DIY Feather Fascinator

I love the look that's in all the bridal magazines right now. That would be kind of what you see above: the feather fascinator. I created the one above in about 5 minutes. One thing that I do want to add is the birdcage veiling that would cover the length of my face if I decide to sport an updo. If I wear my hair down, I will not add a veil.

Supplies needed:
silk flower
rhinestones or crystals
plastic or metal hairpiece
glue gun and glue sticks
feathers

DIY Peacock Wedding Invitations

And here's a preview of the wedding invites. I am using the same colors as I used for the STDs. They are pocketfolds that I constructed from a single metallic bronze 8.5 x 11 inch piece of cardstock. At first, I wanted to use green ribbon to complete this, but I think it may be better if I made belly bands out of cardstock. The color would be green instead of white of course. I am loving the peacock feather. My due date to have the invites out is March 19. So I have ordered lots of Curious Metallic Bronze 92 lb cardstock and lots of Stardream Crystal 65 lb cover paper. It's set to arrive mid week and then I will be busy cutting and folding away.

You know, it may have been alot less of a hassle and probably about the same price to buy pre-made invites, but it's priceless to have it personalized and created by your own hands. Plus, I love doing this. (Check on me in a month or two to see if I still feel the same.)

DIY Save the Date

Whew! Now I am starting to panic because there are so many things to do and only four months before the wedding. I sent out half of the STDs. I got a big kick when I contacted my friends for their addresses and they did not know that STD stands for Save The Date. Shows you where their mind was, hmm! I love the metallic cardstock that I used and after looking at dfiferent color combos, Jerry and I decided on our wedding colors being: green, brown, and white. The feather design on the card is an actual photograph that Jerry took of a peacock feather. I then lightened the photo so that you could see the wording on the card. I had to first print out photos on the cardstock then run the same paper through the printer to add the words. I did it the hard way didn't I?

We booked a photographer!!

Finally, we have booked a photographer. After interviews with five different photographers, we have decided to go with Dinsmore Studio of Oklahoma City. They do fabulous work!! They are a group of five photographers. And Robin, the photographer that we selected has experience shooting a wedding at Harn Homestead. They offer a la carte pricing, which works out pretty darn well, since we will then be able to select what we want and what we don't want.

First off and most importantly, we want great pictures. Secondly, we want a disc with our pics and a copyright license release/agreement. Also, we want our pics edited to create magical and beautiful ones. And we want a large gallery wrapped pic for the reception. Lastly, we want at least 8 hours of our photographer's time.

Check out their website: www.dinsmorestudio.com

Wedding Photography

Well today we drove all the way to Norman to visit with a photographer. I do realize that this is an important part of our wedding, but I am just amazed at how costly this part is. But isn't it worth it to splurge in capturing those precious moments? Of course!!
We are going to have interview at least two more before we make our choice. And then we need to decide whether or not we need a videographer for the ceremony. Oh, decisions, decisions...

DIY Will You Be My Bridesmaid Cards

I am a very crafty person. I love to make things, I'll bake, sew, cut, assemble, I'll try just about anything. I love looking at my end result. I love that people enjoy the things that I make, like my cake balls. Well since I like making things, I thought, why not try to make my own wedding invitations? And I decided I would practice by making "will you be my bridesmaid" cards. My first purchase in this venture was cardstock paper. Then the most valuable and impressive tool that I purchased was a Martha Stewart paper trimmer, that came with interchangable blades used for scoring and cutting. (I love this thing. And I should have purchased this long ago.) Then I searched on the internet for instructions on DIY wedding invitations. I used google mostly and was able to find quite a few DIY instructions. Then I looked at youtube. Wow, it's just like someone's right there showing you step by step how to your own personally customized invites. You can probably search youtube for just about everything. It's amazing. The picture above is the first "Will you be my bridesmaid?" card that I have made. I used two different colors of cardstock paper, brown and ivory. After constructing the card, I wrapped it in green ribbon and sealed it with silver wax stamped with the A (for Allen) monogram. The special touch was a peacock feather tucked under the ribbon. Three more to go...

Harn Homestead

Jerry and I toured the Harn Homestead today as a very possible and likely site for the wedding ceremony and reception. First, they have an open catering policy. Second, they can seat up to 200 people with tables, chairs, and linens provided. And we like the atmosphere. Jerry and I both agreed that we would like an outdoor ceremony.

The Harn Homestead is a historical site that has a stone and cedar barn and a gazebo all on ten acres. The possibilites are plenty since we can choose to have the ceremony anywhere. My vision is taking our vows under a large oak tree that has beautiful flowers on ribbons streaming down from it's branches. I would like to replicate that if possible. We could choose to have our reception outside instead of in the barn if we wanted too. I can't help but feel that I am honoring my "country" roots by choosing to have my wedding at a place like this. Being raised in a small country town, I love that outdoorsy, rustic, and country feeling. I just love the charm and comfort of it all. But I still want to have an elegant wedding that is memorable for everyone. The first picture posted is the outside of the barn at the Harn Homestead. The picture below is a picture I found on the internet of the interior of a barn decorated for a wedding reception.

So, next step now is to put down our deposit, which is 50% of the total facility rental fee. Once we do this, we are committed. Then I can finally spread the news and send out save the dates.