Wedding Blog
I’ve always been the artsy-craftsy type. As a little girl, I could usually be found off somewhere in a corner coloring and pasting to my little heart’s delight. There’s just something about creating things that I’ve always found to be personally satisfying. Whether it’s beading jewelry, crocheting doilies, embossing paper or any other of a number of crafts… I’m up for it!
Needless to say, as soon as Mr. Yorkie and I got engaged, I started my list of DIY projects. While I was never the kind of girl that dreamed of her perfect wedding and all of its littlest details, I have always known that I want our special day to be unique and a reflection of us as a couple. This wedding has become the ultimate opportunity to craft for crafting’s sake. The best part has been that no one has asked me whether there’s something more important that I should be doing! 
I decided to tackle the biggest of the DIY projects first: designing the invitations. I knew that I wanted an invitation with a vintage feel that would hint at the wedding’s semi-formal tone. This is important since our ceremony will be on the beach and the reception will be outdoors, and the last thing I want is for someone to show up in a loud Hawaiian shirt.
With a little inspiration from Brooklyn Bride and Laura Hooper, and the perfect font and graphics from Veer and Dover Publications, I designed our invitations using the free trial version of Adobe Illustrator CS4.
The invitations and RSVP cards were flat printed on smooth cream-colored cardstock. The envelopes, maps and directions were printed on a laser printer. I decided to package all of the pieces in pyrite (a shimmery champagne color) pocketfolds from Envelopments, layering the invitation on their azalea cardstock and using azalea envelopes for the RSVPs. For the finishing touch, I used a sheer golden ribbon tied in an interlocking loop to hold each pocketfold closed.
Here they are, from the outside in.
For all of the printing, trimming, pasting, and tying that went into these little bundles, I must say that it was worth the work! I delivered the little “babies” to the post office a few weeks ago, where they were hand-canceled and shipped off to our guests. Whew!
What DIY project has become your labor of love?
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Share this post: A Labor of Love
Awwww, your map is adorable! Your invitations looks so professional — something I know I DEFINITELY wouldn’t be able to achieve doing mine myself!
Wow! You did a great job with your invites! And I agree with bruschetta, your maps are uber cute!
I love them! They look very classy. The silhouettes are adorable and the map is awesome! Great job!
I love your map. I have designed the invitations (FH helped), and am still working on the map. Your map will give me some great inspiration. Thanks!!
everything looks aweome!! i love the ribbon you used, so elegant looking!
These invitations are lovely! I love the vintage feel. Congratulations on getting them out. My fiancee and I made our save-the-date cards which included A LOT of cutting, pasting, measuring, and writing. But they were adorable and worth the effort.
They turned out lovely, you did an amazing job and people will be floored when they get these! I think invitations are a great DIY project for brides who are crafty, because they have such a huge impact and your guests will rave about them, so you’ll get a lot of satisfaction out of all of that hard work! Totally worth it!
I just LOVE the maps!! Being in Miami, I can relate to all the points of interest. I especially love the U. (Go Canes) The sailfish off Key Biscayne are SUPER cute!
These look great! What program did you use to make the map? I didn’t include one with my invites, but I want one to tuck in my OOT bags and post on my Web site.
Would you mind sharing how much it cost to have the invites printed?
The map is my favorite part, too! I used Paint Shop Pro to make it. The flat printing for the invitations and RSVP cards came out to $130.
Oh my goodness I am in love with your RSVP card!! Is the RSVP in the upper left corner a graphic or something you put together?
Also, the silhouette return address is darling… tutorial please!
Your invitations are beautiful! I wish I had the time/skills to make something this great! Nice work!!
i loved these invitations when I saw them on the boards, and I love them now! Your map turned out fantastic! It’s such a great ensemble–i can only imagine how much work you put into them!
These need to go in the DIY invitation hall of fame!
IMPRESSIVE! I love them!
And that map, just like everyone else said, is amazing!
Ok, can you PLEASE let me know how you made that ribbon tie like that? I’ve had that idea in my head since I started designing mine, but I can’t seem to figure out how to make it work! Pretty please?
Those look really amazing. What kind of feedback are you getting from your guests? I put a lot of labor into my invitations — I made a map (not as intricate or colorful as yours!) and lined the envelopes.
WOW! I love your invites! You did a freakin’ fantastic job!
I am in love with your map SUPER CUTE!
These look great!!
And I looove the Burgues Script, it always looks so elegant!
Ms Yorkie, Your invites inspire me to try to make my own! I love them!!
What paper did you use for the maps? And did you get these printed at FedEx Office or something similar?
Are you sure you made all of those by yourself? 
These are absolutely adorable. I love the silhouettes! I may have to commission you to make my maps!
Those look so beautiful, I’m amazed you did those yourself!
So BEE-U-T-FULL! (hehe)
I love how the printing came out, I have yet to experiment with printers of my own before I outsource; home, work, friends, etc. =)
I really like how you tied all the elements together; your silhouettes, the flourishes from the RSVP and the corners of the invite and of course in the Burgues font and the gorgeous map! Great job Miss Yorkie, those invites are to die for!
You must share the details of your map! Did you design it yourself or have someone else do it? I am trying to do something with the same look, but am not doing so well!
I LOVE the map. You did this using a free version of Illustrator? I thought I would get to work early and use their Illustrator, but if you did it with a trial, maybe I can too!
Best Wishes!
I absolutely love the envelopes and pocketfolds’ color! You did a great job on these!
I just can’t get over the map…
Miss Yorkie - will you be sharing a tutorial for the Paint Shop Pro map you created? What were the costs associated with it and how long did it take?
I really should put one together! It took me about 5 hours to do, and aside from the cardstock, cost next to nothing to make. I made some mistakes that are definitely worth sharing. Let’s see if I can find the time!
Fabulous! How did you do the flourish border around the invitation? I’m designing my own and have a focal graphic but I think it needs a border…
@bostonbride: The border is from “Calligraphic Ornaments” CD/book by Dover Pub. You can find it at Barnes & Noble or http://store.doverpublications.com/0486999394.html. Good luck!
can you go into more detail about how you made the maps? maybe step-by-step? thanks! they are sooo cute!
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Mrs. Yorkie, Miami
Age and Occupation: 30, Graduate Admissions Coordinator
Fiance's Age and Occupation: 41, Asst. Professor
Engagement Date: July 3, 2008
Wedding Date: June 2009
Venue: Red Fish Grill
About Me: I’m an East Coast girl with a crafty streak who loves traveling, photography and being outdoors (barefoot, if possible). When I do have to wear shoes, I prefer Mizunos, and have worn out a few pairs running marathons. I have a thing for chai, crossword puzzles, Apples to Apples, The Office and my real-life Yorkie, Bella. My West Coast transplant, Mr. Yorkie, roots for the Buckeyes, loves baseball, and climbs mountains for fun. We’re planning a fun little seaside wedding filled with handmade details and vintage charm. I can hardly wait!
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