Real Wedding Wednesday: Kayla & Tom

This week's real wedding is actually my cousin Kayla.  It took place in Highland, Indiana.  We couldn't afford to fly all the way up to Indiana for her wedding, but from the pictures, it looks gorgeous!

What was my budget?
Well didn't really have a budget. My mom just told me to try to save on whatever we could really. But we did very well and it was slightly under 10k. So we were both very happy about that :)

What personal aspects did you include in the wedding? 
My favorite quote. "Live, laugh, love" I had it in the invites, in the readings of the ceremony, the table names and on the cake. The saying means alot to me and I had to add it in the wedding

What was the main thing you did to save money?
I created my own invitation. I had a local shop print them for me, and then I put them together myself.

What advice would you give to other brides planning a wedding? 
Be creative and original! Sure the traditional things are great, but put a spin on them. The bridesmaids don't have to wear the same dress, or even color! Make your wedding stand out and be remembered! Make it fun! Don't get stressed about the simple things, you only get to do this once.

What was your biggest splurge? 
The flowers. They were beautiful! I am so happy I had the kind of flowers and the colors.

What was your favorite aspect? 
All the shades of blues I had in the wedding. From the girls dresses, to the ties, to the candy boxes. So glad I didn't pick one shade, just wouldn't be me.

What was my favorite DIY project? 
My invites. Could not find one I wanted esp with Live.Laugh.Love on it, so I created my own. I loved how the turned out and had a great time developing them and making them as well. Wouldn't have done it a different way.


Vendors
Venue -- Wicker Park Social Center
Flowers -- Dixon Florist
Cake -- Beck's Crown Bakery
Photographer -- Mike Taylor
Dresses -- David's Bridal

Dress Alterations

Well, I finally took me dress in to start the alterations.  I'm using Hayley Lauren Couture here in Tallahassee.  She said it should be ready in two weeks, so I can come in for my second fitting.  I'm going to try and schedule it on the same day as my hair trial so I can see how the two work together. 

It was so nice being in my dress again.  It's going to be so gorgeous.  Sorry, I didn't take any pictures, but I love the way it looks.  I'm even debating on not having a sash.  I'm thinking it might take away from the dress.  I need to make that decision soon though.

I'm getting the bust taken in, a hem, and a bustle done on my dress and it's coming to $140.  Not bad considering everywhere else was quoting me over $200.  Still, it makes me cringe that my alterations are costing half of what the dress is.

How much were your alterations and what is getting done?

Blog Updates

As you can probably see, I've updated the layout of the blog.  I think this one is a lot more streamlined than the other and a lot easier to find things that you're looking for.  I added a search bar to the right hand side, which should be able to make it easier to for you to find specific blog posts that you're looking for.  I also added an about me section so that you can learn more about the person behind the computer!  I also have ways to contact me under the about me section if you ever have any questions.

I'm currently working on getting sponsorship for a couple blog conferences that I'd like to attend.  The first one is the Casual Blogger Conference in May and the other one is BlogHer in August.  I'm very excited about both of these and hopefully I can get some sponsorships so that I'll be able to go.

Since I'm doing some updates on the blog, I would love to get to know my readers more.  I know we have done a survey before, but this one is going to be really simple.  It's only a couple questions about you and who you are.  This will help me tailor the blog more to you and also help to get more advertisers and giveaways that you are interested in.  So, if you could take two minutes to do this survey for me, I would be greatly appreciate.  And as a thank you, I will give you an extra entry into the giveaway that I will be hosting on Sunday.

Click here to take survey

DIY Table Runner

Beth had a gorgeous table runner at her wedding, made by Couture Weddings, and I wanted something like.

I figured this would be something I could easily DIY, so I decided to take on the task.  I found my table runner at Linen Tablecloth during their huge clearance sale for only $2.

What You Need:
- Table runner large enough to paint a monogram (mine is 39x88 inches)
- Posterboard
- Printer
- Projector
- Paint (I used acrylic paint, but fabric paint might work better)
- Different size paint brushes
- Wax paper

1. I printed my monogram and then used the projector in one of my fiance's classrooms to trace the monogram on a piece of posterboard.  I recommend doing the tracing with a pencil so you can correct if needed.  (This picture is from when I was working on my aisle runner, so it's a different monogram.)

2. Trace over the pencil with a sharpie to make it darker.

3. Lay your table runner over the poster board and then trace your monogram with pencil onto the table runner.  Trace it as light as possible so it's not noticeable after you paint.

4. Tape wax paper onto the back because the paint will bleed through.  The wax paper will make sure that the table runner does not stick to whatever it is sitting on as it dries.

5. Now, start to paint your monogram.  I recommend doing one color at a time and letting each part dry in between.  This way you make sure not to smudge.  You're probably going to want different size paint brushes so that you have bigger brushes for bigger areas and smaller brushes for smaller, more detailed areas.

6. Let the entire thing dry for at least a day before you fold it up.  Remove the wax paper and you have a gorgeous painted table runner!

It's not perfect, but no one is going to notice from far away and in dimmed lighting.  I'm very happy with the way it turned out.

Price Breakdown:
Table Runner: $2
Paint: $2
Paint brushes: $2
Poster board: $1

TOTAL: $7

They run about $25 to have someone to make it for you, so I made it for significantly cheaper.

PSA: Linen Tablecloth still has their table runners on a pretty good sale.  Only $2.59 each.  Check them out here. 

Reception Venue Layout

I figured that it would make my life easier if I did a layout for our reception hall.  I have to give the site coordinator a layout of how I want the tables and I have a bunch of people helping set up, so I figured I'd streamline it into one layout for everyone.

I think I have everything included in this.  We're going to have a total of 11 guest tables and we could probably squeeze a couple more in if necessary.  Do you see anything I may be missing?

Edited with answers to everyone's questions:
JIM: Is the Buffet table/line going to be seen from the sweetheart table?
It shouldn't be.  It was really hard to actually draw the reception hall because it's not a perfect rectangle.  The buffet area is kind of set back from the rest of the reception hall behind the fireplace.  I'm probably going to put some kind of greenery at the beginning of the buffet tables though so that you won't see the food in every picture.

Karen: Make the gift table and guest book table the same thing.
There is actually an entrance way to the reception area that is connected to the banquet hall, but it's behind like 3 walls.  The guest book table and the gift table are both attached in that entry way.  So we want to make the most use out of the tables we have.

Karen: Also, just check with your caterer: will two 8-foot tables be enough for the buffet?
I will definitely check with my caterer, but these are the tables the venue using for every wedding, so I'm assuming it will be enough.

Karen: And do they want the bar set up like that? We do one table in front of the bartender and one behind him.
It's actually a built in bar, not tables.  Like I mentioned before, really hard to draw our reception site.

Karen: Escort cards or seating chart?
I'm going to be doing a seating chart, but I think I'm just going to prop it up on the guest book table.  Haven't actually finalized this detail yet, but it's something I need to do on our next visit.

Karen: And I assume there's no slideshow? You'd need a separate table for the projector.
Nope, not doing a slideshow.


Karen: If you're using floor-length linens, you need to indicate the table sizes here, too, so whoever is ordering your linens gets exactly the right sizes.
I bought the linens myself so I don't have to worry about that.  

Genevieve: Is the dance floor in the middle?
Yup, we're just leaving the area in the middle open for dancing after dinner.

Genevieve: Will the tables by the DJ move after the dinner?
No, we will not be moving those tables.  This area is kind of an alcove so there's plenty of room for the dance floor.  I'm worried about the noise from the DJ though, so I'm going to have to think that through a little more.

Anna: Will you need a separate table for punch, coffee, etc?
I'm going to put the dispensers for punch up on the bar so people can go up and serve themselves.  I haven't decided if we're going to serve coffee or not.

Thanks for the questions everyone and please keep them coming!

Monogram Winners!

Thanks Double Trouble Designs for hosting such a fantastic giveaway.  Now onto our winners.

Winner #1 -- Chocoholic from Diary of a Chocoholic
She said she would pick one of the monograms from the holiday collection because she's having a Christmas wedding.

Winner #2 -- Shanna from Shanna's Secrets
She said she would choose a monogram from the circle category.  Here favorite was actually one of my monograms!

Winner #3 -- Jennifer from Whatever and Beyond
She said she would choose one from the spring/summer category.

Remember ladies, when you enter my giveaways, you have to leave some way for me to contact you.  It can be a blog, email address, or even twitter.  I had to pick a bunch of new winners for this giveaway because the first winners did not have contact information.

Congratulations to all the winners.  Please email me within 48 hours to claim your prize.  Thanks for entering and thanks to Double Trouble Designs for sponsoring this giveaway!

Mailbox Cardboxes

I saw this creative idea about using mailboxes as cardboxes and it got me thinking that it would be a great idea for a budget wedding! 

There are so many different types of mailboxes, that it would work for a vintage wedding or even a very elegant ballroom wedding.  Here's some mailboxes I found that would make great cardboxes.

You can find old mailboxes at flea markets, thrift stores, and even garage sales.  You could buy a new mailbox if you want, but an old mailbox would have add even more personality to your wedding.

What are you using as a cardbox at your wedding?