Danika + Ben

Posted by Khris in Real DIYers

Photographer Jennifer Brindley kindly shared this gorgeous DIY wedding of Danika and Ben. About the big day:

A bony and graceful white bird perched on the shore of Lake Michigan, the Milwaukee Art Museum designed by Spanish architect Santiago Calatrava was the perfect canvas for Ben and Danika to add their own DIY artistic touches to their wedding day.

It had long been Ben’s dream to grow his own wedding flowers, he just had to meet the girl! When wedding planning commenced Ben and his mother-in-law began planting marigolds and zinnias from seed, two hearty and colorful varieties of flower that would reach their peak for the mid-July wedding. These flowers were arranged by Ben and Danika’s moms, who added lush hosta leaves as greenery. Lucky guests took home the vases, also handmade by the couple. The ceramic vases were formed by pressing slabs of clay into cylindrical molds lined with wet paper towels to create a fractured, organic surface on the finished vase. The vases were stamped with the couple’s wedding date and glazed a milky white.

Letters by post were important in the couple’s courtship, so table favors consisted of colorful blank stationery adorned with fully-mailable, uncanceled vintage postage stamps the couple found on E-bay. Guests were encouraged to send this unique snail mail to friends or loved ones of their choice.

Details:
Photographer: Jennifer Brindley of JBe Photography
Couple: Ben and Danika Brubaker
Date: July 16th, 2010
Location: Milwaukee Art Museum, Milwaukee, Wisconsin
Creative elements:  This wedding was creative and unique in so many ways!  Danika wore the necklace given to her by Ben’s grandmother.  She told her that she’d been saving it her whole life for the right woman for Ben at their wedding, and that she knew it was going to the right woman.  They had a close friend play the guitar for their processional and also a special song during the wedding.  Their wedding colors were a vibrant orange, yellow and green to play off of the beauty of spring time, the clean white of the art museum, and the special flowers grown for the wedding.

DIY projects:  It had always been Ben’s dream to grow the flowers for his wedding.  What a unique thing for a groom to say!  So, Ben and Danika’s mother grew all the flowers for this wedding.  They made the clay vases with Danika, and Ben’s mother arranged all the flowers, as well as made the boutonnières.  They also had a very unique “favor.”  They had been collecting vintage stamps, and made up an orange envelope for every guest with enough vintage stamps to mail a letter.  They said the guests could use it to mail a letter to anyone, but they hoped they’d get letters from their guests.  I thought this was a really creative alternative to a guest book!

I also loved that Danika was a pregnant bride.  They were adamant about having the wedding while she was pregnant, and featuring/showcasing her belly because it was a family event.  They were happy and proud to have their unborn baby at the wedding. They did not opt to hire a DJ, but instead had a friend run an iPod.  They created a very special mix of music that reflected their deep love for each other and the love for their friends and family.

Quick & Easy Table Decor: Covered Vase

Posted by Khris in Bouquets + Flowers, DIY Projects & Tutorials

This is filed under “Why didn’t I think of that?”.  Here’s a quick way to add instant impact to your centerpiece vases: cover them with placemats.

Home by Sunset has the step-by-steps on how to do this super-easy, super-inexpensive project to take your centerpieces from nice to WOW. (Found via Heavy Petal – a really cool gardening blog.)

I can picture using some really neat beaded or capiz shell mats or how about a gorgeous shantung? Brocade? Start searching at home & bath stores for interesting finds (especially in the clearance bins).

So, I’m thinking how awesome the placemats are and … hmmm, wouldn’t vases be cool wrapped with:

• Vellum (printed and solids available from Martha Stewart Crafts, Paper Source)
• Grasscloth
• Sheets of moss (available at craft stores and floral supply houses)
• Rich, textured fabrics
• Hot wrapping papers (think Whimsy Press, eieio, Midori)
• Vintage wallpapers (eBay!)
• Modern/contemporary wallpapers (Nama Rococo, Design Public)
• Sheets of punched tin
• Tree bark or wood laminate sheets
• Rows of ribbon in coordinating colors and different sizes. (I love this one! This was actually a candidate for the 1st DIY book but didn’t quite fit.)

Project: Chalkboard Votive

Posted by Khris in Decor, DIY Projects & Tutorials

Is it ..

… could it be …

… wait … oh yes!

It’s a PROJECT!

A bona fide, real life, DIY Bride project!

I bring you the first project I’ve done for this site in a long, long time. And it’s an easy one for all of you craft neophytes.

Behold, my DIY disciples: the versatile, simple, and cheap chalkboard votive.

What’s a chalkboard votive, you ask? It’s a glass votive cup that’s been sprayed with – get this – chalkboard paint. Genius! (And utterly inspired by some pricey but wonderful chalkboard vases found elsewhere.)

These little guys can be used to house candles or candies or even small bunches of flowers. The cool factor is that you can write whatever you’d like on the outside. Great for place cards, no? Or how above little love notes to your guests? A word of thanks?

Supplies Needed

1. Chalkboard paint (found at craft stores and home improvement centers)
2. Votive cups
3. Newspaper or other covering to protect your work surface
4. Well-ventilated work area (do this outside if at all possible)
5. Chalk

Instructions

1. Cover your work surface with newspaper.
2. Wash and thoroughly dry your votive cups. This removes any gunk and fingerprints to ensure you get a nice, even coverage of paint.
3. Turn the votive cups upside down on the work surface. (So you don’t spray inside the cup.)
4. Spray the votives with chalkboard paint. Hold the paint can about 8″ – 12″ from the cup and spray lightly. Too much paint will leave runny marks down the side of the glass.
5. Let the paint dry per manufacturer’s directions. (About an hour should do. Your time may vary.)
6. Add another coat, if you want. Sometimes it takes a 2nd to cover any spots you may have missed or to get a good base on larger pieces.
7. After the paint is dry, write your message on the votive. Voila!

Notes

1. The paint is seriously stinky! I highly recommend spraying outside.
2. Really let the paint dry completely between coats and before using. If the paint is even the tiniest bit wet, it’ll peel away from the glass when you try to write or you’ll leave permanent chalk indentations.
3. Terra cotta pots work well for this as do larger pieces like vases, bowls, wine bottles, jars. You can use stone, wood, tile — just about any hard surface.
4. Mask off parts of your project to create little areas of chalkboard instead of spraying the whole thing.
5. Don’t spray inside the cup if you’re going to use it for food. The paint is not non-toxic.
6. I that the big pieces of chalk (like for sidewalk art) that had a pointed end were easier to use than the standard skinny chalk sticks.

(the supplies)

(turned upside down and painted)

(the final product, complete with smudgy fingerprints from yours truly)