DIY Chalkboard Writing

I previously mentioned that I DIYed the chalkboard signs that we displayed at our wedding, and I promised I would share how I did it.  I had fallen for some of the chalkboard displays I had come across on Pinterest.  Like this…

and this…

I really wanted to have a of couple signs like this at our wedding.  If you remember, I did do some chalkboard writing for our Save the Dates…

But, I wanted to get a little fancier with the font this time around.  Here’s the thing though. When I write freehand, my words tend to slant weird ways and end up different sizes looking a little wonky.  Then, I remembered tracing in art class in elementary school.  Don’t you remember coloring the back side of a piece of a paper in a certain shape with pencil, and then tracing the outline of the shape with a clean sheet of paper underneath?  Remember?  Well, I do, and it got the gears in my brain moving.  I figured, I can do that on a chalkboard, but instead of using pencil just use chalk!

Before I got my tracing on, I had to get a chalkboard.

Sandy found this guy at Hobby Lobby, and it just so happens to be the same exact one that I saw in my inspiration photo from Pinterest. How about that?

Since this was meant to be the welcome sign, I decided to go with “Welcome to the Mace Edmondson Wedding May 10, 2014”.  Pretty straightforward, I think.  I searched online for some free fonts that I liked and decided on Villa Didot and Edwardian Script.  I then typed it up in a Word document and printed that sucker out.

You can’t really tell here, but I used legal sized paper.  I did so, because I needed my words to be a bit longer to fill the width of the chalkboard, and I wasn’t looking to do any cutting and pasting.  Next, I just cut all of the words out…

Then it was time to cover the back with chalk…

It’s hard to see the chalk, because it is white, but I made sure I covered the entire back of the paper with it.  From there, I taped the paper onto the chalkboard, chalked side facing down.  I made sure the positioning was straight and where I wanted it before taping.

Now, it was time to do some good old tracing.  I used a sharp pencil and was sure to press hard enough that the chalk on the back stuck to the surface of the chalkboard.  Make sense?

Before taking the paper off, I peeked behind the paper to be sure the chalk was transferring enough to be seen.

Huzzah! It worked.

I used a white liquid chalk marker to go over the traced wording.

Then, I added the fancy shmancy little horizontal lines that were in the openings of the letters…

And, BOOM, I had my first word.

I then covered the back of the remaining words in chalk and taped them on the chalkboard.

I completed the remaining words with the same steps and here she is…

Oh, and it’s a double sided chalkboard, so I did it all over again on the back side.

Wanna see it in action the day of the wedding?

Woot woot!  Welcome to our wedding!

I used the same steps again to make a seating sign…

I used a couple new fonts on this sign.  I stuck with Edwardian Script, but also used Ever After and Matilde.

See it hanging out there at the entrance?

I also made some Reserved signs. Some for the ceremony…

And for the reception tables…

and cookie jar labels…

and a restroom sign…

So, there you have it.  The easy way to make fancy pants chalkboard signs.

 

 

Ceremony Location and Such

We did some serious searching as for where to have our wedding ceremony, and by “we” I mean myself and Justin’s mother, Sandy.  Justin did not see the location until the day of the rehearsal.  Let’s just say he’s not that into wedding planning, thankfully I had Sandy.

I had just two things I was looking for in the location, I wanted it to take place outside and preferably near some trees.

We checked out the Bulow Plantation Ruins, which is close to Justin’s parent home, which is where we had already determined we would have our reception.  The Bulow Plantation is mostly associated with it’s history, being the ruins of a former sugar mill plantation.  It is very rustic and pretty, take a gander for yourself…

It was definitely in the running for our ceremony location, but I wanted to check out a couple more places before hopping on board with the plantation.

We then headed to Washington Oaks State Park, which is equally, if not more beautiful.

As you may have figured out, I have a thing for moss covered oak trees. L-O-V-E them.   I actually loved Washington Oaks so much, that I requested to book our ceremony there.  Unfortunately, our date was already taken by another couple.  Thanks a lot other couple! I guess it wasn’t meant to be.

I went back to good old google and did some more searching and found a place called Princess Place Preserve.  It is a nature preserve that is on the Matanzas River.

I pretty much fell in love with the old oak trees immediately.

It also has a charming old lodge on the property.  I ended up checking if our date was available and it was, so we were in.

Next, we had to get an isle to walk down and some decorations to make it look like a wedding was going to happen! So that’s just what we did.

Sandy made this amazing hydrangea wreath to hang on the tree that we decided would be our backdrop for the ceremony…

We decided to use shepherd hooks with hanging mason jars filled with more white hydrangeas to line the isles.

And in case you are dying to know(I know you are) the chairs are rentals from Rentaland.

I also made reserved signs using chalkboard markers and small chalkboards I found at Hobby Lobby, but I’ll tell you more about that later.

One more chalkboard sign that I made that I’ll explain more about soon.

We also decided to use our friend Mike Shackelford as the musician for the wedding ceremony and reception.  Because let’s be honest, who doesn’t like live music better than pre-recorded music?

I am so happy we chose the preserve.  It ended up being a nice sunny day and we both showed up.  Score!

PS it was a great back drop for pictures!

 

I’m so fancy

You already knowwww.  I’m really not that fancy, but here is the fanciest I get…

Let’s re-cap my wedding dress shopping experiences and how I narrowed it down to this guy (or gal I suppose)…

I did some dress shopping in FL and NY.  I started in FL, where I went shopping with my friend Krissi.  Here is one dress from that trip…

I am ecstatic that I did not get this dress, because looking at it now I think blah.

Now, I am not a selfie in the dressing room kinda girl, but this did happen…

I had to send a photo to my sister for advice.  I always need her advice when it comes to things like this.

At this point in my search, I was thinking about getting a more casual bohemian style dress and this guy was at Dillard’s on clearance for $53.  Score! This dress did come home with me, because it was $53! Although it did not become my wedding dress. Boo.

Next shopping trip took place in good old NY with my mom and sister.  For this trip I was pretty determined, because it was only 6 months from the wedding and I needed a dress ASAP. We went to a couple different dress shops.  Here is the first dress I tried on…

I don’t even have to tell you why this was not my dress.  Do I?

Next…

The lady who was helping us out in this store picked this one out.  It was an immediate no for me.  Not me at all.

I was actually a pretty big fan of the option above.  I love the lace and the sleeves.  As you can see it was a little large, so I was holding the dress behind my back.  In the end I wasn’t feeling it so we moved on to the next shop, which just so happened to be David’s Bridal.

I didn’t think I would find anything at David’s just because it is such a commercial bridal shop, well I was wrong.

And we have a winner. It’s a Galina, style 7WG3381 if you’re super interested.  I loved it as soon as I put it on.  Wanna see more?

Okay fine!

I love that it’s not your everyday lace, it’s more of a leafy pattern.

I liked it even more with a sash, so that happened too.

Since we’re already on the topic of my wedding apparel, I’ll just tell you about my shoes and jewelry as well.

I went with super simple beaded sandals that I found on Amazon for $20.  Like I said I am fancy, people.  They did the job and I still wear them, so I was pretty pleased.

As for my jewelry, I was a pretty big fan of some of the chunky pearl necklaces I had seen on Pinterest.  Like this…

Or this…

So I stalked Etsy and found a shop called Eienblue where I came across this necklace…

It was only $42, plus the shipping was super fast and the necklace is great quality.  Go check out her shop.

Now, here are some more photos from the day of the wedding…

 

I am very happy with my pick.  Overall, I was comfortable and the dress went well with the vintage theme of the wedding. Success!

Wedding Guest Welcome Bags

Hey, What do you know?  Another wedding post!  This one just so happens to be about the guest bags we put together for our out of towner friends that came to celebrate our big day with us.  I figured I wanted these bags to accomplish two things: show our appreciation to our family and friends for treking their butts all the way FL and also to contain functional items that they may want to use while visiting.  I did some brain storming with Sandy(Justin’s mom) and we decided on a few things to include in these bags.  Here is what we came up with:

• a couple water bottles
• brochures and maps of surrounding towns
• some kind of candy
• sunscreen
• welcome note
• schedule of events

We decided simple white paper bags would be a good option. So we scooped some of those up along with some green ribbon to tie things together.

I started with putting together the welcome note…

Next up was our schedule of events…

Then I put together a transportation schedule, since we had a shuttle going to and from the hotel and the reception.

We gathered some brochures and maps from our local chambers of commerce. Then Sandy used the ribbon to tie everything into a little bundle.

As you can see I also created door hangers for our guests hotel rooms.  Sandy found something similar on etsy which was the inspiration for these.  I decided to give it a go and make my own.  I created a document on our computer with the wording I liked and some clipart.  Then, I bought a large hole punch from Michaels to make a large hole at the top, so our guests were able to hang them on the hotel door knobs.

Boom. Do not disturb door hangers for everyone!

Sandy ordered the sunscreen online.  We went with small individual packets and popped them in little cellophane bags tied with some more ribbon.

As for candy we went with key lime salt water taffy and some regular chocolates.  I figured key lime salt water taffy was a little more Floridian than the usual candy.  We also plopped these into cellophane bags tied with ribbon.

From there everything went into the bags along with a couple bottles of water.

We sort of did an assembly line operation to get all 60 of these bags filled.

We also tied the welcome note along with the two schedules to the front of the bags with the same green ribbon.  

And there you have it, 60 welcome bags.

For The Guys

Since I covered what we got the girls for thank you gifts, I figured it’s only right to share what the guys got.  First up…

What’s in the box?

Oh you know… a tie.  We picked out these bad boys because they are what the guys wore for the wedding.  We figured we would foot the bill for them and make it part of their gift.

Next, Justin found these monogrammed wallets…

I think these were a great choice and I hope the guys loved them!

They also each got a golf multi tool, because you know all men need one of those!

And the whole shebang…

Justin picked out all of these things on his own, so no references on where they came from.  Sorry friends.  I did however get to wrap them up!

Look familar?  I wanted them to match the bridesmaids a bit, but different still.  Make sense?

Boom!  Wedding party gifts done!

For the Girls

Were you wondering what I got my bridesmaids?  Thought so.  Since I love and appreciate my friends and sister so very much I wanted to get them some things that tickle their fancies.

So what do you do when you need some badass gift ideas?  Etsy.  I know it’s an addiction, but there is so much greatness to be found on etsy.

First up I was thinking some sort of bag/purse would be a contender.  Here are the few that I narrowed it down to…

These are from a shop called JuneberryStitches.  Those colorful floral fabrics used to create the names combined with the simple burlap bag and you can call me a fan.

While still browsing in JuneberryStitches shop I came across these…

Now those are my jam and I thought my sister would dig them too.

Lastly, I stumbled upon these…

I found these in a shop called GeauxMelange.  I loved the little leaf on these and of course the embroidered name.

Finally I decided I wanted to purchase from JuneberryStitches.  I ended up getting a couple of the bags with the doilies for my sister and I. I thought my other two friends wouldn’t be as excited about the doily bag as us so I picked out a couple of this style for them…

Here are the colors I went with…

I am so happy with them!  And as you can see I got one extra, that would be for me!  Couldn’t resist.  This seller did an amazing job, she was so quick responding to my questions and shipping, and the bags are great quality to boot.  Go buy one!

Next I knew I wanted to get some piece of jewelry for each of them.  I really enjoyed these…

Found em’ in a shop called tyrahandmadejewelry.  I honestly would have gotten them, but one of my friends had purchased something similar for her bridesmaids, and my sister just so happened to be in that wedding.  So I nixed these and decided to go with an Alex and Ani bracelet instead…

I went with these for my friends and this one for my sister…

I knew she would love it.

While browsing at anthropologie one day I came across these…

Thought they would be a cool gift that the girls could use to hold jewelry or little odds and ends.

Lastly, they all got a little monogrammed notebook.

Here is the whole shebang…

I did end up getting my sister one last thing…

This adorable little tea cup.  It is an antique I found in a shop in Daytona Beach.  I love that it looks like it could have been bought at anthropologie, but it is 80 years old.  I only got one for my sister because I didn’t think it would be my other friends cup of tea(pun intended).

So here are Jessica’s goodies…

I hope they loved them as much as I do.

I also figured I would share how I wrapped them up while I am at it…

Yup, those are little chalkboard tags.  More to come on things for the guys tomorrow.

 

 

 

Rehearsal Dinner

My new in-laws threw an amazing rehearsal dinner for Justin and I the day before our wedding, and we had a blast.  We know that traditionally people invite all out of town guests to their rehearsal dinner, but we decided to go a different route since pretty much all of our guests are out of towners.  If we were to do the traditionally rehearsal dinner we would basically be having two wedding receptions.  So, we decided to go with a more intimate dinner including our immediate family and our wedding party.  I am so glad we made this decision, because it gave me a chance to have an awesome dinner with the most important attendants at our wedding!

Sandy chose the Halifax Plantation for the venue.

Here are the invitations…

I’m pretty obsessed with them. Oh and check out the back…

A little V+J action going on.

We had this beautiful little room all to ourselves.

The decorations were a little sneak peak to the wedding decor…

We hung out, had some drinks and ate some finger foods while we waited for everyone to arrive.

Love this photo of our moms!

Had to get a photo of the shiny head club.

The dinner was delicious and Sandy even made these cute menus with our options for the night.

She also made favors for everyone…

They are personalized candy bars…

I love the back!

Such a wonderful night with our families and friends!

 

 

Bridal Showering

Remember how I went home a while back?  Welllll my mom and sister threw me a bridal shower.  Thought I would share all the details.

Here is what I got to see when I walked in!  Love the table settings oh-so-much.

Jess decorated everything according to my style and I would say she did a pretty bang up job because I loved every detail.

She got all of the vases from a seller on etsy and they were filled with none other than wildflowers.

The favors were bracelets and also an etsy find.

This Mr & Mrs sign was yet another etsy score.

Jess even made a little ice tea and lemonade station.  As you can see the cups are mason jars with paper straws.

Once I was done taking in all of the awesome decorations we ate some food.

Then we played a couple games.

One was bridal bingo which was played while I opened gifts.

I got some pretty amazing gifts, above is an engraved frame.

How about this sick little “M” book that my mom got from anthropologie.

Jess got me this pillow complete with my new last name.

Also got these cute bird bowls from my mom.

Lots of kitchen thangs.

A label maker which was one of the first things added to my registry, love me some labeling.

Justin’s mom, Sandy, got me this amazing basket of candles that came with a poem.  Here is what it said…

A basket of candles that come in a pair
in all different colors, for you two to share.
The white ones burn first;
they are wrapped in white lace
to celebrate your first married night
in your new chosen place.
The green pair is taller, and also much thinner;
burn with the first company you have over for dinner.
The dark blue candles are for after your first fight;
use them to burn while making up all night.
Pink candles set the mood and pave the way
for your first married Valentine’s Day.
Now, when your first year of marriage is through,
the cream anniversary pair, will light for you two.
Red candles aflame, both your futures are bright;
celebrate promotions you’ve worked toward with all of your might.
By this time we hope, maybe, just maybe
you can light the purple ones, on the birth of your baby.
And just when you thought you’d put these away,
take the light blue ones out for your fifth anniversary day.
Now just one more pair left – for the big “two five” –
the anniversary pair that will keep your love alive.
Congratulations (Bride and Groom)
on the start of your forever.
May the two of you always be happy together.
And burn these candles just the way we said,
but please don’t forget: blow them out before bed!

The basket had every pair of candles mentioned in the poem and also some cute candle holders.  I may have teared up when reading it.

I got this awesome basket full of antique goodies from my friend Christina…

She basically stalked me when I went to her moms antique shop, and picked up everything I liked from way back in September.  Sneaky little Christina.

After gifts, it was time for cake.

Is that not the most amazing bridal shower cake you have ever seen? And yes those are photos of my parents and Justin’s parents on their wedding days way back when.

Oh yes, they let me cut this beautiful cake.

I had such a great time and I truly loved seeing all of my family and friends.

Big Jim(my dad) even showed up for a little while.

I may be a little biased, but this was the best bridal shower I have ever attended.

 

 

If You Like it Then You Shoulda Put a Doily on it

Yup, just quoted a Beyonce song and added the word doily to it.  Pretty sure I just became the coolest I have ever been in my life.   Now that that’s cleared up, I can explain that this post is all about my wedding invites!  Yes!  I am finally able to share all the details with you, because they went out last week.  Woot woot!!  That means only 2 months to go.

First off, my invites were homemade.  I decided to go the homemade route because I figured it would do two things for me.  1. Save me money and 2. Be absolutely unique.  I have to say that I did accomplish both of these tasks, that is if you consider my time worth $0.  If my time is worth money than these are the most expensive wedding invites ever!

Here’s how it all went down…

I googled around looking for some wedding invitation wording that I like.  Pretty much I was looking for something with a fun and casual feel.  I came up with this…

What are you doing May 10, 2014?

Nothing?

Perfect, because…

Vanessa and Justin

are getting married!

You have to be there!

Meet us under the oak tree.

Dinner, drinks and awkward, but enthusiastic dancing to follow.

Of course there are locations and times included, but I left those out.  Overall, I thought this was more us than the tradition wording that most have.

From there I had to figure out how I was going to print these.  I typed it up and purchased some cream colored card stock.  I went with cream because it was a good neutral base color and it tied in with my save the dates that previously went out…

I also used the same font(yellow peas) that I used on the save the dates.  And see those little yellow flowers?  These guys…

Welp, I wanted to include some of those as well, just to tie everything together with the save the dates.  Last time I attached them with my good ol’ friend the hot glue gun, but this time I wanted to try something else.  Then I came across a couple of ideas like this…

Sewn invitations!!! And guess what?  I have a sewing machine!  And boom!  Just like that I had a plan.

I sewed some of those cute little flowers on each invite and here is the end result…

I went with a zig zag pattern when sewing the flowers on.

I also had to come up with an RSVP for the invites, so I did the same googling and pinteresting thing and found a few I liked…

I was really digging the mad lib idea, I just needed to figure out what I wanted mine to say.  I wanted to keep it simple, since I thought this may confuse people to begin with.  Here is what I came up with…

They also each got a sewn flower.  Next up I wanted to include information about our hotel accommodations…

And lastly I created a map.  I once again googled around for how to create this map, and found a few that I loved on pinterest…

I wanted mine to be a bit simpler than these. I found a great blog post about creating a wedding map, that went step by step on how to create your own.  This is what I ended up with…

and on the back…

Some quick directions written out since it can get a bit tricky.  And here is the whole shebang together…

and one more for fun…

I love how they turned out.  As you can probably see my colors for the wedding are super neutral, with some greens and yellows.  Just how I roll I guess, I like my neutrals.  Anyhow, once I put everything together, I still felt like it needed something.  Then I remember seeing some wedding invites wrapped in doilies…

I then headed out to Michaels so I could jump on the doily bandwagon.  The title of this post might be starting to make some sense now.  I bought some 12 inch circle paper doilies and folded them around each invite, just like in the photos above.  I then wrapped a piece of yellow or green string(I used both) around the doily and tied it into a bow.  Then a trimmed the excess doily that hung above or below the invite.  Not picturing it?  Well here it is…

And when you untie the string…

You’ll first see the invite and then below…

The RSVP, map and accommodations.  Wanna see a heap of invites?

Well, there you go.

The last thing I needed to do was address and stamp these suckers and they are on there way.  Here are the stamps I chose…

Vintage flowers, could it get any better?

As for addressing the envelopes I typed up all of the addresses and printed them on each RSVP envelope and each invitation envelope…

And then I did this for fun…

Overall, I can not say I saved a butt load of money on making these myself, but they are definitely one of a kind and I enjoyed making them my own.  Thanks for reading:)