Erin's Wedding Invitations

My friend, Erin, is getting married this August.  She's such a cool person, and I'm so happy for her!  She's a Kappa, too, and I've always thought of her as my little sis since she was smaller than me and was a school year (and pledge class) younger than me.  She even lived with Josh and me for a few months after she graduated from Iowa State.  Anyway, I digress.  So, she's getting married, and asked if I'd help out with her wedding stationary   Since that's one of my favorite things to do, I was more than happy to help!  I showed her the invites I made for Cody and Tiff, and she loved them.  I did a little customization to personalize Erin's invitations, but here's where I landed this week (without changing the fonts or the artwork from Tiff's invite template; that might come later).  I'm really looking forward to her big day!

Fab Finds: Happier Bride

My dear friend, Minna, just published a book, Happier Bride.  I'm so proud of her and I hope you'll take a minute to check it out.  If you're planning a wedding (or know someone who is) this book will be your lifesaver.  Minna is ultra-organized and quite the researcher.  She's done all the work for you (like created free downloadable excel documents for your vendor contacts, guest list, and budget).  Her book offers simple tips on how to make your special day memorable, save money, and have the happiest day of your life.  Really, isn't that what every bride wants?  Check it out (and follow her on Pinterest).  I think you'll love it.

get your copy here

Wedding Thank You Cards

Cody and Tiff's wedding has come and gone, but this week I worked on their wedding thank you cards.  The thank you cards are below (along with images of their invitations and programs) and I love how they turned out (their photographer, Shana Drake, did a beautiful job!).

thank you cards

wedding invitations

wedding programs

Cassie's Wedding: Part Two

It took a few hours for all five bridesmaids, mother-of-the-bride, and the bride to get ready at the hotel the morning of the wedding.  The hotel was kind enough to let us get ready in the bridal suite before the wedding.  After sipping on mimosas and nibbling on fruit all morning while we got ready, it was finally time to get Cassie in her beautiful gown and ride over to Black Bear Crossings on the Lake to take photos before the ceremony.

 

First look

It's very important that the bride stay hydrated.

We took a break from professional pics.

The personal attendants attending to the bride

Amber flew in from St. Louis and made it in time for photos.

The ceremony was perfect.  The weather was just like the rehearsal - high 80s with a light breeze.  Jake's cousin officiated; Cassie's mom's cousins sang; Jake tried to kiss Cassie a little too early (once the unity candle was lit).  You could feel the love, and everything was perfect.  Then, the wedding party loaded up in a party bus that took us to the reception.

The grand entrance for the new couple

Kyle and Erin were able to make it to the wedding, so we had a little Wayzata High School reunion.

I had worked on Cassie's Wedding Tree and presented her a prototype for her bridal shower, but I was even more pumped to have the final product ready for the reception.  I'm really happy with how it turned out, and I think everyone enjoyed it, too.

The Wedding Tree Instructions

The reception was lovely.  The food was amazing.  I had the steak, and ate every bite of it...and then Cassie's vegetables.  Like I said, the food was amazing.  Also, even though Josh had class until 3 that day, he still drove the five hours to make it to the reception.  It was wonderful to see him and have him share with me in Cassie and Jake's special evening.

First dance

Josh made it to the reception!

John and I were buddies walking down the aisle.  Heidi, one of the other bridesmaids, and I thought it would be funny to take a picture with John.  John is 6' 8" and Heidi and I are both about 5' 3" tall.  Another fun fact:  John also attended Wayzata High School with me and Cassie, but we didn't get to know one another until Jake introduced us in when he, Cassie and John were in undergraduate at St. Thomas.  I love how this world is so small!

So, that's the end of Cassie's wedding.  It was beautiful.  I loved seeing all her friends (most of whom I also knew) and family (who I love very much).  Dancing with Josh was also wonderful.  I'm so happy for Cassie and Jake and can't wait to share even more special moments with them for many more years to come.

Cassie's Wedding: Part One

It had been about a year in the making, but Cassie's wedding weekend has officially come and pass.  It was a beautiful day that I was honored to spend with her.  The festivities kicked off on Thursday when we met at the hotel, Best Western Plus in Bloomington, to decorate or the reception.  Then, we got gussied up and drove over to the location where the ceremony would be held, Black Bear Crossings on the Lake in St. Paul.  The weather was perfect - high 80s with a little breeze.  We walked through our roles for the ceremony, and then we were of to the rehearsal dinner at Dixies on Grand in St. Paul.  Also, this was the first time I'd had the opportunity to wear the dress I sewed earlier this summer, so I was happy to sport it!

So happy to celebrate her big day!

Cassie's parents walking her down the aisle

The happy couple at the rehearsal dinner

On the morning of the wedding, I surprised Cassie with a special gift.  A couple weeks back, I found an idea on pinterest where the bridesmaids would write a letter to the bride and present it to her on the morning of her wedding.  Well, I loved the idea, but I decided to take it a step further and invite her parents, grandparents, bridesmaids, personal attendants, and then, the most important person from her day, her future husband, to write her a letter.  I was really pleased with how it all turned out.  I purchased a purple 8"x8" scrapbook at Michael's and formatted all the letters in InDesign to fit inside the clear pages.  Each page included a letter and sometimes a photo or two from someone special to Cassie.  I tried to customize the fonts to correspond with the authors of the letters.  Guessing by the pile of tissues next to her when she was done reading the book, I think it was a hit.

Cassie's Wedding Week

It's Cassie's wedding week, and things are really coming together!  I have 50 wedding programs completely done.  They turned out exactly as I thought they would, and I'm really proud of them.  I should have them completed by tomorrow night.  Here's a little sneak peek.  They evolved a little bit from the original version I made.

Also, a big shout-out to my mom who has been helping me.  She's an excellent paper folder, glue applier, and corner cutter.  Thanks, mom, for all your help.  I couldn't have done this without you - you're the best!

I ordered the materials last week, and am really happy with the quality and price of everything.  The cardstock was buy one pack of 50 sheets, get one for $0.01 at Michael's.  The organza ribbon was from Paper Mart, and was the perfect purple (and the organza is great for bows - super pliable).  And the wood sticks were from Discount School Supply.  The ribbon and sticks arrived in record time:  the sticks arrived in less than 24 hours (without rush shipping), and the ribbon arrived in three days.  Thank heaven for that!

Cost breakdown:
$8.00 [200 sheets of cardstock]
$15.03 [500 wood sticks]
$31.02 [4 rolls of 1-1/2" x 50 yards of ribbon]
$10.00 [glue]
$64.05 TOTAL

I'm making 160 wedding programs, and I'll have lots of leftover wood sticks, ribbon (I may return two rolls since I over-ordered), and cardstock.  Who knows when I'll need them for another wedding? 

Minneapolis Weekend

I went to Minneapolis this past weekend.  It was amazing.  On Thursday, I met Emily at her house, then we went to dinner at French Meadow.  It's my favorite gluten-friendly restaurant in Minneapolis. 

Dinner at French Meadow

I started the night off with a glass of wine and g-free bread (it's my favorite!).  Emily and I split the crab cakes appetizer.  Emily had artichoke and feta ravioli for dinner.  I had fish tacos.  It was amazing.  I can't get enough of this place!

Then, Emily and I drove out to Canterbury Park for Emily's work event.  Even though I lived in the Minneapolis area for my last two years of high school, I somehow never made it to Canterbury Park.  Emily's dad loves horse racing, and had made Emily an Excel spreadsheet with his top picks for the horse race.  Unfortunately, it didn't really help.  However, we had a great time enjoying her co-workers, the perfect weather (80s), and red slushies.

Emily putting in her bet

The (un)winning ticket

Love you, Emily!

The horses

On Friday, I took my time getting ready at Emily's house (since Emily and Frank are real grown-ups and had to work).  Mimi and Harvey, Emily's cats, kept me entertained.

Mimi and Harvey have a rough life

Mimi likes to play with Emily's iPad

Then, I met Gena and Kari in downtown St. Paul for lunch at Trattoria da Vinci.  Catching up with my "little sisters" is always so good - it makes me feel completely at home.  We took advantage of the pasta bar, and then, since Mom Rohl was paying for lunch, we opted for dessert.  Gena got tiramisu; Kari got chocolate gelatto; and I got roasted banana gelatto.  The roasted banana gelatto was the best gelatto I've ever tasted.

Risotto from the pasta bar

Kari's chocolate gelatto

My roasted banana gelatto

Gena's tiramisu

Love you, girls!

Friday night, I headed out to Plymouth to spend the evening with Cassie.  We met her sister and headed out to Lord Fletchers on Lake Minnetonka.  Again, the weather was beautiful, the setting was relaxing, and the conversation was casual. 

On Saturday, I drove over to River Falls, Wisconsin, to have breakfast with my little sister.  I haven't seen her in probably a year, so I thought it was time.  We spent almost two hours chatting and catching up.

After breakfast, I drove over to Stillwater, Minnesota, for the kick-off of Cassie's bachelorette party.  We took a winery tour of the St. Croix Vineyards, and then participated in a wine tasting.

The bride-to-be and me

Saturday night we spend the evening in downtown Minneapolis celebrating Cassie's pending nuptials.  I'm so happy for you, Cassie!

The bride and bridesmaids

Had to grab a shot in the phone booth at Brit's!

So, this marathon weekend may be contributing to my exhaustion.  It was wonderful to catch up with everyone!  Can't wait to celebrate with Cassie and Jake at the end of the month!