Cristin Siegel made this sophisticated wedding card box covered in decorative paper to collect cards at her sister-in-law Mara’s wedding reception. Pretty crafty and much cuter than a most of the pre-made money boxes being sold out there, don’t you think? And it coordinated perfectly with Mara’s black-and-yellow wedding theme to boot. This craft would …
So my niece Madison’s 3rd birthday is in April. What a big girl! I work near Madison Street in Chicago and couldn’t resist taking a photo of a street sign to top her package. The sign perfectly fit with the theme of the handmade present I made her (I’ll be posting her gift soon). Madison …
I really like this thoughtful detail from Cristin and Adam Siegel’s Chicago nuptials. Cristin tied handmade name tags around the tops of water-filled glass Ball mason jars to hold the bridal party’s bouquets during the reception. And aren’t the bridesmaid bouquets that feature orchids and fiddlehead ferns lovely? Supplies: Thick paper in two colors (Cristin …
This free printable urban graffiti thank you is perfect for your everyday thank you needs. Every time I drive over the Chicago Avenue Bridge I look forward to seeing the “thank you” graffiti spraypainted inside a heart on the northwestern side of the overpass. First there’s that nervous moment of anticipation when I’m afraid that …
Holy smokes! This invitation by Nick and Nikki Lo Bue is one of the most amazing wedding invitations I’ve ever seen. Nick and Nikki had a charming story behind their relationship which inspired them to make this stunning book as their wedding invitation. Making the wedding book gave the couple a fabulous opportunity to tell …
This is our fifth year hosting Thanksgiving in Chicago for the twelve members of our joint families. Each year we try to do something slightly different for food and table decor. I came up with a Thanksgiving napkin ring idea solely using things here at home because (a) my craft closet is to the brim …
Download this free printable save the date wedding announcement inspired by The Giving Tree. How sweetly romantic is this save the date wedding announcement for Cristin Witcher and her fiance Adam Siegel’s fall Chicago nuptials? Adam designed the whimsically simple letterpressed save-the-date announcement and matching tree branch mailing labels using The Giving Tree as his …
My favorite Chicago mommy blogger Janna Devylder, sons Gus and Eli, and husband John are moving to Savannah to teach at SCAD. So I decided to make them a goodbye gift. These handmade, bright, urban notecards and coordinating lined envelopes that depict the iconic Chicago skyline are the perfect size for keeping in touch old …
More decor for our upcoming Fourth of July – slash – Shane’s birthday BBQ. I took Martha’s Fourth of July parasols and turned them into a neat matching Fourth of July waterproof coasters. Supplies: Fourth of July waterproof coaster template (PDF) lovingly adapted from Martha Stewart’s drink parasol pattern White paper Clear contact paper (get …
Shane’s birthday is the Fourth of July so today I started to make some fun decorations for him. Martha Stewart has a super cute Fourth of July paper napkin ring template on her website. I printed her template, cut out the rings and …well, I had a few issues with her template. So I decided …
My downstairs neighbor Susan gave us a beautifully wrapped wedding gift in thick, shiny silver and pearl-like white wrapping paper. Channeling my mom, I decided to fold up the shiny white and silver paper and store it until I found some use for it. Today I recycled the wrapping paper into a wedding card sewn …
Here’s a simple and clever party invitation concept for a high school themed engagement party, and it’s even folded into the classic secret square shape. Heather Crosby’s beloved brother Chad and his lovely bride-to-be Shayda met way back in high school. A chance meet up a decade later while Chad was home visiting family led …
We customized the envelopes for our wedding invitations using a couple of easy tricks: Sewing our return address on the back of our envelopes and adding custom photo stamps from PhotoStamps.com. Supplies: A7 size (5 1/4″x 7 1/4″) chocolate envelopes 8 1/2 x 11 luxe cream 210g text paper (or other heavy paper) Yellow thread …
Here are our sewn fabric wedding invitations that were featured in the The Knot’s 2007-2008 Fall/Winter National Magazine and “Amazing Wedding Cakes” on WeTV. After searching fabric stores, websites and even ebay, the poppy fabric I found inspired everything – these sewn wedding invitations in particular. We received so many compliments from guests who said …
Time consuming, yes. Overkill, perhaps. But I think wedding menus are totally worth it. Wedding menus are that extra detail that helps add anticipation while guests wait to be served at their tables. But unlike invitations that often go to couples and families, you will need to make one menu for each and every guest. …
Here’s a detail that I thought of late in the wedding planning game. We put these reserved cards on front-row ceremony chairs intended for our families. It was easy to make them and they coordinated nicely with our sewn wedding invitations, ceremony programs, table numbers and other printed materials. Supplies: 8 1/2 x 11 luxe …
I had a ball designing our ceremony programs as small, handsewn booklets. Our non-denominational readings that Shane and my friend Liz found were super cool and so I wanted to our guests to be able to follow along. Supplies: 8 1/2 x 11 cream luxe text-weight textured paper A2 size chocolate folded cards Yellow thread …
As part of my Rooftop Outdoor Movie Night Birthday Party I created a gourmet popcorn bar. It was a big hit! Supplies: 8.5″x11″ red and yellow paper Admit One tickets (at Party City) Paper cutter or scissors Rubber cement Scotch tape 4 large glass jars with lids (I got mine at Target) Popcorn bags (optional) …
Here’s a simple placecard design that’s equally at home at weddings and showers or the Thanksgiving dinner table. Fabric edges are intentionally left raw to enhance the Holly Hobbie, handmade vibe. Supplies: Kathy’s free place card template (PDF, open in Adobe Illustrator CS3 using Spoleto from Novel Fonts, not Monotype. If you can’t find this …
If you’re like me table numbers are probably one of the last details that you’re thinking about. But they can be a key way to dress up and personalize your tables. I sewed the table numbers for our wedding in the same style as our guest place cards – brown and cream paper with orange …
