My super fun workshop:

 
Notice the new vinyl cutter? Awesome! You’ll see some of my vinyl work below.

And here’s our fabulous “Martini Dining Set”

This is the girls’ room (where my nieces Aaliyah & Alyssa will stay when they spend the night):

Aaliyah stayed Saturday night and was so excited to have her “own” room.
Did you notice the cute vinyl decal on the wall??? Yep – it’s vinyl not paint!
Here…take a closer look:

Isn’t that so cute?? Here’s a simple decal for the front door:

 Once we get our furniture and get things in place maybe I’ll post more of the other rooms.
Right now they’re either a bit sparse or messy.

And…since I’m on a photo kick, here’s a photo of our unity candle set that I whipped together today:

And while I was at the craft store getting supplies for the unity candle,
Andy bought some props to torture and embarrass my boys:

If you couldn’t tell Putter’s the best sport about it; he either enjoys it or has just given in. I think Tiger was a little ashamed…he tried to bury his head in the couch:

Front – Gatefold Style

3D Name Banner – My Favorite Part!

Entire Set – Invitation, Directions/Info Card, RSVP Postcard

I’ve said it many times and I’ll say it again, 1 year is too long for me to plan a wedding. Obviously I love all our wedding ideas, crafts, etc. but after poking around online and seeing other amazing work from FABULOUSLY creative and talented brides, I have started to second guess some of my projects. I keep looking at things and finding minor details I would do differently now that I’m up to my ears in wedding ideas.

Check out these girls and you will see what I mean: Amber (who has similar colors, GORGEOUS invitations, AND PERSONALIZED BRIDAL CONVERSE SHOES that make me so insanely jealous I might have to “borrow” the idea! ) and Heather who is also extremely talented. So many fun ideas!

But, I am trying to keep myself from redoing everything. Instead, I keep adding on more and more projects. This crafty wedding may be overkill for some so…you’ve been warned!

Who else has had too much time planning that they find themselves redoing projects or adding more and more to their list?

For the girls I made a CD Jewel Case Calendar. I found photos and quotes online and did a layout in CorelDraw.

Read the rest of the entry for more photos, quotes, details & even a free template!

Here are some of the quotes I included (can you tell I like movies?):

 ”Well, things are getting pretty serious right now. I mean  we chat online for like…two hours every day so I guess you could say things are getting pretty serious.” ~ Kip, Napoleon Dynamite (This one seemed appropriate considering Andy & I met online and actually DID spend hours talking online nearly every day for a month before we finally met in person.)

“You are what I never knew I always wanted” -Fools Rush In

“He was like an angel, you know? I never knew life could be like that. He was the one thing I followed through in my life, the one thing I didn’t give up on. I was good at loving him.” – The Untamed Heart

“What do you want to marry me for anyhow?”
“So I can kiss you anytime I want.” -Crazy/Beautiful

“When you realize You want to spend The rest of your life with somebody, you want the rest of your life to start as soon as possible.” – When Harry Met Sally

“All our young lives we search for someone to love, someone to make us complete. We choose partners and change partners. We dance to a song of heartbreak and hope, all the while wondering if somewhere, somehow, someone perfect is searching for us.” -The Wonder Years

“My dearest friend, if you don’t mind, I’d like to join you by your side.  Where we can gaze into the stars, & sit together, now & forever. For it is plain, as anyone can see,  we’re simply meant to be.” ~Nightmare Before Christmas

“Your wedding day is a truly special day – it is  the start of a wonderful journey with another person  No longer are you two, but instead, you become one. But remember, the wedding is not an end in itself – the journey has only just begun. The wedding day is the start of marriage, a lifelong commitment.”

I was pretty excited about these. They were quite a bit of work but definitely worth it; the girls loved them more than I thought they would! I’ve put a very basic template for 2009 on my Freebies page if anyone would like to use it to make their own!

* * *

For my two cousins I made these really cute tuxedo cards with wooden roses that match our decorations.

Funny story…my youngest cousin read the card, took it in the other room and whispered to his dad, “They asked if I will be their usher. What does that mean?” To which my Uncle replied, “Well, they either want you to help seat the guests at their wedding or grow up to be a tall black man that sings.” HAHAHAHA!

Photo Source: www.allposters.com

Wow…I wouldn’t mind having this Usher at the bachelorette party though, eh girls?! Speaking of…here’s a juicy tidbit of useless knowledge for you. I got to sit front row when Brandy, Usher, & Janet Jackson (Janet’s Velvet Rope Tour) came to town and performed at the venue where we’re having our reception, back when it was called The Mark. eeek! It was the coolest thing ever. It was like he was singing just to me…okay, not really, but it was way cool anyhow!

Whew! Is it hot in here, or just me?

 Okay, back on topic…What creative ideas do you have to ask members of your bridal party??

Yay!! After about 4 sessions, or an estimated 8 hours of tracing, painting and
outlining…I present to you the completed part one of our personalized aisle
runner!!!

Ta-Da!!

Now, part two is to finish the monogram section and part three
is to put ribbon around the entire thing. We’re talking over 100′ of ribbon
folks. I’m a little nervous that I might mess up this whole project at the very
end. Stay tuned…

Andy decided he was going to remodel the dog house. If you recall, the dogs had a pretty swell dwelling before:

Putter thinks he’s a cat or something and really likes to be as high as possible so Handy Andy decided he would build them a loft with a ramp:

Um, yeah…notice the RADIO and Air Conditioner?!?! We have a timer that turns on the electricity shortly before I let them out in the morning and it goes off about the time I let them in for the night. The heat lamp has been put away for the summer.

Putter made himself right at home. He really does love to be elevated. Tiger got accustomed to the ramp quicker than we expected.

Max seems pretty happy too.

As always, GREAT JOB ANDY! Thank you once again for spoiling my boys!