Wedding DIY

With a June 13th wedding date that's right around the corner, I'm starting on my list of DIY tasks. It's overwhelming to think of everything that needs to be done, but it is so much less than a big wedding in town would require! I think that the worries of finding a job and packing/moving to Gainesville and timing it all perfectly is sort of driving me nuts, but I hope to sort it all out at some point soon!

I really can't imagine how people do it when they are engaged for a year or more, you could be under stress for that long and I could not handle that. Especially because when I have a task at hand, I like to get it done and out of the way right then, so I would plan and be ready for a wedding in 3 months, then have to twiddle my thumbs for another 9 or 12! I am very lucky to have the help of my parents (my mom has been a tremendous life save with everything) and Kelly has also been there to go over menu, email about dresses and give her input on things. I am so grateful for people that are positive and excited!

Onto my list of DIY crafts:
Invitations and Pocketfolds
I am buying my invites through an etsy seller and printing them at home to save on costs. Since I won't be sending many out, it is so much more thrifty than paying $80+ for premade ones. I also decided that I will then need to make pocketfolds so that they look fancy schmancy upon arrival at their destination. These won't take long, but I do need to get one of those paper cutter blades (pretty sure thats not the name for it)!

Chair Signs
If you google 'Mr. and Mrs. chair signs' you will see what I mean. They are (obviously) to designate where the bride (ME!) and groom sit at dinner and I just think that they are really cute!

Photo Share and Guestbook Post Cards
Not a whole lot of effort here! We will want people to upload all of pictures to one site, and since we want the guestbook to be people signing postcards, I rolled it all into one. On Vista Print I ordered 100 custom postcards for $6. They have our names, date and a tropical photo on the front, with our names and wedding date on the back. I will write picture upload instructions on some and on the others people will fill in their words of wisdom for the guestbook.

Water Bottle Labels
It is pretty easy to find these templates for water bottle labels online, so I am going to customize one and print to attach to bottles that will go in the Out Of Town (OOT) bags that I am making up for all of the attendees. I just need to find the right type of paper to use!

Timeline
I'll put together a fun and simple wedding day timeline to stick in the OOT Bags also, so that everyone has confirmation of places and times and can make plans for the first part of their day.

Palm Fans
It gets warm in the tropical sun! I am going to buy palm fans for everyone and tie ribbons on them, maybe with our names and wedding date attached. People can try to keep cool during the ceremony.

OOT Bags
Within each bag I plan to have: timeline, water, palm fan, photo share card, flip flops, emergency first aid mini kit, deck of cards that are personalized,  map of the island, sunscreen and a nice welcome note.

I Do wooden letters
This is a big thing on the knot. You can buy the wooden letters and paint them in your colors, and it adds a nice little something extra to your guestbook table. Since I will literally have just a guestbook, I'm thinking this is a good and easy idea.

Things are rolling :) I am happy that it is Wednesday already and cannot wait for the weekend to get here. It is supposed to be in the mid 70's here for most of the 10 day forecast. I am so excited for the warmth to come back!