Wedding Wednesday: Invitations Part 1

As I noted in my middle post last week, we've decided to complete our wedding invitations in the middle of the packing/moving process, seems sane right? We're almost there after many detailed decisions, trips to office supply and craft stores and me trying as best as possible to hone my perfectionist, straight edge, centered label, aligned stamp skills that are so not me...(my blog is called collecting patina for a reason). I want the invitations to be a surprise to our guests, so I won't be sharing them until a bit later in the year, but I did want to share a few of the details of my process.

Boy-Cat was in on the build process, and Missy supervised the printing

 I designed our invitations and response cards with a graphic designer on etsy. This is a great cost effective alternative, especially if you are planning to have a lot of guests because they charge you a flat rate for the design. I sourced my large envelopes off esty, and the shop was local, so we saved on shipping. We opted to print the names and addresses directly onto the envelopes for a classier look, which also saves on the cost of labels and custom calligraphy. I found a cute stamp at Canada Post earlier in the year, but they have now introduced a custom stamp alternative which is very interesting. Our inner envelopes came from Staples.

Almost ready for the mailbox!

Big Changes

We're less than two weeks away from our moving date, so we did some major packing this weekend. One of the big changes for me in the new house is that I will actually have a proper shoe closet (not the deciding factor I promise). Although this is very exciting news, it means having to say goodbye to the majority of my shoeboxes. For the last 8 years I have kept my shoes in their original shoeboxes, as you would have seen from this post. On the weekend, the shoes were packed and the boxes were recycled...and yes the cat's helped! I look forward to sharing their new closet with you soon!

Sweet Greeters

Chris told me the other day that when I am out or have plans in the evening with one of my friends, the cats patiently wait for me on the top of our closet. I didn't really believe him, until he sent me this picture when I was out at the movies last week! His text was "Patiently waiting for Jessica to come home #spoiledrotten". I love that they wait for me, I love that they greet me at the door when I arrive home, I wonder if it has anything to do with the treats I give them daily?

Happy Thursday everyone!

The Middle

I have tried to post not once, not twice but three times this morning, and it's just not going to happen. I'm not sure what's going on with my blogger app, but it does not want me to share any pictures with you. This could be because I took all of two pictures on the weekend, one of boxes and one of a manniquin wearining a dress I thought my mom would like. Sherry from Young House Love always writes about the middle and how unappealing it is...well my friends, we're in the middle. We're packing the house and trying to prepare wedding invitations at the same time...this is definitely the middle and definitely not pretty! Our landloard requests to show the house every 2-3 days which means I have to move boxes to make the place look soemwhat presentable...I've told him this is no longer an option...we're in the middle! We will get there soon, in the meantime, my posting may be a bit variable...depending on what ole Blogger will allow me to share!

Yours in packing and inviting,

Jessica

Fab Find Friday: Vintage Soap Dish

I picked these guys up at an antique store a few weeks ago. They are old skimmers, but I think they would make lovely soap dishes! I haven't quite decided how I will do it, but that's half the fun:) On another note, these skimmers come with a bit of a story. The antique store I found them in, was one of those markets where each booth belongs to a different seller. The booth that I found these in had them listed at $4, a booth down the hall had the exact same ones listed for $9! It is always worth really looking around, and haggling when you don't think you've got the best price!

Happy Friday Everyone!

Wedding Wednesday: Thank You Bunting

Now that most of the big stuff is done for the wedding, I can start digging into some of the crafts and smaller details. As I believe I mentioned previously, I am going to be decorating with bunting and burlap. I have seen burlap banners all over pinterest and etsy, but knew I could recreate this myself very easily. I used Jennifer Leigh's tutorial here, and am very happy with the results. I lucked out earlier in the year when I found a great stencil set at the Dollarama for $2, and just used some leftover burlap and acrylic craft paint I had on hand! For next to nothing I created this thank you banner that we will probably use for thank you cards as well as a decor item at the reception!

The Finished Product!

Family Day

It's family day in Ontario, and although we have plans to be out and about later in the afternoon, this morning we're spending some quality time at home. In the midst of packing, cleaning, crafting and cooking, my breaks pretty much look like this...

Happy Monday!