Wedding Blog
A few months into wedding planning I organized for my 5 bridesmaids to join me for a spot of tea, cake and mini sandwiches. While we didn’t drink much tea, we certainly polished off a few bottles of bubbly.
The purpose of the event was to show them my ideas, get their input, and allude to some of the tasks I may need them for. This last part was most important for me because being in my early twenties, I will be the first to walk down the aisle, and most likely the only one to be in this stage of life for quite sometime. It’s something the girls are still getting their heads around, and while they are all trying their best to be supportive, they don’t really know where to start or how to respond to the situation.
So, taking a cue from Elise Blaha of enJOY it, I made a bridesmaid’s guide. Elise used this great font called Susie’s hand which I am ashamed to say I also used (blush). I used an image I found on Flickr of a 1950s bride and two attendants. I intend to use a bunch of vintage inspired elements in the wedding, and this was my first opportunity to do so. Just like Elise, I made a few different cards with information on oru colour scheme, expectations, and dates to remember. Because the girls admitted to me that they were unsure of what was required of them, I also hinted towards a possible bridal shower with the important women in my life and a fun night on the town for my hen night. I think they are rather looking forward to the latter.
This little DIY project used:
Basically, I printed a cover and two information pages for the guide on a single sheet of paper. I cut them all out on a rotary trimmer and punched the corners with the corner rounder. Finally, I cut the translucent paper into thin strips and made a cummerbund for each guide to hold the pages together. The whole thing was popped into a black envelope, which I sadly didn’t have time to embellish, too. I only had a small amount of time in the morning before they came to finish up the project, in addition to baking some cupcakes, making mini sandwiches, and setting the table before lunch.
The cover image came out a little lighter than I had expected, but I realize it was most likely a combination of the pearlised paper and my dying printer. In the end, I figured it looked a little more vintage.
How did you keep all your bridesmaids in the loop for important dates and events for your wedding?
|
Share this post: Giving the Bridesmaids a Helping Hand
LOVE this idea! Great job! And yes, my corner punch is my baby, too!!
what a great idea… i’ve been thinking of doing a similar project. you are definitely inspiring me. so cute.
Those are adorable! Unfortunately, I’m not nearly as creative or thoughtful as you, and I simply started a Facebook group with all of my bridesmaids. That way there’s just one page for all of them to check whenever I have information to pass along to them.
BTW, Miss Lightning - I spent hours after your first post yesterday researching honeymoon ideas in South Africa. It looks like such a beautiful place!
This is a great idea, I wonder if my BMs would find it offensive since they have all been BMs before except for one?
Hey, Miss Lightning, this is such an adorable idea! Luckily, a bunch of my bridesmaids have been in weddings before, but I wish I had thought of something cute like this when we first got engaged! Looking forward to hearing more about how being young-ish is affecting your planning!
I love this! My girls are pretty much on the ball but I might just have to do this anyway!
can you post about what you wrote inside the guide?
I did the same thing but on a website (wix.com - great and easy to use!)… that way I was able to make changes and updates when needed and then send a quick email with the link to tell them to check out the changes… those look way cute though and I love Suzie’s Hand! We actually used that font for part of our invites! 
I love them. They are so darling. I may have to steal this idea for our day of timeline to our wedding party.
ahhh, i totally stole (ahem, borrowed) elise’s idea too!! i even used the susie’s hand font, haha! i did mine more like hers with the two envelopes (in our colors of course). but instead of having four inserts, i printed the info/details on white paper and then cut them out and glued them to black cards (our colors are black and white), one on each side - so i only had two inserts with info on the front and back of each one. i even made some for the mister to give to his boys, but those were a little less girly, lol. my girls thought they were ridiculously cute - which made me feel fantastic, haha!
i really like your twist on elise’s design! i wish i had thought to make it a little different, lol. i absolutely love your cover photo!
love that cover!
while my proposed bridesmaids haven’t been in weddings before [well, the first one my bestie was in was hers!] i’m sure they’ll do fine. of course they’re both looking to me to lead them through but my bestie has a bit of an idea after going through her own wedding.
Such a great idea! Wish I would have done something like this.
Wow, this is a great idea. I think I might have to do something like this. Two of my bridesmaids are married, one has been in several weddings, but my two cousins are in their early 20’s and this is their first wedding. While I know they will go along with whatever is planned, an little guide like yours could really help explain what everything entails.
great idea! since only one of my BMs are in the area I keep them all updated through emails, blogs and websites
@Andie: I have some other posts due to run but I’ll see if I can rustle up the text I used for a quick follow up post sometime soon
These are so cute! If this is just the beginning, I’m definitely looking forward to seeing what other projects you’ll post about : )
Funny, I was going to ask how you got such a washed out, vintage look to the cards. Guess it was a happy mistake. They’re lovely!
So sweet! My sister is my moh, and other than her and one of my other bm’s, the other 5 have never been in a wedding. My sister sent them an e-mail with what to expect so they wouldnt be overwhelmed later.
I typically just use e-mail to keep everyone in the loop, but your way is so much more fun!
Very Clever… Now they have all the details in a lovely concise format that they’ll treasure forever! The “washed out” cover is perfect for the vintage photo - EXCELLENT!
those look amazing!! Such a sweet project! yeah I cant wait to have my own corner rounder! seems like everyone has one of those lol
What size did you make them?
They look great! I sent out a mass email. Not nearly as cute as yours, but we can all hit Reply All and get information to everyone very quickly, which for us, is essential!
@Paula: I made them 95mm wide and 115mm high. However I was trying to fit the whole suite onto one page. I’d recommend you measure the envelopes you plan to use and deduct an even amount all round for your document. It’s more professional to have the cards fit neatly within the desired envelope v having them float around inside
These are soooo cute! Love the vintage photo. I’m all about vintage and antique things. I kept my wedding party in the know through emailed newsletters!
Could you post what you put in the guides? I’ve been making magazine updates for my girls and they don’t seem to be working; I have to call and email repeatedly just to figure out approximately how many people want their hair done.
Such a cute idea! I just sent an email newsletter but this is adorable
I love this!!! Out of my 4 bridesmaids, NONE of them have been bridesmaids before. One I was in her wedding, so I am sure she knows the drill, but the rest don’t have that experience either. This would be a fantastic way to share with them the info
I love this idea–and may have to borrow it! One of my maids is a new Mrs so she of course wants to help a ton–we just dont have much that needs done which is sad in a way.
But my other two are younger than me and all are in Florida so keeping them in the know is essential!!! DATES TO REMEMBER will need to be my focus!!! Thanks for the amazing idea!
miss lightening would you please post a link to where you found the image you used for the cover page its stunning and i’d love to use it too ifyou dont mind!
@anvil_chick: Here you go… http://www.flickr.com/photos/clintonw202/3281229034/
That is such a sweet idea and really thoughtful for younger girls. I love it, I’ll be linking.
| Visit our sister sites | Project Wedding Wedding Songs |
eHarmony Advice Dating Advice |
JustMommies Pregnancy Calendar |
Fertile Thoughts Infertility Support |
Mrs. Lightning, Cape Town
Age and Occupation: 22, Journalist and Graphic Designer
Fiance's Age and Occupation: 23, Computer Scientist
Engagement Date: December 27, 2008
Wedding Date: September 2009
Venue: Hout Bay Manor
About Me: I'm a young American living abroad in the beautiful city of Cape Town with a wonderful South African fiance and our crazy kitty Zeus. We're young, driven and madly in love. Together we're pursuing our wildest dreams including our biggest undertaking yet, a vintage retrospective wedding filled to the brim with DIY madness. I have an unnatural attraction to cake, a passion for blogging and a love of good design. While I might be an overly obsessive creative with too many ideas and nowhere to put them, Mr Lightning is my biggest fan and I can't wait to make my true love mine.
| Sun | Mon | Tue | Wed | Thu | Fri | Sat |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 |
| 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 |
| 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 |
| 22 | 23 | 24 | 25 | 26 | 27 | 28 |
| 29 | 30 |
Latest Gallery Pics