So what are you waiting for?  GO ENTER HERE!  Contest closes at 11:59 AM central time tomorrow Friday January 27th.

*This giveaway is sponsored by Minted.  Official sweepstakes rules here.

© Elizabeth Anne Designs: The Wedding Blog, 2012 · Permalink · Comments ...]]> You know you want to win one of TWO $250 gift certificates to Minted so that you can have awesome invitations like this:

So what are you waiting for?  GO ENTER HERE!  Contest closes at 11:59 AM central time tomorrow Friday January 27th.

*This giveaway is sponsored by Minted.  Official sweepstakes rules here.

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I love me some Minted. From wedding invitations and save the date cards to programs and place cards, Minted offers hundreds of unique, current, and stylish wedding stationery designs, all sourced from a global community of independent designers. And I’m beyond excited this week to be able to give TWO lucky readers $250 gift ...]]> Congratulations to our winners, Kayla and Elizabeth!

I love me some Minted. From wedding invitations and save the date cards to programs and place cards, Minted offers hundreds of unique, current, and stylish wedding stationery designs, all sourced from a global community of independent designers. And I’m beyond excited this week to be able to give TWO lucky readers $250 gift certificates to Minted (jump to the bottom of the post to see how to enter!)!

What’s so fabulous about having such an extensive portfolio of designs to choose from is that there’s absolutely a stationery suite for your wedding.  To prove it, the amazing design team at Minted pulled together these gorgeous inspiration boards – from elegant fall eggplant to preppy orange and gray and even fresh and modern shades of green – there’s a design that matches perfectly with your palette and theme.

{hanging lanterns image by Forevercandid Photography via Style Me Pretty; shoe image by Brooke Schwab via 100 Layer Cake; leaf hairclip from whichgoose; burgundy dress from ASOS; Save the Date from Minted; escort cards image by Sweet Little Photographs via Green Wedding Shoes; apple chair garland image by Meg Smith via Snippet & Ink; vintage camera via Flickr}

{Save the Date from Minted; Dalloway Armchair and Diaphanous Pleats Skirt from Anthropologie;  Surya Frontier Rug by RugSale; Rustic burlap wedding ring bearer pillow by whichgoose on Etsy}

{Green Macarons via flickr; Winter Sparkle Mirror Garland & White Lights via Apartment Therapy; Save the Date from Minted; Zig Zag Tray via Up in the Air Somewhere;  Chevron Stud earrings triple v geometric jewelry by betsyandiya; Skirt  from The Chriselle Factor}

Of course, each of these boards features one of the Minted save the date designs:

All of Minted’s wedding invitation suites are fully customizable, use only the highest quality paper, and are backed by a 100% satisfaction guarantee.

So I know you’re all wondering how you can enter to win one of the two $250 gift certificates towards any items in the wedding category at Minted!  Here’s the deal.  To enter, visit Minted and feast your eyes on all of the fabulous wedding stationery suites. Then come back here and leave a comment below letting us know which design is perfect for your wedding.  TWO lucky winners will each receive a $250 gift certificate from Minted!  Blogging about the contest and including a link to this post gives you an extra entry too – just share the link to your blog post in yoru comment! 

Contest closes at 11:59 AM central time on Friday January 27th.  Upon the close of the contest, the email addresses of all entrants will be provided to Minted, and they will choose two lucky winners!

*This giveaway is sponsored by Minted.  Official sweepstakes rules here.

© Elizabeth Anne Designs: The Wedding Blog, 2012 · Permalink · 98 comments · StumbleUpon It!
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You ...]]> I have the cutest DIY tutorial to share with you today!  My friends Kelly Marie from Fleur and Suzy from Lily Red Studio are stopping by to share a fabulous DIY billy ball escort card box how-to with us.  Designed by Tiffany of Chicago’s Soiree Events, this sweet display is so easy and cute, and easily adaptable to any event!

You will need:

• Container – these ladies used a wine crate, and Ikea also has inexpensive wooden boxes that would be perfect for the job.
• Floral foam
• Moss (purchase at your local florist or garden store)
• Bunch of craspedia (billy balls)
• Ruler
• Paper trimmer
• X-acto knife and cutting mat
• Adhesive runner
• Bone folder or scoring blade for your paper trimmer
• Heavy-weight cardstock

Instructions:

1) Leave your bunch of craspedia out overnight to somewhat dry out the stems

2) In Microsoft Word, create your name strips (an example table is here; use your choice of font, and remove the center score line before printing).  These are 1.25″ high and 7″ wide, folded in half to be 3.5″ in width.

3) Print and use your paper trimmer or an X-acto knife and cutting mat to cut along solid lines.  Use your ruler and bone folder or your scoring blade to score along dotted line (halfway point).  Run adhesive along the back side of each strip.  Aligning the edges, fold the card in half and press firmly.  If desired, use your X-acto knife to cut into a flag shape.

4) Use a ruler and place slits at approximately ¼” in from the top and bottom – at the outer edge of the folded card. Completed cards:

5) Fill your container with floral foam.  If necessary, cut your floral foam blocks to fit into the container securely.  Depending on the height of your box, you may need two layers of floral foam.  Cover with moss.

6) Cut stems of billy balls to desired height (vary the heights a bit).

7) Thread the stem of the billy ball through the two slits on the escort card.  Arrange the card at the desired height on the stem.

8) Place the billy balls into the moss and all the way through the foam so they’re standing upright.

9) Dress up your escort card table with some pretty coordinating flowers and voila!

A huge thanks to these talented Chicago wedding vendors for sharing this DIY tutorial with us:

Design – Soiree Events \ Floral – Fleur* \ Photography and stationery – Lily Red Studio

*denotes EAD featured vendor

© Elizabeth Anne Designs: The Wedding Blog, 2011 · Permalink · 29 comments · StumbleUpon It!
Posted in: DIY, stationery

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I’m a huge fan of Minted, so I am honestly thrilled to have them as an EAD sponsor and doubly excited to give one of you lucky readers a $100 Minted gift certificate!  In case you aren’t familiar with Minted, it’s an online stationery store and community of independent graphic designers. They allow amazingly talented ...]]> Update: Congratulations to our winner, Sharon!

I’m a huge fan of Minted, so I am honestly thrilled to have them as an EAD sponsor and doubly excited to give one of you lucky readers a $100 Minted gift certificate!  In case you aren’t familiar with Minted, it’s an online stationery store and community of independent graphic designers. They allow amazingly talented designers to showcase their wedding invitations, personal stationery, holiday cards and more in one spot – basically, it’s a perfect place for you to find the stationery that’s just right for your wedding!

Minted has also just added a very cool new feature – DIY wedding program templates.  We all know that handmade touches make your wedding feel so much more personal, and these programs are a great way to put your own spin on your stationery.  Simply download the DIY template, insert into your favorite Minted wedding program cover, and add your own embellishments!

Minted recently asked bloggers to participate in a design challenge, to apply their own personal style to the new DIY programs – it’s amazing how unique and different these talented ladies were able to create are.  Sarah Matthews of Orange Blossom Ink designed the fresh yellow and gray program above, and Hannahcloud Design got playful with the confetti packet programs below.  You can also use something creative like twine, washi tape, or even stitching to create a unique binding for the program.

So, how can you win the $100 gift certificate to Minted?  Just go have a look at their wedding programs and let me know which one best suits your wedding by commenting below!

Winner will be chosen on Monday, June 13th at 5pm central time, so good luck!

*Minted is an EAD sponsor and this is a sponsored post.

© Elizabeth Anne Designs: The Wedding Blog, 2011 · Permalink · 69 comments · StumbleUpon It!
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There were pretty envelope liners, bright ...]]> I was fortunate enough to attend Tuesday of the National Stationery Show at the Javits Center in NYC. If you didn’t happen to see recaps or posts about it anywhere else in the blog-o-sphere, it’s where hundreds of vendors from around the country come and display their products/work for people in the industry–buyers, reps, etc.

There were pretty envelope liners, bright and bold invitation suites or suites that were subtle and neutral, and certainly no shortage of chevrons and letterpress! My favorite part of the day was getting to pick the brains of designers about any trends (sidenote: I hate that word) in wedding stationery. I’m going to split my wrap-up into 2 parts: the design (what’s actually on the invite) and the construction (paper, assembly, details).

First up, I want to take a look at 4 trends on the design side that stood out to me at the show.

1&2. Type-Driven & Overprinting Invites
LOVE these. I’m a type nerd and am in love with any invites that focus on beautiful type. Overprinting is where two inks are printed on top of each other. Aside from creating a beautiful effect, (pardon the sappiness here) it’s so symbolic, don’t ya think? Two characters joining and creating a whole new hue…ahh, symbolism. Anyway, whether it’s full of flourishes or simple and linear, couples who choose invitations that are type-driven usually have a keen design eye and want to use type as a graphic element, not just images. I am REALLY excited about these two elements!

{Fig. 2}

{elum}

3. Calligraphy
I’m not sure calligraphy was ever not in style, but there’s no denying that it is everywhere now! My favorite part is the variety of styles out there now, from formal copperplate to more whimsical styles like what Mr. Boddington’s Studio uses for their invitations.

{Mr. Boddington’s Studio}

{Grapevine Paperie}

4. Blind debossing
Although it might be on the side of construction since it’s in how the actual pieces are printed, I’m going to lump this one in with design. Blind debossing is where the letterpress is run without any ink, leaving behind an imprint but no actual inked print with it. The result is a very subtle design.

{Wiley Valentine}

{Smock}

Are there any other design trends that you’re noticing and love? Keep an eye out later today for NSS Part II!

© Elizabeth Anne Designs: The Wedding Blog, 2011 · Permalink · 4 comments · StumbleUpon It!
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Escort Card ...]]> This morning’s Pancakes & Honey Breakfast shoot featured several handmade wedding projects, and the team of Suzy from Lily Red Studio, Kelly Marie from Fleur, and Jaclyn Simpson Photography have been kind enough to share their DIY secrets with us! They created several projects – click on the links below to jump to the instructions for your favorite:

Escort Card Frame · Decorative Tags · Birdseed Pouches · Honey Dipper Favors · Invitation Set

Escort Cards & Escort Card Display

Supplies needed:

• Frame ­ (remove glass). Choose a frame large enough to accomodate your cards, or display multiple coordinating frames.
• Foam core, preferably with an adhesive side – cut down to a size that will fit in your frame(s); must be thick enough to be able to stick a map pin in without showing though the opposite side
• Fabric – ­must be a large enough piece of fabric to wrap at least 2″ beyond the size of your trimmed foam core board
• Adhesive
• Map Pins
• 2″ reach ribbon hole punch
• Pool satin ribbon ­ trimmed to 3″
• Natural White Cover stock ­ trimmed to 3” x 1.5”

Escort Card Frame

1. Trim your foam core to a size that will fit snuggly to the interior of your frame.
2. If using a board that has an adhesive front, remove the protective liner; if using regular foam core, adhere a generous amount of adhesive to the front.
3. Position and wrap your pre-cut material around all four edges of the foam core (similar to wrapping a present) and adhere to the back of the boards using adhesive or map pins to ensure the material will stay in place.
4. Secure the wrapped foam core piece to the inside of your frame (some frames may come with an existing backing, if yours does not, a few small nails or thumbtacks applied to the back inner edges should keep the foam core in place)

Escort Cards

1. These escort cards were designed using in Adobe Illustrator but you can use any design program, even Microsoft Word, to position multiple 1.5 x 3″ cards per page. They are printed on both sides (name on front, table number on back). Printing on two sides using your home printer may be tricky, you may also want to consider hand-writing or hiring a calligrapher to write the table numbers and/or names on your escort cards. You should be able to fit 10-12 cards on one 8.5 x 11″ sheet.
2. Print the designs on a home printer or send to your local digital printer. Using an X-acto knife and mat, or a paper trimmer, cut out cards.
3. Position your 2” ribbon hole punch to the left side of the name on the card (center the punch from top to bottom). Apply pressure to create a hole.
4. Thread your pre-cut satin ribbon through the holes and trim any fraying edges.

Helpful note: Decide ahead of time how your escort card frame(s) will be displayed. ­ Will you need an easel, can you hang them on a wall, or will you lean them on a table?

Decorative Tags for Birdseed Pouches and Honey Dipper Favors

Supplies needed:

• Natural white cover stock – ­trimmed to 1.25 x 3″
• 1/8″ hole punch
• Eyelets (Pool)
• Eyelet Setter
• Hammer
• Adhesive

Helpful note: Keep track of your guest list using an excel spreadsheet format for easy copying and pasting of names.

1. These decorative tags were designed using in Adobe Illustrator but you can use any design program, even Microsoft Word, to position multiple 1.25 x 3″ tags per page.
2. Print the designs on a home printer or send to your local digital printer. Using an X-acto knife and mat, or a paper trimmer, cut out tags.
3. Punch a 1/8″ hole in the upper left corner of your tag.
4. Position an eyelet in the hole you’ve created and set with an eyelet setter. Position the eyelet setter in the hole on the back of the eyelet and a hammer the top of the eyelet setter, tapping gently – at least a few times to create a curl in the back shaft of the eyelet (test this out until you’ve adhered the eyelet to the paper – it should not move or fall out).

Birdseed Pouches

Supplies needed:

• Gold satin ribbon ­ trimmed to 10-12”
• Bouquet Garni Bags (sold 12 per pack at Whole Foods)
• Bird Seed (loose)

1. Fill each bag with a small handful of loose birdseed and pull the drawstring on the bag closed.
2. Tie the strings once and trim the strings to approximately 2” in length.
3. Secure a piece of the trimmed ribbon around the base of the drawstrings/mouth of the bag; tie once.
4. Thread the ribbon through eyelet in the decorative tag and knot one more time and tie a bow, trimming any fraying edges.

Honey Dipper Favors

Supplies needed:

• Decorative tags (directions above)
• Honey Sticks
• Honey Dippers
• Pool satin ribbon ­ – trimmed to 12-15”

1. Secure your ribbon around the center of three Honey Sticks and a Honey Dipper ­ wrapping all items together while leaving a long enough portion of ribbon to tie a small bow (only knot – do not tie a bow at this point).
2. Tie the ribbon once and thread the ribbon through eyelet in the decorative tag.
3. Knot one more time and tie a bow, trimming any fraying edges.

Invitation Set Instructions

Includes: 5×7 Invite, RSVP Postcard, Directions Card, A7 Envelope with handmade envelope liner

Supplies needed:

• X-acto knife and self-healing cutting mat, or scrapbook-style paper trimmer
• Kiri-Ita Woodgrain paper – 8.5″ x 11″ paper – trimmed to 5 x 7″
• Pool cover stock – 8.5″ x 11″ paper – trimmed to 4.75 x 6.75″
• 110# Natural White cover stock – 8.5″ x 11″ paper – trimmed to 4.5 x 6.5″ (invitation), 4 x 4″ (directions card), and 4 x 6″ (RSVP card)
• Adhesive
• Fabric – trimmed to 3.5 x 6″
• Pool satin ribbon – trimmed to 18″
• Gravel A7 envelopes
• Pool text weight stock – 8.5″ x 11″ paper
• Gravel oval labels
• Bone folder

Invitation

1) Using an x-acto blade and self-healing cutting mat or scrapbook-style paper trimmer trim Pool cover stock and Kiri-Ita Woodgrain paper to correct sizes.

2) Create your invitation design in Adobe Illustrator or similar tool

3) Print the design on a home printer. If your printer can handle off-size paper, trim the Natural White cover stock to correct size and then print. If your printer can only handle 8.5 x 11 paper, print, then cut. You can also send the design to a local digital printer and they will cut your paper for you and print the design.

4) Apply your choice of adhesive to the outer edges of the back of the printed page and adhere to the Pool cover stock, making sure it is centered.

5) Hide any rough edges of the trimmed fabric by folding and taping to the opposite side of the material (only worry about the edges that are exposed on the long sides of the fabric; the edges on the shorter sides will be hidden when the invitation is completely assembled).

6) Adhere the fabric strip to the middle back of the trimmed Kiri-Ita Woodgrain backing stock. Wrap the edges around the backing stock and secure in place with double-sided tape (make sure to apply tape no more than .5” from the edge of the backing stock).

7) Wrap the ribbon around the piece created in step 6 and tie in a bow; the bow should rest at the center of the fabric strip. Trim any excess ribbon and secure the ribbon by applying tape over the ribbon on the opposite side.

8) Adhere the back sides of the printed piece and woodgrain backing together, making sure they are centered.

Direction Card and RSVP Postcard

1. Create your direction card and RSVP postcard design in Adobe Illustrator or similar tool
2. Print the design on a home printer. If your printer can handle off-size paper, trim the Natural White cover stock to correct size and then print. If your printer can only handle 8.5 x 11 paper, print, then cut. You can also send the design to a local digital printer and they will cut your paper for you.
3. Adhere a label to the back of the RSVP postcard; your return address can be hand written on this label, you may also print directly on the label
4. Don’t forget to adhere a stamp to the back of your postcard!

A7 Envelope Liners

Note: you can also purchase pre-cut liners or envelope liner template kits at Paper Source

1. Open an A7 envelope and cut off the right, left, and bottom flaps. Using an X-acto knife and mat, or a paper trimmer, trim .5″ from the bottom, left and right sides.
2. Using this as a guide, trace into Pool text-weight paper and cut out your envelope liner.
3. Insert liner into envelope. Once positioned, use a bone folder to crease your liner into the fold of the envelope. Apply adhesive to the fold area and adhere liner to envelope.

Pretty vows cards match the stationery. These are designed in Illustrator and printed on a home printer, then backed with woodgrain paper to coordinate with the invitation suite.

The team also created a table number in Illustrator and displayed in a pretty wooden frame, and used toothpicks to prop place cards in the pancakes. Love these little coordinating details!

The following Chicago wedding vendors contributed to this inspirational wedding shoot:

Photography – Jaclyn Simpson Photography \ Floral and table design – Fleur \ Stationery – Lily Red Studio \ Venue – Salvage One

*Fleur is one of EAD’s fabulous featured vendors. For information on EAD’s editorial policies, click here.

© Elizabeth Anne Designs: The Wedding Blog, 2011 · Permalink · 9 comments · StumbleUpon It!
Posted in: DIY, favors, inspiration, stationery

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