guest post: a shower fit for a bridesmaid

March 27, 2013March 27, 2013 | circadee

I’ve got a little treat for you today. Something different anyway. Last week I posted about my bridal shower, specifically the handmade gifts and details that went into it. Well, today my MOH is here to rehash the behind the scenes DIY details that went into the event. Take it away Leigh…

As you may know from Dana’s blogging history, she’s been to a lot of weddings. Beyond just being your standard wedding guest, Dana takes what makes Circa Dee amazing and translates those talents into the fabulous, thoughtful events for her friends and family. A 10-time bridesmaid, 3-time reader, toast-giver, bachelorette party-planner, bouquet mastermind, you name it – she’s done it. So imagine the pressure when Dana asks you to be her Maid of Honor, which means planning an event for her!I jest. (A little.)In all seriousness, helping to plan Dana’s shower meant putting some of her favorite things, ideas, and people into one room. Here are a few aspects of the shower to highlight how we did that.The Theme – As a nod to Dana’s role in so many weddings, we went loosely with a 27 Dresses theme. We incorporated dress and bridesmaid details throughout the day.

The Invitation – Designed by the lovely Poppies and Petals, we crafted a newspaper-inspired invite. Here, we asked that ladies wear a bridesmaid dress. (While I didn’t remember discussing this much in the past, Dana admitted that she checked her closet the morning of the shower to see if her bridesmaid dresses were still there! Without borrowing any of Dana’s dresses, we still had about a dozen ladies join in the fun of dressing up.)

The Centerpieces – I fully admit to stalking Pinterest for this idea, but adding our own flare. We took a page from Dana’s vintage, rustic style, and used mini galvanized buckets as our base. We then added floral foam, some moss, and a few rocks to weight down the piece. Then, we added everyday kitchen skewers (hello, re-purposing!), stuck into the floral foam. Between the skewers, we strung a piece of yarn and a few mini-bunting flags. (We even borrowed Dana’s punch for this step, under the guise of Poppies and Petals custom card order.) We chose paper in sea-glass and vintage inspired tones, with a hint of pink because, come on, this is a bridal shower! Then, my favorite part, we found a template for mini dresses and cut them out on the Big Shot. Some twine was strung around the waist of the dresses for some extra detail and attached with a too-cute-for-words mini clothespin. I really love how quickly this project came together!

Decorations – The room at the restaurant where we hosted the event didn’t need much adorning, but we added balloons in sea-glass colors. I also stalked Dana’s Facebook, blog, and emailed ladies who had included Dana in their wedding to find pictures. I had a blast reliving all these amazing events, and Dana’s various haircuts over the years. Some photos for framed, and others were displayed out on tables. We also asked our guests to leave a wish for Dana and Ryan. These notecards and pens were displayed in a vintage planter I found at a local vintage shop. I’m hoping to turn these photos and notes into a little book for Dana at some point.

The Favors – Dana already showcase the Ball Jar cookies, which she’d been dreaming of having. We also gave away little tokens to the ladies that wore bridesmaid dresses, of even-more-mini galvanized buckets, filled with candy, and adorned with another little dress.

The Food – No shower is complete without a great spread. Dana’s mom selected a variety of Italian dishes that included Dana’s favorite – Caprese Salad! While Dana unwrapped her mountain of gifts, we enjoyed homemade cookies baked by family and friends. Then, at the end of the party,we enjoyed not one but two cakes – one Tiramisu flavored and one from Alice Bakery (two more things Dana loves!)

Thanks for taking time to read about how to put on a party for Dana! I think we met this immense challenge in style and made a great day happen for our beautiful bride!

Thanks Leigh! I have to admit that it felt totally bizarre showing up to a shower empty handed. And you should also know that it took everything in me not to bring my camera and snap pictures or instagram the whole event. After years of bridesmaiding (yes it is a verb), it was a blast to be on the other side! I just wanted to live in the moment without social media…shocking. And I bet you didn’t know that my blogging originally began in the wedding world, did ya?

handmade inspiration

March 19, 2013March 19, 2013 | circadee

I just want to create things with my hands all day long. Everyday pretty much. I want to paint furniture, pick out fabric and turn it into chair seats, select wall paint (although not personally paint the walls), cut ribbon & cardstock to turn into pretty invitations, pretend to be a good baker, plant gardens to admire and eat.

You get the idea.

And if you’ve been following this blog for awhile now, you know that I really, truly love locally handmade as well as vintage.

We were honored to have a glorious bridal shower thrown in our honor over the weekend. There were so many details made just for Ryan and I, from vintage gifts, to locally purchased and handmade ones. And of course the registry ones too. Here we are walking in…

I’m here to share with you a few of the creative, handmade gifts and details from the event.

A group of friends took the time to individually bake cookies for the shower. They iced, they stamped, they rolled & cut, they bedazzled a ton of delicate cookies to all be combined onto darling trays to be passed around to munch on after lunch while I opened gifts. I mean who doesn’t love a homemade cookie, really? Especially ones emblazoned with our wedding date and cute aqua gingerbread men!

Oh the gifts!

Here’s just a sampling of the handmade ones…

From our engagement session, our “trunk shot” is forever engrained on this wood slab. This is a perfect addition to our rustic style.

And I seriously think our friend who made this needs to open an etsy shop stat, don’t you?

A for awesomeness! A gift basket full of special occasions alcohol commemorating firsts in our married lives complete with poems. Here’s a an excerpt…When your first year of marriage is done, drink this champagne in honor of anniversaries to come! So clever!

Check out the oil painting version of Ryan and I! This is an image of us headed down to the beach just moments before Ryan proposed. Wilson is right by our side. And my pink paint pants are forever documented! Such a masterpiece. (If you missed the pink paint pant proposal, click here and scroll down.)

We also received some locally handmade applique dish, hand & tea towels. Note the aqua colors. Holler!

And can you believe the state of New Jersey is on a cutting board with a little heart highlighting Cape May where we’ll be married along with our initials and date? No, either can I!

By the way, I received an unbelievable amount of beautiful cutting boards. My newest collection/obsession. I love them all in a totally bizarre way. Like I want to hug them. Hopefully, they will help increase my kitchen productivity and cooking prowess. At the very least, they will look pretty photographed in future vignettes.

Let me tell you about the favor…stop. No words can describe.

Yes, that is a life size blue ball jar. Labor of love is an understatement thanks to my Sis-in-law. SIL turned out like 60 of these and they taste wonderful too! (I should know, I ate like 3 of them.) Amaze-ball! Get it? Ball? Jar?

Seriously, I can’t thank my family & friends enough for their thoughtfulness and generosity. Ryan and I are so lucky! Plus, they all have our style totally pegged which is just icing on the cake…oh the cake! I can’t wait to share more details of the shower ASAP, just as soon as I seriously process it all.

Excuse me while I go eat another cookie…

the flasher

October 27, 2011October 27, 2011 | circadee

Last weekend we celebrated my friend’s bridal shower. Can you believe we actually managed to surprise her!? It seems like brides are normally onto the surprise. She really didn’t know until she arrived at the house. Woo hoo!

Anyway, here is the invitation that I put together for the vinspired bride. I used the Stampin Up! lace ribbon border paper bunch to achieve the row of medallions. I was pretty happy with the look and it ties together nicely with the bride and groom’s elegant wedding theme. It is hard to see in the picture but the cardstock color is a deep eggplant, not black.

We repeated the medallions on the favors. The punched paper acted as ribbon to dress up the box.

The paper was secured around the box and topped with a luxurious gold thank you plaque. The plaque was also achieved with a paper punch and stamped with ‘thank you’.

The goody boxes were stuffed with chocolates. Yum! Can you tell I like taking pictures of the favors?

At the shower, we played a new-to-me game. I am so over the tried and true shower games so this one was silly and refreshing! My friend’s family invented this lively game. Basically some bold soul wears a robe lined with things newlyweds would need or use. It can be as simple as an oven mitt or as risqué as, well…use your imagination. All of the items for the game can easily be found at the dollar store.

The person wearing the robe flashes some of the guests so they can see what is lining the robe. After the robe closes, the guests can write down as many items as they saw. The person with the most correct items wins. In our case, they won a mini mumkin centerpiece.

Oh what fun! Even the groom got in on the bridal shower action. He loved wearing the bow hat. Maybe even a little too much…