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Wednesday, January 4, 2012

Playing Catch Up + A Little DIY

by: Ashley

I am going to warn you right now that this will probably be one of my longest posts ever because 1) I spent an entire week away from the blog (it felt like eternity!); 2) I'm super excited about a little DIY project I've been working on; and 3) I get to talk about my wedding :)

So first, let's play catch up.  I was reminded by a very close friend of mine that I promised I would reveal my engagement party dress.  (Remember this post about finding a dress?)  So here it is:


I loved it!! And I received so many compliments on it too!! Apparently sequins are in style, because my blogging partner in crime also wore a sequin dress - and no, we did not consult ahead of time.  Actually my honey picked out this dress for me to try on. Oh - and did you notice in the picture his sequin tie?  My cousin was so nice to let him borrow it for the night ;)

I recommend that all engaged couples have an engagement party. It doesn't have to be fancy, it can just be a little get together.  But it was the first time that my honey and I got to get the people we love together and celebrate this journey that we are on right now. 

Since we are already talking about being engaged, it is a perfect time to introduce my little DIY project.  This has consumed much of my time lately.  My very own doing-it-myself Save the Dates!!! I know that not all our readers are engaged - some are in relationships, married, or happily single.  But you could use this project for anything... christmas cards, family photos, invitations, etc.

Here is what you need:
Photo paper 
Printer
Ink 
(or have the photos printed somewhere like CVS, Target, etc.)
Magnet Sheet (from Blick)
Adobe Illustrator (other softwares will work too)
Tape Runner (Elmer's)
Envelopes (if you are going to send them out)

This is the picture that I used:

Gorgeous background right! And before you ask - I got those shoes several years ago from Saks Off 5th Avenue.  And that "vintage" dress I'm wearing - it IS really vintage.  It's the dress my mom wore on her wedding day.  :)  All I did was add a silver ribbon and flower to accent the waist.  

The pictures were taken by my friends Andrea and Devin (a mother and daughter team).  Check out their other work here. By the way they have all of our engagement photos up on their website!!! You really should go check it out.... like now! 

Ok back to the DIY stuff....
After you pick the picture you just need to add some text - this is where Adobe Illustrator came in handy.  I'm new with Illustrator so I didn't add anything too fancy but I love the way it came out.  Then I printed the pictures, used the tape runner to tape the pictures to the magnet sheet and then cut them out. Take note: use a very sharp pair of scissors on the magnet sheet or your edges will come out jagged. I can't wait to send these pretty little babies off!!


Not everyone has access to Adobe Illustrator or a photo printer.  In that case, I would recommend Minted to have your Save the Dates or invitations printed.  The prices are reasonable and they have lots of cute designs. 

So two days I ago I got hit by the reality train. My wedding is only 5 months away!!! 5 months ago when I was newly engaged that seemed like FOREVER but right now I know it will go by so quickly.  Still so much to do... ahhhh!!!! But right now as I sit next to my honey (he's engrossed in a game of Words with Friends) I feel totally relaxed and at peace because I'm that much closer to marrying the love of my life.  And the day of my wedding, all that matters is making that commitment to each other in front of our family and closest friends. 

And speaking of marriage, I just read an article today that said 25 just might be the magical age to get married at.  Ok so maybe it was a Cosmo article which discounts the credibility - but I'm gonna go with it! 



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