Big Freaking Check!

The invites are DONE! FINISHED! SIGNED, SEALED, DELIVERED (well, almost delivered, Justin is taking them to the post office tomorrow).

This has seriously been the biggest and most aggravating wedding project to date! I purchased invite kits from Michaels and added different colored ribbon and a background of green cardstock behind the invite panel, so for the most part I made them. So this is what I did:
1. Printed the invite panels, RSVP cards (custom with guests names), Reception cards, inside envelopes, RSVP envelopes and outer envelopes.
2. Glued the invite panel to the green cardstock and glued that to the pocket fold
3. created belly bands with a custom monogram for the center of the ribbon.
4. put them all together (this took over a week...and about 10,000 paper cuts on my hands)
5. Put on the stamps
6. sealed them with a sponge and some water (because you know I'm not licking all those envelopes.

I started this project around October-ish and finished tonight.

Next on my list? Programs, seating chart and table numbers. Nothing earth shattering - most of them I can do at work ;)

I'm too tired to keep writing, so I will update on Saturday after Mom and I bust out some flowers.

Nighty Night Blog World!

Pocketfolds, Ribbon, Monograms, OH MY!

So I have found the style that I want to with my invitation bellybands, but the construction process is going to be interesting. I bought a custom embosser with a monogram on it, and I LOVE IT. I just am having a hard time trying to figure out how to put together the bellyband and monogram so that it looks nice and not like an at-home craft project. This will be my mission this weekend! I wonder if mailing labels will work, over card stock? hm.... I will have to try that.

These are the two pictures I have of the front of the invitations so far. The top of the monogram says "Justin & Emily" the bottom says "May 8, 2010" and there is a "P" in the middle.

Right now it is being held together with some scotch tape and the bellyband is a little too loose. I am in desperate need of some masking tape and some better paper to make the monogram look more finished.

That's all I have for tonight. I plan on working the kinks out this weekend so when my sister (MOH) comes home for Christmas she can help me put them together. :: insert evil laugh here ::

Mini Breakdown

Yep. I had one. It was irrational, but I knew it would happen, and I'm sure it won't be the last one I have on this topic. Justin and I have decided to start looking for apartments soon so we can finally move in together. Now, I cannot wait to live with him and have my own space, but I had a  mini breakdown thinking about not living with my parents and waking up on Christmas morning not in my bed, having to do everything for myself, etc. I have lived in the same house my ENTIRE life, slept in the same bed (for most of my life) and have never lived on my own. Just a mini crisis, and I'm glad I got it out. I know when it comes to "moving day" I will probably have the same breakdown again, hopefully Justin will understand. I just feel overwhelmed with the "real world" idea. Money, life, work, money, bills, money, cleaning, cooking, MONEY! AHHHH!

Ok. I'm better now.

On a different note, I am going to attempt the bottom of the coasters this week. Mom and I bought a roll of cork from JoAnn Fabrics with a coupon (ended up being less than $5) and some E6000 (aparently it's the "mack daddy" of craft glue) so we'll see how it goes. We've got 90 coasters down, not sure how many more to go. I am in the process of deciding between 2 and 4 coaster sets for each person... After the coasters I'll be going into "Invitation mode". I need to get AT LEAST a perfect mock-up so I know what the hell I'm going to do when it comes to crunch time. I have quite a few ideas and am SUPER excited about the custom embosser I bought online a couple weeks ago. I can't wait to post some pictures, so keep your eyes open for some fun updates this week, I know I have been slacking lately. Hopefully I will be back into full swing this week.

More Later :)

DIY Coasters

Alright ladies! Here we go: These are the instructions for the DIY coasters I have been talking so much about. Please remember I got the idea from a Knottie: TheSaltyPeanut I found her and her outstanding bio on the DIY board. (I just went to the bookmark I had for her bio, so I could link it, but it seems to be gone).

What you need:
4x4 (or whatever size you want) White Ceramic Tiles
- I found the tiles at Lowe's (& Home Depot) for $.16 a piece, they come individually or in boxes of 80
Modge Podge
White Ceramic Paint (small bottle)
Small foam brushes
- These can be found at any craft store, I got them 20/$1 at Michaels during a Back to School sale.
Scrapbooking paper
Water Based Acrylic Coat
- I used Minwax Water-Based Polycrylic found in the wood stain aisle of Lowe's/Home Depot.


The Coaster Process:
 Tips:
*Doing them in sets of 20 - 30 at a time works best, it's not overwhelming and works best with timing for the Modge Podge layers.

*The coasters I used had bare edges, so I used the white ceramic paint to cover the sides.
*I leave the coat of Acrylic on for sometimes up to 3 days just to ensure that is as dry and set as possible.
 

1. Cut the scrapbook paper so it is 1/4 inch smaller on all sides then the tile (4 inch tiles will have 3 3/4 inch squares)

 



2. Cover the bare edges of the tile with the white ceramic paint. Depending on your type of paint or your amount of OCD you may need two coats. My first couple of batches I used two, but realized that there aren't noticeable differences between those with one layer and those with two. Stacking the coasters at varying angles will make it easy to pic them up without disturbing the paint on the edges.

 



3. Once you get through all of the tile edges take one of the tiles and put a layer of Modge Podge on the surface of the tile. 
 

4. Take one of the scrapbook paper squares and put it on top of the Modge Podge. To ensure the edges are going to stick to the tile, but a thick layer around the edges of the scrapbook paper by smashing the brush down around the edge. Then smooth an entire layer of Modge Podge on top of the paper. It's ok if it looks white, it will dry clear shortly. Do this to all of the tiles you have, laying them flat on a garbage bag in the order in which you do them. 

5. Once you've put the first layer on all the tiles start with your first one again, and put another Modge Podge layer on. (If you are doing a smaller batch give the tiles about 20 -30 minutes to dry in between layers) You will do this again so you have three Modge Podge layers on each tile. Leave them for about 4 hours to give the Modge Podge time to dry. 




6. Once the Modge Podge is dry (it may be slightly tacky, but it will be almost completely dry) put a thin layer of the Acrlyic coat on each of the tiles and leave them laying flat on the garbage back overnight so the acrlyic will set.

The next step would be to put whatever you want on the bottom so they won't scratch up table tops. I haven't gotten to this process yet, and once I do I'll post some instructions.


 Good Luck! Let me know if you have any questions, I will double check my instructions to make sure I didn't leave anything out :)

Feeling Accomplished!!

So I was feeling a little better this afternoon so I decided to take on the task of finishing my rhinestone "Mrs. NewLastName" hoodie for the wedding day. I am feeling so proud, I wasn't very confident that is was going to work for some reason, but was so excited when I saw the finished product!

I got the instructions from another Knottie, who got them from a website. I got the instructions in my early knottie days, so I didn't think to take down the knotties name...sorry. If you're out there let me know and I'll give you credit!

 What you need:
1. Flatback Hot Fix Rhinestones
(I used 10ss 3m, which were ordered off ebay, I used between 700-800 rhinestones BUT I have a long NewLastName)
2. Mylar Paper
(I also purchased this from ebay I got 10 sheets for $5)
3. Tweezers or a wax rhinestone "picker-upper"
4. Computer/printer
5. Iron
6. Sweatshirt

 These are the instructions I got online, my notes will be in red.

1. In MICROSOFT WORD go to "Insert----> WordArt" and use WordArt to type out your text. Use one text box for your soon-to-be last name "Mrs.XXX" and then use a separate text box for your "EST. DATE" if you choose to include this. *I used PowerPoint because I am more comfortable with that over Word*

2. Use the Word draw tools panel and select 'Rotate or Flip' then choose 'Flip Horizontal.' This will flip your text so it looks like you are looking at a mirror image of the text. Next adjust your text for the font you want (Lucida Handwriting or Calligraphy are nice) and font size. Print them out and through trial and error see what will fit well on the undies you choose. Then print and cut out your text. *I obviously used a sweatshirt, not undies and chose Edwardian Script for my font because it has been the main font I have used for WR stuff*

3. Next, tape your text down onto your work surface and tape it so it stays in place.

4. Then take your MYLAR paper--peel off the sticky sheet away from the white backing and place the sticky sheet on top of your text--sticky side UP. Tape it down to the table, too, so it stays put. *The tape is SUPER important, you will go INSANE if you try to do it without taping the mylar paper down!*

5. Then just place your rhinestones onto the sticky mylar paper over your text (trace it with the rhinestones). Make sure your rhinestones are SHINY SIDE DOWN and glue side up. You should be looking at the glue side (when you flip it and put on your undies the shiny side will be up).

6. After you're done with the design, place it shiny side up onto your undies. Take a thin cloth or even thin t-shirt and place it over the design/mylar paper. On high heat and NO STEAM place the iron over the design (and cloth) and put pressure. This is melting the glue! Do this until you feel the stones are setting. Then flip the undies over and apply the iron to the back of the undies too. This is IMPORTANT in making sure they set! *When you go to remove the mylar paper, do it SLOWLY because some rhinestones might not of stuck and you may need to be ironed a second or third time*

That's all there is to it! It's pretty cumbersome, but easy non-the-less. I took the top of one of our TV trays off and put it on my lap in the lazy-boy and watched TV while tracing the letters with the rhinestones. That helped keep me comfortable and made it easy to put away everything if I had to take a break (it's not taped to the dining room table). I'm so excited to have this one done! But I skipped dinner to get it done, so now I'm off to find something to eat. Good Luck and let me know if you have any questions about the process! :)

First-Time Home Buyer/Bride-To-Be

Crossroads. That's where I am. I can see my future, but I see about four different paths to take to get to that final destination. I graduated from college a year ago, I am closing in on my year anniversary at my first full-time job, I am getting married in 7 months, 3 weeks and 6 days, I am in the process of trying to find a place for my fiance and I to live, and in the midst of all of this, I am just trying to live my life and figure out how to pay for adulthood.

I cannot wait to find a place to live, apartment, house, condo... whatever! I just want to find a place to call my own and start building my life with my future husband. With the economy has it is, I know there are homes out there that we can afford, but I am nervous that maybe we will end up over extending our finances. Although, this could just be my "becoming an adult" cold feet. Sometimes I just can't believe I'm old enough to have these kind of responsibilites.

7 months, 3 weeks and 6 days.

I am wedding crazy, now-a-days. My fiance and I have been together (with a few derailments along the way) for over 6 years, we have been engaged since April of this year. I honestly still find myself not believing that I am engaged and actually PLANNING MY WEDDING! Everything has pretty much been planned, now it's just about execution and paying for everything. I have a feeling a lot of my posts will end up being wedding related for the time being, because I am in project mode :) I consider myself a DIY bride (for those of you not, "Knot Saavy" that just means I plan on doing a lot of things myself). I found a DIY project on a bio on The Knot that had instructions and pictures for coasters made out of ceramic tiles and scrapbooking paper. So far I have made 30 of them, and have fallen IN LOVE with them. I cannot wait to make the next batch. The "knottie" (as we call them) made hers for favors for her reception guests, mine will be used for shower favors. I cannot wait to give them out. I could probably go on forever about wedding plans, but I will refrain for the moment, since this is supposed to be a introduction post.

I work for a non-profit organization in downtown Detroit, which is both good and bad.
Good = I have some sence of job security because the economy seems to be worse here then everywhere else in the country.
Bad = The economy sucks! There isn't much out there right now to help people that need it the most.
I have some reservations about my current employment. Some things I chalk up to my inexperience in the "Real World" and others I chalk up to the fact that I work for some real jerks.

I think that's enough for now. I'll update later on, gotta get back to work.
Thanks for reading!