Good Things To Do

Hand-Maid

So you've picked your girls, the ones who will stand by your side when you say your I dos...the ones who will most likely be called on more than once to help you not freak out...the ones who will cart a fancy dress hundreds, sometimes thousands of miles for you...

Bridesmaids do God's work sometimes :) and especially when it comes to being part of a destination wedding.  As a destination bride, I always felt like I needed to try to make their bridesmaid lives easier so one tip I really adhered to was being caution on my communication.  I didn't want to overwhelm the girls...think about that before you hit send on that email with one line...maybe you should wait until you have more to say?

But why not kick off your Bride(zilla) and Bridesmaid relationship with a cute handmaid note!  It's even more memorable for your bridesmaids because you made it yourself - and slip a cute little note in the envelope to remind them how much you appreciate them!

I found this fantastic little way to communicate "Fashion" to your bridesmaids on Martha Stewart's website:
Once you pick the dresses, designer, fabric etc, add the details to this cute little card and then you know your maids are all on the same page!

Step One: Download Martha's Template
Step Two: Find a local stationary store (I highly recommend Paper Source) and pick your supplies:

* Heavy Weight Paper or Card Stock (8.5x11) - I like Paper Source's solid colored paper.
(Pack of 10 for $2.50) You have a lot of options so you can coordinate your little card to your wedding colors.

* String & Button Evelopes - try Paper Source's #10 Envelopes ($9.00 each)

Step Three: Print the template out on the paper of your choice, and with a pretty pen include the details, add a swatch and glue any pictures you have.

Step Four: Totally optional but Martha suggests making the end of the card tear-off. You can do this by using a rotary cutter with a perforation blade.

And TA-DA! You're crafty!!

PS: I love this color combo!!! Chartreuse and Yellow!!

I really hope you'll have some fun with this DIY project, I know if I were your bridesmaid, I'd love to open an adorable little card like this!!

Paper Perfect

Paper Picture Perfect

Two things right off the bat: 1. forgive me for jumping ahead to after the wedding on you but this is too good to pass up and 2. I fully admit that the main reason for starting this blog was so that I could continue my subscription to several wedding related magazines without my husband making faces at me.  It's market research my dear...get over it.

My two real loves (right now)...my wedding invitation and my wedding pictures.  You see I am embarking on a journey known as "narrowing down your wedding photographs to hang in your house" which is very long and hard.  So while doing "market research" for this lovely blog, I often stumble across creative ways to display your wedding photographs...tastefully of course...if I weren't going for tasteful I would wallpaper my entire house top to bottom.  I digress (as usual) - my point here is that I dug out my old wedding magazines and my new wedding magazines and sprawled out on the floor only to find an earmarked page in the Winter 2010 Martha Stewart Weddings issue.  I am brilliant! It was a ridiculously good idea and I had the forethought to ear mark it?! I can only imagine what else I've so brilliantly ear marked along the way...I'm sure they'll turn into fabulous posts as soon as I find them...

Back to the post...If you're like me, when the wedding is over you've probably got boxes and boxes of wedding related materials left over...you probably also ordered a few extra invitations "just in case"...here's an idea to use an extra invitation and highlight one of your favorite wedding photos:

Photo Credit: www.marthastewartweddings.com

From Martha's magazine - Winter 2010 Issue

"Here's another way to recycle your invites - and to give a framed photo extra edge.  Using a craft knife, cut out the decorative motif from your wedding stationary set and have it act as a picture mat.  (if your invites feature arwork on all four edges, you could also cut out a rectangular mat.) It's a subtle tasteful way to remember your bid day.

These invitations featured in the picture are by Carrot and Stick

This idea could be great for your wedding day pictures, trash the dress pictures or even your engagement pictures.  Phew I am so glad that Martha had this wonderful idea and that I was smart enough to ear mark it! I'll give it a try and post my results!!!

Paper Perfect

Start Spreadin' The News...

You need to start letting everyone know about your plans for a destination wedding as soon as possible.  This is where the Save The Date comes in.  For most brides, save the dates are pretty much optional, but for destination brides they're an essential part of your big day communications.  It announces to guests the date and location of your big day, it's also a less formal invite so including your wedding website is acceptable.
Sidenote: It's a no-no to include your wedding website address on your formal invitation...if you choose not to send a save the date and are only sending a formal invite then have your wedding website printed on a separate insert that can be included in the envelope. 


Timing is important.  You should send out your save the dates as soon as possible, as soon as the ink is dry on the location's contract really.  Your guests need extra time to schedule vacation, arrange for childcare and shop around for competitive airfare.

Most save the dates will take approximately 4-6 weeks to order so you'll want to place the order as soon as the location is set.  Save the dates should be put in the mail 8-12 months before the wedding date.  If your destination wedding is state side and does not require international travel, 6-8 months is acceptable.

What to include:  Obviously you'll include the date and location.  You'll also want to include the resort, or hotel options.  Most importantly you'll want to include where to go for more information...this would be your wedding website.
Sidenote: you'll want to have your wedding website set up and ready to go before you mail your save the dates.  It's okay if it's not totally complete, but expect a few visitors right away!  I'll dedicate a post to wedding websites as well...stay tuned.

If you're using a travel agent, or want to provide travel details or suggestions you can very easily make your own little insert to include with the save the date.  I went down to my local Paper Source Store and purchased 4-bar notecards and then printed a few extra details using the same font as my save the date and my printer.  Easy Easy Easy.  Here's a link: http://www.paper-source.com/cgi-bin/paper/color/4-bar-note-cards/2505.010/201.html
These little DIY inserts will be extra handy for older guests who may not be comfortable navigating on a computer to get to your website.
Sidenote:  this is one more reason I highly recommend you hire a travel agent - we found that many of our guests found it much easier to speak to someone on the phone rather than booking online.

Now my final bit of advice before I get to the fun part and start showing you awesome save the dates...Style. My first rule of thumb for save the dates - don't let them outshine your final invite!!! Keep in mind that a save the date is informal and can be fun.  And lastly, your save the dates don't have to break the bank.

Here are a few reasonably priced options for destination brides.  If you haven't already discovered Wedding Paper Divas you need to visit immediately!  www.weddingpaperdivas.com
There are 780 Save the Date options.  464 of those are Destination Wedding Worthy.  And all of them are reasonably priced.

A few of my favorites:

Airmail Retails for $1.14 per invite (this includes the envelopes)

Journey which includes tropical flowers and a cute stamp which says "Our Journey" retails for just .89 cents per invitation:

And then Beach Flowers which retails for 94 cents an invitation

Wedding Paper Divas is a great site with plenty of options, they have everything from swirls and snowflakes to starfish, these are just a few of my favorites.  You have an option of a few different colors, typically 4 or 5 different color combinations.  You can customize the wording but not the spacing or the font.  

If you're a little pickier and want the ability to customize EVERYTHING on your save the dates...get your tushy to a stationary store.  The first thing you need to do is set a budget with your fiancé.  Know how much you want to spend before you walk in.  Whether it's $250 or $1250, a stationary store can give you a wide range of options in your price range.  My husband and I went the stationary store route - and I fell in love with Checkerboard designs...and they're reasonably priced as well.  

My save the dates are called "Coco Del Mar" and cost $173 for 100. We also paid $43 extra to have our return address printed on the envelope.  I had a ton of paper color choices, ink choices and font choices.  We chose the "Flame" paper which has a metallic look to it and fuchsia for the ink and here's our final product:

We wanted to get our guests excited about our big day (our guests have been waiting 9 years for this day after all...but that's a topic for a whole different blog :) ) So I picked bright colors and used a palm tree tropical motif.

I also really love "Half Flower" from Checkerboard for a tropical venue:

Need wording help? KISS...Keep It Simple Sweetheart:

Please Save The Date 

For the Wedding Celebration of

Bride's Name

and

Groom's Name

Riviera Maya, Mexico

We hope you will join us

Events will take place Thursday evening through Sunday morning

at Dreams Riviera Cancun Resort & Spa

Please visit (insert wedding website address) for more information

Paper Perfect

Flamingos Over Miami

This post is dedicated to Ceci New York, a stateside destination wedding and mixy matchy.  Mixy Matchy, Miami and Ceci New York equals FUN FUN FUN. 

I am obsessed…with a capital o…with Ceci New York.  Her designs are AMAZING.  One thing I love the most is that her collections provide a bride with every piece of stationary needed for the big day and beyond…but they aren’t matchy matchy…they’re perfectly, chic-ly, uniquely coordinated and mixy matchy. Ahhhh I love them. 

Check out this amazing collection for a bride and groom who tied the knot in Miami Florida:

Collection Designed by Ceci New York (www.cecinewyork.com)

The custom made collection is described by Ceci:  Overindulgence was an understatement for this extravagant Floridian wedding set on Fisher Island, Miami. Etchings of flamingos and calligraphic flourishes help to illustrate the lavish setting for their wedding. Elaborate fonts and distinctive patterns further set the mood throughout their invitation booklet. Two color offset printing in Teal Blue and Gold with splashes of Flamingo Pink.

I mean who wouldn’t want to receive these amazing invitations?! Even the stamps are coordinated! (want to design your own stamps? www.zazzle.com) And can we discuss this amazing color scheme.  All around cheers and applause from me – beautiful and FUN!

I think Mix and Match stationary means you’re a couple who is willing to have a little fun with your paper!  Seek out patterns, motifs and designs in your chosen color palette that work well together, and give each element in your bridal suite its own unique look.  Don’t forget to think about Wedding Day stationary (itinerary, program and seating cards) as well as after the big day stationary, like your thank you notes.