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Lately, I’ve been obsessed with DIY wedding stationery. Not only is it a great way to stick to a tight budget, but what better way to give your guests a sneak peek at your wedding style? And whether you’re going the print-at-home kit route, or cutting blank cardstock for your own creations, your invites don’t have to look plain. It’s easy to use decorative elements to pack a punch and add a bit of personal flair. After all, your wedding should be your own!
The source of my inspiration is this lovely invitation envelope. While the paper itself is your standard white and brown, it gets prettied up with vintage-style stamps and a touch of lace, both of which are easy to achieve.
Let’s start with the lace edges. The practical side of me wonders how the delicate lace on the outside envelope would hold up in the mail. A nice alternative might be to use paper doilies instead — you achieve the same effect, but with more strength. And did I mention doilies are super cheap? (You can find packs of 30 for about $2-3 each.) If you need a little direction on how to cut and position the doilies, here’s a great DIY tutorial.
On to stamps. While there are plenty of custom postage designs on the web to choose from, they require a little more dough than you’d spend at the post office (usually double or more). And when you tally up all the stamps you’ll need to buy — for save-the-dates, invites, reply cards, and thank-you cards…well, let’s not get into how much all those custom stamps would be! That’s why it was refreshing to find that the pretty stamps on the inspiration envelope can be purchased through the post office…at every-day stamp prices. Yay!
Featuring pretty herbs, you can mix and match these 29-cent stamps at your pleasure.
If vintage and flora aren’t quite your style, the “Love: King and Queen”designs are a good bet, and less ho-hum than the Wedding Roses and Rings designs.
Or maybe you’re an unconventional bride, and you’d rather have and “pretty” isn’t a concern to you. With an open mind, you’ll find the post office carries many other choices. You might like something a little quirky, like the Mark Twain design, or even American Scientists. Neat!
How are you making your stationery special? If you’re going the DIY route, what special touches do you think you’ll add?
It’s a new year, which means it’s time for new videos! Last year we made a bunch of fun craft and advice videos, and now a whole new batch are done and ready to share. Hunter and I get pretty silly this time around
First up: How to Make DIY Fabric Poms for your wedding or event!
Special thanks to our friends Shabby Apple for my pretty dress, and ban.do for the Heart Headband! Love.
(PS: Shabby Apple is having a store-wide sale right now! 20% off, enter code NEWYEAR at checkout)
And for extra-easy reference, here’s how it all goes down…
Materials Needed:
♥ Yarn
♥ Hands
♥ Scissors
Why poms?
Poms are kind of a no-brainer for budget, handmade-chic weddings, bridal shower, or any event! It’s a quick, fun craft that allows you to add interesting accents to your decor without spending much money at all.
You can scatter them around your wedding, string them up in the venue like a bunting, or put them on clips in your hair or belt. Heck, you can even use them for a toss alternative to flower petals! They’re super charming and sweet and you can customize them to any color you desire. It’s a great, simple craft for doing with friends, or during a Veronica Mars marathon. Best of all, they practically cost mere pennies to make.
Step 1: Roll the Yarn Bundle
Take bundles of yarn in the colors you want, which you can easily find at a fabric or crafts store. Using your palm as a measuring device (or your fingers if you happen to have very large palms), wind the yarn around your hand. Keep winding and winding and winding!
When you have a significant bundle of yarn wrapped around your hand (trial and error will help you decide how much you need for poms as bushy as you desire), simply snip the other end of the yarn. It doesn’t need to be precise.
Step 2: Tie & Trim
Carefully remove the yarn bundle from your hand, careful to keep it intact. Then take an extra length of yarn and tie it around the middle of the yarn bundle, like you’re cinching its waistline.
Finally use your scissors to cut through each of the tops of the loops like you see in the video. Then trim all around the pom until you get the length you want, edward scissorhands-style… like you’re trimming a hedge! Voila! You now have simple and easy pom poms to use as your heart desires!
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Whaddya think? Will you be making poms for your wedding?
Hey, Broke-Asses! Christen, your new Real Wedding homie, here. I originally thought I would intro myself with my wedding, but then I saw Brooke and Landon’s pink-and-zebra country club fete oozing with tradition and sentiment, and I couldn’t resist moving them up in the queue. Brooke and her family are dear friends of Dana’s – so we’re extra thrilled to share their special day with you! These two managed to squeeze a 300-person wedding into a budget of ~$23K and its oozing with style! And feel free to get slapped in the face with the incredible amount of luuurrve you’ll get from them.
Name: Brooke
Occupation: Assistant Manager at The Buckle
Wedding location: Salina, Kansas
Wedding Date: June 3, 2011
Budget: $23,597.75
How would you describe your wedding?
Our wedding was PERFECT, at least we think so. Our day started off with me waking up at my parents’ place with my mother and father by my side in the morning with big smiles on their faces. Landon woke up at his family’s place and made sure everything was taken care of at the reception. Landon and I didn’t want to see each other at all before the wedding at 7:00 in the evening. We wanted to be traditional and not ruin the moment that I had dreamed of since I was a little girl.
Our wedding theme was different at both of our sites. At the church it was filled with cherry blossoms, white, pink and just a touch of zebra. The cherry blossoms were used in our family because Landon is part Japanese. His grandmother is actually from Japan and is such a beautiful woman both inside and out.
When you arrived at the reception site you walked in to feather-filled centerpieces, with hot pink and zebra in your face.
Our church was not a traditional church. It is actually a church converted into a blues recording studio. We wanted a church with a lot of character, and we got exactly what we asked for. The walls are covered with signed autographs of famous blues players and posters of past concerts that were held at this old church.
Our reception site was at our country club. This isn’t the fanciest place in the world but it held a tradition for me. About 37 years earlier my parents had their reception at that same country club and I wanted to dance in the same spot they had danced 37 years earlier. We had a jazz band that played when people arrived at 8 until all the people were gone.
When we arrived at the reception we went straight into our couple’s first dance, toasts, slideshow and then the cutting of the cake. We allowed people to eat before we got there so they wouldn’t be waiting on us, because we find it extremely annoying when you are starving and you have to wait on the bride and groom to get there after taking photos for 3 hours so that they can eat first. We then got to eat (a little) and then go around and see all of our friends and family. Then we got to do our father/daughter dance, mother/son dance, group dance, bouquet toss (that included lottery tickets, money and gift cards that both men and women were able to participate in). Then we danced the night away!
I did wear something old, something new, something borrowed and something blue. My old was my grandmothers gold ring that my mother wore in her wedding. Something new was my Maggie Sottero wedding dress. Something borrowed was my mother’s diamond earrings, and something blue was my garter.
What was your favorite part of your wedding?
Not to be cliché, but when I saw Landon at the altar waiting for me to walk down the aisle. My hairdresser bet me that morning that he would be blubbering. I thought “No way!” As I waited nervously, hiding at the back of the church thoughts ran through my head of what he would look like, that I should try not to cry, and not to trip as I walked down the aisle. I looked at my Dad and he gave me a grin and our song started to play. I felt like I needed to pee, puke, all of the above. My father took me by the arm and started to go.
I noticed everyone standing up and all I wanted to see was my family and Landon. I turned the corner down the center aisle and saw his face. I will never forget his face as long as I live. He had the biggest grin but he was struggling trying to fight back tears.
Then, I lost it. All of my scared nervous energy went straight to a smile with tears rolling down my face of joy, that I had finally found my soulmate and today was our day. People keep telling us that when we walked down the aisle you could feel the love between us.
What did you splurge on?
We definitely splurged on our photographers, We Are The Parsons, because we wanted to be able to relive each moment of our wedding for as long as we live. Landon’s father passed away several years ago and we realized how important pictures are because they can capture a memory of a time and a place that we can go back to. We found these photographers online and knew that they were the ones. They fly all around the world to photograph weddings and we were lucky enough to have them in Salina, Kansas, for our wedding day. I hope to continue to have the Parsons take pictures as our family grows for years to come.
What did you save on?
Instead of a sit down full on steak dinner, we decided to do hors d’oeuvres and Shirley Temples. Even though it was still a lot of money it could have been a lot worse with all the people we had. We served mini grilled cheeses with tomato soup shooters, twice-baked potatoes, fajita bar, and a chocolate fountain with fruit, cheesecake, etc. We did not have any alcohol at our wedding because both of us and our families are not very big drinkers in the first place.
Was there anything you would have done differently, in retrospect?
I loved having our wedding reception at the country club, but unfortunately at the same time I had to have about four different meetings with the head people of the club to make sure that everything was ready and good. They seemed to be very unorganized and often forgot the wedding menu and timeline of that night. On our wedding day, our menu had changed a little without notice and our projector we needed for our slideshow was in a different location that day and it was our job then to find another one that morning. Luckily, Landon and my father were to the rescue. I would just make sure that for all your venues you hire someone who will keep in contact with you and who is very organized. This will save a lot of headaches.
What was your biggest challenge in planning?
Trying not to go over our budget! We planned to stay around the $20,000-25,000 range, which we did!!! YAY! But it was hard because we knew a large chunk of money was going to the photographers and toward my dress. Luckily, I had one of the best wedding planners ever and she made it happen.
What lessons did you learn from planning or from the wedding itself?
It’s really really nice to have a timeline and make sure you stay on top of it. in one of my first meetings with my wedding planner, we went over what had to be done every month so I knew what to expect. I was soooo excited about planning my wedding that we were way ahead of schedule on most of everything which was soooo nice. I know several of my friends who got married that same summer didn’t have a set timeline, and it was very challenging for them about 2 months out from the wedding since they had so much to do.
What were your top 5 favorite things about your wedding?
1. Having the most amazing wedding planner, Laura Besher.
2. Our photographers and our photos that we now have forever and ever.
3. Our beautiful four-tiered cherry blossom cake.
4. My dress.
5. The Bill McMosley Jazz Band.
Top 5 least favorite?
1. How hot the church was with over 300 people in it and the A/C was on full blast.
2. Not being able to breathe before walking down the aisle.
3. People walking in last minute right before you walk down the aisle.
4. Landon’s father and my grandfather were unable to be there physically. (But they were there spiritually.)
5. Having to decide who to cut from your close friends on the invitation list so that you don’t max out.
What was the best wedding advice you received?
We had been given this advice from several people, “Enjoy and cherish every moment you have at your wedding, because it will fly by.” This was especially true for us because we didn’t have our wedding until 7 in the evening. This was honestly the best advice because we can remember and enjoy almost every moment from our wedding because we took the time to enjoy it and not worry about the little things.
Any other bits of wisdom?
Be yourself and have a blast!! Just remember that this is your special day with the person you are going to be with the rest of your life. It’s kind of awesome.
Hair Dresser: Terri Hajny at Hair Connection in Salina, Kan.
Cheers, Brooke and Landon! Looks like a rockin’ good time. xoxo!
The Broke-Ass Bride is always looking for rad-tastic Broke-Ass weddings to feature. Interested? You can submit via Two Bright Lights or by emailing us directly!
It’s no secret that I like food. I super like to play with my food. And I love to find fun new ways to display edible goodies at parties, from intimate dinner shindigs to all wedding-related events like showers and rehearsal dinners. But don’t be scurred… it don’t take no fancypants skills to craft a creative culinary display! Even the smallest effort in presentation can translate to a more visually dynamic buffet… and today on Broke-Ass TV, we’re sharing a creative and fun way to showcase your finger foods, by turning them into topiary trees!
Even Brussels Sprouts seem like fun when they’re impaled into tree-form. And that’s a feat that few can beat! Just mix a little dijon mustard with a dollop of mayo, a squirt of lemon juice and a pinch of salt and pepper for a delish dip to accompany your sprouty friends And for the strawberries, you just can’t go wrong with a sexy blend of cream cheese and cool whip! Yeah, you heard me right. COOL WHIP. Mmmmmm.
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Rainbow weddings, pretty pastel palettes, cool color combos: I’ve given you broke-ass brides almost every color and theme option under the sun, but maybe you still can’t find something that’s right for you. Maybe you want something simple and classic, but also crafty and fun at the same time…. That’s why this weeks wedding inspiration post is just for you! Basic black and white, folks. Simple, understated elegance doesn’t have to be boring or over-the-top expensive though!
Have all of your bridesmaids pick out their own black and white party dresses. I think mixing stripes, solids, and polka dots is a great way to have a little fun and also let everyone feel unique. As for footwear, let your ‘maids don anything from sandals to stilettos, and oxfords to chucks. Tie everyone’s looks together with jewelry or with similar bouquets. Voila! You have an incredibly stylish bridal party.
Of course I can’t have black and white wedding inspiration without a picture of Audrey Hepburn. I’d love to see a bride rock a great black and white ball gown! As for the cake, I LOVE this idea. Stack up some Oreo cookies and serve up some delicious milk (and soy milk too!) I also love the use of big white balloons. It’s a cheap and easy way to decorate and they look soooo fun bouncing around on the ceiling as your guests dance the night away. Lastly, that bouquet in the corner is gorgeous… and? It’s made of only carnations. I know they are a filler flower and some people turn their nose up at them, but I love them. And when you bunch them tightly together, they make an absolutely stunning bouquet.
There you have it brides to be. A unique take on a black and white wedding! Will you go with pops of color for your big day or are you a classic black and white bride?
If you’re proud to be an American and you love a holiday that celebrates blowing things up while simultaneously stuffing your face with barbecued food, this wedding inspiration is for you. I love me some red white and blue, and even variations on those colors like aqua and red, or fuchsia and blue… and there’s nothing better in my book than a wedding that ends with fireworks!
You can’t go wrong with stars and stripes prints and casual bridesmaids dresses. I also think a bride could totally rock this Catherine Malandrino dress I found via Pinterest….you know, if you’re reeeeally feeling the patriotism.
Don’t you love it?! I can’t get enough of that pose either. Amaze-balls.
For color inspiration think a twist on all-american with bold aqua and cranberry like these photos from Martha Stewart.
And while I do love the berry and basketweave cake my girl Martha has on her website, I can’t help but think that this rice crispy cake would really be the perfect solution for a hot summer day. We’ve posted this cake before, but I love it so much I had to share it with you again. Better yet, its DIY-friendly. And seriously, who doesn’t love rice krispie treats?!
Are you a bold enough bride to rock the red white and blue on your big day? What do you think of using a holiday as inspiration? Let us know by leaving a comment!
I saw a Roller Derby match tonight (the Blitzburg Bombers killed it, by the way). Roller Derby is unstoppably cool. It kind of makes me feel like an eight-year-old girl staring at a bunch of sixteen year-olds, who simply by virtue of their age seem cooler than Steve McQueen and Debbie Harry combined. Derby chicks are so freakin’ cool.
The Steel City Derby Demons next bout at home is on July 16, my wedding date. When I heard that, I started to fantasize about a wedding I’ll never have: a roller-derby themed wedding where the ceremony happens with our bridal party circling us in a jam.
I’d be BrideKilla. I’d have a white derby outfit, with ripped up white stockings and fake blood stains on my veil. I’d make up derby names for all my guests and put them on their escort cards. The reception would be an epic free skate. Doesn’t that sound like an awesome wedding?
Fantasizing about a super cool roller derby wedding got me thinking about all the other cool weddings I’ll never have.
1. A July 4th wedding where I wear a flag dress and put my bridesmaids in red and blue dresses. Guys, I love the USA with all of my heart, and I’m a huge sucker for patriotic regalia (it is dangerous to get me in a party store around this time of year). Collin’s first idea for my engagement ring? A white diamond as the center stone with a red stone and a blue stone on the sides. The jeweler talked him out of it? Honestly? I would have loved that ring. It’s probably for the best, because people would have made fun of me behind my back, but I would have loved that ring. My teddy bear is red white and blue and named Abearica. My first year of law school, my roommate Abby and I threw parties on Constitution Day, President’s Day, and Flag Day, and each was more epic than the last. So shouldn’t my wedding, a.k.a the biggest party I’ve thrown thus far, be on the biggest patriotic holiday of them all? Well, no, because a Monday wedding would kind of blow. And my friend Liz throws a killer barbeque every Independence Day and it’s so important to her she might skip my wedding to throw it. And she’s in my wedding. So the Fourth of July wedding is another wedding I’ll never have.
2. The Wedding Where I Recreate the Dream weddings of the characters in Clueless. You know, Dionne says she wants a sailor gown and her bridemaids in sailor hats, so I do the ceremony like that. Tai wants everything to be very floral, so I deck the cocktail hour in so many blossoms I have to provide Claritin as party favors. And I’ll come to the reception dressed as Cher in her iconic Yellow Suit. Crazy obscure reference to a fifteen-year-old movie? Totally valid wedding theme.
3. The November Rain Video Wedding. I wrote about that months ago on my blog, hoping it might get it out of my system. But still, when I hear that song (or Regina Spektor’s “On the Radio”) I feel a little sadness in my heart that my wedding dress has a front on the skirt. Because if anything could top a wedding that is an inscrutable reference to a fifteen-year-old movie, it’s an inscrutable reference to a twenty-year-old music video.
What are the imaginary weddings you’re kind of sad you’ll never have?
This weeks wedding inspiration is all about color! I love lots of it. Color, color, color! When it comes to choosing wedding colors, it can be a bit overwhelming. Do you go with your favorite color? Do you go with a color that will look good on all of your bridesmaids? How do you find inspiration for color combinations?
Well, whenever I need to find new color combos or inspiration, I look to nature. I visit a butterfly exhibit, I walk through gardens and the flower mart, and I even find inspiration in the produce section. Crazy, I know, but some of the best color combinations are sitting right in front of us on our kitchen counters! So I’m starting a new short series where I’ll be using fruit as inspiration for wedding colors. This week, we’re starting at the beginning (it’s a very good place to start) of the rainbow with some reds and oranges!
Red and green is a great color combo. Most people think it’s reserved for Christmas and the holidays, but if you pair a coral-y red with a lime or olive green, tah-dah! You get a fantastic combination of colors that pop! It’s so perfect for the summer too!
This color combination was inspired by peaches and blood oranges. I love the reds and peachy oranges paired with pops of yellow. Staying in the same color family is a great idea for a bride who wants color in her wedding, but doesn’t want to go too crazy with it. Putting your bridesmaids in all different shades of the same color family also looks great in photos, and allows you to pick colors that compliment all of your bridesmaids.
Not gonna lie, this last color combo is my new favorite! Who would have thought that orange and green would look good together?! I think I need to go out and buy an outfit like this for myself. I’m just head over heels with the sea foam greens and peachy colors here.
What do you think? Would you use this bold color combination for your wedding? How are you deciding on colors for your big day? What are they? Let us know in the comments. We’d love to hear from you!
And if you would like your own wedding inspiration board tailored for you and your wedding, drop us an email and we’ll create something specially for you.
I decided to come up with a little back story for this weeks wedding inspiration board. Sometimes it’s nice to imagine an actual couple that’s inspiring your board. This couple is totally preppy. The Brides name is Caroline or Buffy …or Caroline Buffy, but you can call her Coco. Of course, her fiance is named Tad, Preston or Kip… or Tad Preston Kip… the third. Yea, Thadeus Preston Kipton Kennedy the Third, that sounds about right.
Tad is a water polo playing, lacrosse stick wielding, argyle wearing dreamboat. Coco loves Lilly Pulitzer, Fitz – her white Maltese, and horses. They both share a love of their Ivy League Alma Mater. So when it came time to style their prepster chic Hilton Head wedding, what could be more perfect than bows, oxford shoes, and classic, fun chic. Unfortunately they have a dirty little secret. Tad and Coco are like totally broke! College (especially ivy league) ain’t cheap, and the brides family just blew a ton of money on a new yacht and Martha’s Vineyard cottage. This couple needs a preppy wedding …for less. Broke ass aficionados to the rescue!
I love finding deals and steals and I’m loving girly bows this week, especially on silk blouses from Erin Fetherston to H&M. They are something that everyone can afford. I’m also really digging gold lamé pleated skirts. Unfortunately, I couldn’t find any affordable gold skirts I liked, but skirts are so easy and cheap to make that you could just find a talented seamstress and get one for less!
For a bouquet, I don’t think there’s anything preppier or more girly than daisies, but Coco told me she hates daisies (She’s too prissy for them) so I would go with the next best thing. I looove me some anemones. So simple and pretty!
For a wedding dress, I’m head over heels for this one. I’ve had it saved on my desktop for awhile now but I have NO CLUE who designed it. If you know, I will give you a virtual hi-five and link to give the designer credit.
As far as cakes go, I was looking for something preppy and fun with buttons and bows. You know my girl Martha Stewart had this one covered.
I came across some candy buttons on etsy, that quickly make this Martha brilliance budget friendly. Just cover a basic fondant or buttercream cake with these edible buttons and you’re good to go! You can get 75 of these cute candy buttons for 56 bucks. Not bad if you’re decorating your own cake!
The backyard clambake cocktail hour that Coco’s dad insisted on, needs some entertainment. Instead of going for an expensive photobooth, why not set up some yard games like croquet and bocce ball. It’s a great way to keep guests entertained during cocktail hour and get some cute photo-ops!
Want an inspiration board created for your big day? Drop us an email. It was fun working with Tad and Coco, but real couples are so much more fun. Plus, would you believe Tad and Coco were a bit snobby?
Herbs stamps – Roll of 100, $29.
