So this is what happens when you don't blog for almost three weeks- everything has changed on the blog!  Post settings, editing, everything.  I hope I can make it!

It's amazing to me that it is the last day of April.  During this last month I have celebrated National Card and Letter Writing Month.  I celebrated in two ways; first, I attempted to write one postcard, card or letter every day.  Second, I gave away stationery every Monday to Facebook friends via the LKP Design page.

Four of the five weeks, I gave away stationery I already had on hand- three photography sets and one watercolor.  Last week, though, I had some fun with supplies I had on hand and a tree drawing from library book invitations for a May wedding.  I'll post the invitation pictures after the wedding.

Behind the Display: Entrance

photograph by Jason Harms of Harms Studio

Simplicity and Consistency (with other displays) were key for this display, which wedding guests saw before they were escorted to their seats.

1. Decorative Letters
2. Picture
3. Jars

• Vintage jars from MOB's (mother of the bride) collection
• Other canning jars from family and friends
  

photograph by Jason Harms of Harms Studio

More on the letters: they were inspired by the One Single Photo. While I came up with other lighter options for the "LOVE" display, the A & C letters were what I had in mind from the start.

My co-worker became engaged shortly before Amanda, and I shared the inspirational photo with her. She is a creative person and I knew she would love the idea. She and her fiance were gracious enough to cut the A & C letters out of wood they had on hand.

I wrapped the lace on a roll around the letters, and the ampersand was covered in blue gradient yarn. The lace was easy, though time-consuming (the fabric was pretty wide and would catch on the unfinished wood. The yarn took much longer than I expected. I had to hot-glue gun more often than on the lace. I did end up with a few battle scars from burning myself, as the hot glue came through both the lace and yarn quite easily.

The textures of the lace and yarn and colors of cream and blue- all against the texture and color and of the hay and grass- added some romance, intrigue, and comfort to the ceremony.

Behind the Display: Memorial

photograph by Jason Harms of Harms Studio

The other big display for the ceremony site was a memorial for Amanda's grandmother. The elements included:

1. Photograph of Amanda and her grandma
2. Flowers the father of the bride picked out
3. Some of Grandma Schultz's favorite books (she and the bride shared a love of reading)
4. Vintage milk bottles/carrier belonging to Amanda's mom
5. Window - garage sale find by the bride
6. "Love" hoop:

• I found the lace by the roll in the ribbon section at Hobby Lobby
• We used the lace throughout the tables, food tables, displays
• The background was bridesmaid dress fabric
• Embroidery hoop also from Hobby Lobby
• I sewed the letters (made of other wedding materials) with my trusty craft sewing machine
• The bride gave this as a gift to her honorary bridesmaid, who was out of the country and unable to make it to the ceremony
  

I like the top display picture by the photographer because of the picket fence in the background, but this one - also by the photographer- has a little less glare.

Behind the Display: "LOVE"

photograph by Jason Harms of Harms Studio

The “Love” display stemmed from a few ideas: 


1. Incorporating other family wedding photographs (parents, grandparents, etc)

2. Tying in the color red and bridesmaid fabric

3. One inspiration photo

I shared the inspiration photo with a co-worker who was planning her own wedding. She decided her fiancee would be able to cut the letters out of wood. While they were gracious and generous enough to make letters for another display (I'll spotlight the Entrance display later) I thought larger letters for "Love" would be more dramatic.


I bought thin wood at Michael's and used wood glue to assemble three of the letters. The glue dried for awhile as I worked on other sewing projects.

We had initially looked at grapevine decorative balls at Hobby Lobby, so the grapevine wreath was perfect for the "O." To dress it up a bit, and bring in the red, I made little rosettes from scraps. The cloth included bridesmaid fabric, a variation/inverse of the bridesmaid fabric, and a few other patterns we used throughout the ceremony site. Everything tied together.

One single photo

I perused many, many blogs daily to find inspiration for outdoor and DIY (do it yourself) weddings. Because of the fairly short engagement (January to September) I was simultaneously searching for bridal shower decorations and theme execution.

One of my favorite blogs during this time of research was Hostess with the Mostess. This single photo inspired the ideas of “displays” for the ceremony site, and I will mention it again in the other display posts.

photo from Hostess with the Mostess blog found here

Because good ideas can be used more than once OR Back to the wedding

I know there appears to be a theme for the homemade gifts, but it was not intentional. I am not planning to create door wreaths for all of the gifts. Homemade Gift: 2 was crafted to provide a gift for a new homeowner, and the grapevine wreath was appropriate for the giraffe theme.

The first wreath was fitting for its recipient because I used the grapevine and cloth combination in the "Love" display, so it was a nod to the wedding.

photograph by Jason Harms of Harms Studio

I suppose I still I have quite a few wedding subjects to touch on, including the larger displays at the ceremony site. Each display was meaningful to the bride and groom for certain reasons.

Homemade Gift: 2

This is for a college friend. I'll call her "Amanda 2" because we had five Amandas between two floors in our college dorm our Freshman year. Amanda 2 recently moved to Lincoln, so I see her occasionally. She also purchased her first home, and every homeowner needs decoration for her front door. Amanda 2 has a little bit of an obsession with giraffes, so it was pretty easy to brainstorm ideas for her homemade gift.



Thank you Hobby Lobby! I purchased the wreath, yellow paint (already had white on hand) and wood letter in a quick trip. I forgot how fast acrylics dry, making the painting process even quicker than I anticipated. I did have fun blending the yellow and white and creating a gradient, much like real-life giraffes.