DIY Wedding Planner

If you read my last post  -  you may have heard that C and I are engaged and full in the wedding planning swing! But I am persistant in keeping it beautiful and special, but low key and far from extravagant. I already booked a ceremony venue – it’s a mountain, it’s the woods and our reception venue is our family’s yard. Done and done. (See - low maintenance.) We are trying to rule out the unneeded added details (For example - programs or bridesmaids dresses! No need for those since our only guests at the ceremony will be the equivalent of our ‘wedding party’.)

However, I am still a planner and a micromanager. I have two to three calendars that I refer to daily to keep myself in line. It’s just who I am. So despite my best efforts to avoid wedding obsession, I wanted a wedding planner. I LOVE planners! I love organizing. And I love C and can not wait to be married to him! But every wedding planner I perused was the epitome of traditional (beautiful and bridal, but just not for me.)  and not to mention they were $30-100 each!

So, crafty little me decided to make her own!

How cute is this little binder?!

My wedding planner feat. Jefferson sleeping in the background

Here is what I used:

I turned to the glorious “Dollar Days” section in the front of target and found the following:

• -       Little 3 ring Binder - $3
• -       Little dividers - $3
• -       Little pages – 3
• -       Gift labels -$2 (used for binder tabs)

These were the sections I used for each divider (with subcategories)

• Important
• Behind this tab I have a wedding timeline, my bridal party info, day of the wedding checklist, an emergency list, and vendor contact info.
• Budget
• Behind this tab, I have lists and worksheets regarding our budget and spending for the reception, food, alcohol/drinks, flowers, photos, music, decor, ect. I also can keep a list of the costs of each vendor here.
• Guests
• Behind this tab is my full guest list, an organization to keep track of  info for each guest (i.e. table number, events attending, RSVP, hotel, and gifts given.) The save the date and invite info can also be filed here. 
• Ceremony
• Behind this tab, I can file info from our Justice of the Peace, our vows, any readings, guests attending, and a schedule. 
• Reception
• Behind this tab, there are many things that can be filed such as: seating plan, floor plan, vendors [catering, DJ, photographer, rentals, catering, bakery, ect,] menu, bar menu, speeches and toasts, songs/dances, activities, decor list.
• Misc
• Behind this tab, I will be able to keep track of any beauty details such as hair/make-up/dress, a registry list, and a list of received gifts. 
• Blank pages
• I like having all of the blank pages in the back as each section will require a different amount of space, so I can add to each as needed. 

                           

From there, I searched on Pintrest (of course!) for worksheets and templates to include in this.  Making my own binder allowed me to omit the things that did not apply to me (such as putting down a deposit on my ceremony location – since mother nature is free.) but it has given me structure to organize and plan in one complied space.

This is such a simple way for me to think about our wedding celebration, but have it be my way - laid back and full of love! 

DIY Map Painting

I have a habit of thinking something up in my head and then feeling the world has personally offended me when I cannot find exactly that said product for sale. Such, this was the case with the artwork now hanging in our bedroom.

I wanted a simplistic world map. Just a solid color background with a solid color print of the world map. This, I though, was far less extravagant than some other ideas that is brain has cooked up. So I was shocked when I could not find it for sale anywhere! 
Finally, I decided if I could not find it - I would make it. However, the reality of me being able to freehand an outline of the world map... in a way that would look like artwork that one would actually want hanging on her bedroom wall... set in quickly and I had to put my pretty little thinking cap on. 
A stroke of genius reminded me of 'engineer prints.' These are prints that you can have done at Staples Copy and Print Center. (Or other printing companies, I'm sure.) They are intended to be blue-prints. So, that means the paper is BIG! I found a simple outline of the map and ordered it to be printed on an 24x32 inch engineer print for a whopping $4.19. The low price of this big print is probably one of my favorite parts of this entire project!
Next I went to Michael's Craft Store for the rest of my supplies. I lucked out that they were having a sale and I was able to purchase a 24x32 canvas for only $20 when they usually cost $40. But the Michael's app always has a 40% off full priced item coupon that you could use. I also picked out my paint colors, a few brushes, and an exacto-knife. 
Once home, I laid my big old print down on the kitchen table and started the process. Using the exacto-knife, I (VERY CAREFULLY) cut out the outline of the map. This left me with a giant stencil of the map. (Don't forget to have something underneath the paper to protect the surface you are cutting upon. I used a cutting board from my kitchen and it worked wonderfully.) I saved the cut out continents so that I could later retrieve bodies of water. I decided to issue creative license and did not include every tiny island, as I wanted a very simplistic look.

The Stencil as a Work-In-Progress

Next I laid out the canvas and painted 2 coats of my base color.
Once the paint was dry, I taped my giant stencil to the canvas (neatly and evenly) and began to trace in the continents. (Don't forget to add in bodies of water for accuracy!) 
After removing the stencil, it was just a matter of coloring (er, painting) in the lines! 

Then, VOILÀ - you're done and ready to hang your masterpiece.

The Finished Product!