack you take what you buy that day) Sandy and I had a little trouble getting the zipper up on the new dress but figured that it must be because it was fresh from the plastic wrap- which is why in the pictures it is so wrinkly. So I decide that this is going to be THE DRESS, - take the photos and head back to the change room.... where we find out I am STUCK in the dress!!! Sandy tells me not to panic and rushed off to get the sales girl who comes back and also can not get me out of the dress. She also tells me not to panic- who's panicking? This dress clearly wants me as much as I want it!!! A third girl comes back with a pair of pliers and has to break the zipper to get me out of the dress- which ended up being a good thing because that is when they told me that for an extra $40.00 they can put in the lace up back- which is what I prefer!!! Oh and the best part? The dress was $499.99!!! (which included a matching wrap and a fabric garment bag) I took it home with me that day, I take it back shortly before the wedding where they will sew in the lace up back, bustle the train and steam it all perfect for me :) I hope all the wedding decisions are this easy! |
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11/21/2009
 1 Notice the mosquito- thank goodness for photoshop :) 020_20 021_21 This one I want to use for our Wine bottle labels 023_23 026_26 029_29 030_30          |
Wedding Photography
Engagement Photos- some of them :)
I just commented on a post about engagement photos and realized that I have not posted ours. These are a few from my computer at work.
I am really happy with how they turned out, Lynn is FANTASTIC!! I was stressing SO HARD over what to wear. When I talked about having them taken my FH was down, but advised that he was wearing a black t-shirt and jeans "non negotiable" That was fine with me, I didn't expect us to dress up but I too wear a lot of black and was worried about how both of us in black would look. When I was in grade school I had a TERRIBLE class photo taken. One of the other girls in the class showed up wearing the same sweater- the photographer, ever the professional- placed her in the back row just off to the left and, me dead center of the middle row. The day comes to get our photos back and there her and I stand looking like a giant two headed monster in a red sweater.... hence the stressing! lol :) I finally get my outfit planned - I went with a white cardigan... EXACTLY the opposite :)- and it is so cold and windy that we didn't even take off our jackets. All the stressing for nothing. We had planned with Lynn to go to Ruthven, our ceremony site, but the wind was just too bad to go. She took us to this little patch of wilderness close to where she lived and got these great shots :) The only thing that I would have changed is that my FH isn't really a "smiler" which shows in the photos- he smiled in less than half of them :( When we got them back I was like "WTF- what is up?" According to him "it felt like he was smiling".... lol. At least he doesn't look totally miserable :) I will post more of the colour ones when I remember to bring the CD to work. |
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11/20/2009
 Dress 1 Dress 2 Dress 3 Dress 4 Dress 5 Dress 6 Dress 7        |
Bridesmaids
Potential Options
So my girls and I have a SUPER CHRISTMAS EXTRAVAGANZA planned for Dec 5th, which I am SUPER excited for. In addition to eating everything that we see, we are also going to try and narrow down a BM dress and hunt out a veil (I already have found my dress but haven't got the photos off my camera yet)
For the BMs dresses, I know that I want tea length, I love this look! It is also really important for me to get them something that they might be able to wear again- as opposed to something I KNOW will sit in the closet collecting dust. I started by setting up an account with www.jaysbridal.com and selected everything that I liked to the "holding area" from there my girls went thru and picked out the ones that they liked best. I like the idea of the dresses being red with the black accent (not all of the sashes were changeable in the photos but they will be black) That being said and knowing what we are like, THOUSANDS will be tried on in addition to these :) before we find 'the one' So far the first photo is my favorite- I LOVE LOVE LOVE it!!! I hope when we get there that it is flattering, the fabric looks a little clingy which makes me worry a little. As for the veil- I am thinking fingertip. My dress has some beautiful sparkly beading on the back and down the train, and the train will be bustled after the ceremony- I like that the fingertip veil will not cover all this beautiful sparkle :) I want to get an idea of what I like- take a few photos- and then DIY it. They say after all, that imitation is the sincerest form of flattery :) I can't wait!! |
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11/09/2009
 Done and Done Materials Reworking Roses Roses Complete Little Helper_cute and not yet helping Little Helper in actions Half Complete. 2 Attaching Bottom Ribbon And I didn't even burn myself ) Done and Done           |
DIY Wedding
Kissing Balls
I got all my Kissing Ball stuff together and started- I plan to hang these off Sheppard's' Hooks down my isle.
Pictures: 1. Finished product :) Yay it worked out SO well :) 2. The materials used to make the balls. - Roses were purchased from Wal-Mart- $1.50 per bunch- 6 heads per bunch. - 4" Styrofoam balls, $1.00 for 2 at the Great Canadian Dollar store downtown Hamilton. - ribbon from Wal-Mart $2.50 a spool. - hot glue gun, glue sticks, scissor, wire cutters and a pencil. 3. I cut the rose head off the stem leaving about 1/3 inch of wire, and then removed the leaves from the wire. Lastly I pulled the plastic joint thingies off the leaves (little green things to the left of the rose heads.) The stems and little green bits can go in the garbage. 4. With the plastic bit gone I put the leaves directly on the rose head. (You can leave these out but I thought it might be handy to have in case I accidentally leave a gap where you can see white- I could just glue it to the ball so the green would show through instead of the glaring white spot ) 5 and 6. My Siamese Forbes- trying to be a little "helper" you can see his toys in the background but playing with all this new stuff was apparently way more fun than slobbery old ducky- so cute :) 7. Half finished. I started by attaching the ribbon at the top- I hot glued the ribbon directly to the ball. For each flower I poked a hole in the Styrofoam with the pencil, filled the hole with glue and then put the rose stem in the hole- I found that the wire kept poking thru the inside of the flower (and into my thumb) when I tried to poke it into the ball without the pencil hole first. 8. when I was about 3/4 finished covering the ball I attached the bottom piece of ribbon so that I wasn't having a hard time trying to squeeze it in around the roses. Once the bottom ribbon was glued on, I filled in the rest of the roses. 9. Picture of me and my helper working away, at this point he was done "helping" and needed a nap I guess :) 10. Finished Product :) only 11 more to go! I used about 8 bunches of flowers for the ball- that being said they were packed pretty tighly, I could have gotten away with less per ball. When I priced these on line I was looking at $35.00/ $40.00 per ball (plus shipping), making them myself I spent about $15.00 per ball, they were basically half price!!! Needless to say I am super pumped to get crackin' on the rest.... we'll see how I am feeling as 5 and 6 roll around :) |
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11/05/2009
 Ruthven_Garden Gazebo Ruthven_ Plan B   |
Ceremony Location
Ruthven National Park
As mentioned in my last post we are having an outdoor ceremony at Ruthven National Park. The plan is to have the ceremony at the Garden Gazebo in picture #1. The chair covers in the picture are not included but they do have 140 matching chairs (can be seen in picture #2) - whoo hoo- one more thing I can cross of the list :) I figure a little tulle and some flowers and it will have a nice romantic feel.
It was recommended by the staff at the site to rent a tent in case of rain- they even provided a list of vendors that often do business with the Park. I called around and the lowest price for tent rental was $500.00, and I might not even use it!!!! At my consultation with my Photographer, Lynn (who is a family friend so I was bitching about the price of the tent rental- lol) she recommended we talk to the site about renting "The Coach House" (Picture #2) which is SOOO cute and would be perfect if we had to move the ceremony inside. The bonus here is we saved a HUGE chunk of money: the rental fee was $40.00 per hour for the Coach House instead of $500.00 for the tent :) And from a photographer standpoint- Lynn doesn't have to worry about a big white tent in the background of all our beautiful green photos :) If you are interest in Ruthven for your ceremony you can take a virtual tour http://www.ruthvenpark.ca/virtual.html I highly recommend you go in person and tour the grounds- it is absolutely BEAUTIFUL, they have all kinds of walking trails, great gardens and the site runs along side the Grand River- I am totally thrilled we found it! My FH's only comment/concern: he hopes they re-shingle the roof of the Gazebo before the ceremony..... do you ever wonder what actually goes on inside your FH's head??? lol :) |
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11/03/2009
 water bottle labels for wedding |
DIY Wedding
Water Bottle Labels
A while ago I was intrigued and inspired by water bottle labels created by one of the ladies -sorry I can't remember who :( (There were problems with the colour running when they got wet, then they were laminated. They ended up not sticking because they were to thick. If this is you thanks so much for the inspiration :)
That blog got me thinking: we are having an outdoor ceremony at a National Park, pictures will be taken at the same site as well as we are going for some fun baseball photos at a local diamond (My FH is a HUGE HUGE Baseball fan!!!) I thought that with all the running and craziness- and god willing nice weather- this would be a great way to add a personalized touch to my ceremony. I searched and searched on line for a template that fit with what I have inside my head for my wedding but was not really able to find what I was looking for. Being relatively creative, I took the nutrition information off one of the templates, opened PowerPoint and went to work. This is the result- I am very happy with how they turned out :) The only change I plan to make is to stamp the hearts so that they come out in Red as opposed to the Orange. I welcome and comments as they are not set in stone yet :) To stop any colour running or paper ripping (as I used normal paper) I went to the local Staples and brought packing tape that is 4" wide. I plan to cover both sides and cut them out (cheaper and more flexible than laminating) ... seems a little time consuming I know, but I am about to be unemployed!! At any rate here are a few of the websites that I have found that offer free templates :) http://www.pashweddings.com/weddingforums/showthread.php?t=7015 http://design.jodyprouse.com/freebies/templates.html Select "free stuff" http://pinkavenuebride.blogspot.com/2009/08/wedding-wednesday-free-water-bottle.html |
sarahnryan
| 3 | years since wedding |
Sarah
Ryan
Sep 25, 2010
Simcoe,
Ontario,
Canada
Ruthven National Park
Moose Lodge
Lynn Adams- lynn@lynnadamsphotography.com
Red
number of visits: 564
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