The Budget Savvy Bride » Jess

My Card Box

Jess — Tue, 05 Jul 2011 12:00:01 +0000

My friend Jackie had a super-cute card box for her wedding and she was wonderful enough to share with me how to make one for mine.

SUPPLIES:

-4 wood picture frames with thick frames, depth wise, in your color choice (in the size you want the box, mine hold 8 x 10 pictures)

-2 pieces of wood for the top and bottom of the box

-small handle to open and close the box

-8 small L-brackets that have short screws so they won’t go through the whole frame

-1 larger (2″) L-bracket to hold the card box open/shut

-2 small hinges for the top of the box

-spray paint for the bottom of the box (and for the frames if you can’t find the color you want)

-drill

INSTRUCTIONS:

1) start by spray painting all of your materials (if needed) make sure that you take the glass out of the frames and set the frames up in square, off-setting each side

2) pre-drill holes for where the 8 small L-brackets which will hold the frames together

3) screw the L-brackets into place and put in your pictures and glass

4) measure the outside rim of the box to to know the measurements of the top and bottom squares will be, set aside

5) measure, cut and sand the wood for the top and bottom box

6) paint the bottom piece of wood (let dry) and set aside

11) pre-drill the holes for the hinges

12) screw on the hinges

13) flip the box onto its top and decide where the large L-bracket will go (this will keep the lid open enough for cards, but closed enough so no one can steal them!)

14) pre-drill the hole for the L-bracket

15) screw the L-bracket into place starting with the lid

16) pre-drill the holes to attach the bottom of the box

17) screw on the bottom of the box

18) screw on handle to the top of the box

Whatcha think?

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{Jess} Creating a Theme

Jess — Mon, 27 Jun 2011 13:00:19 +0000

I knew that I wanted my wedding to be cohesive. Maybe I am a crazy person, but I HATE when you get the invitation to a wedding and go only to find that the program is a completely different font and style. Or worse yet, an invitation and reply card that don’t match. Okay, I sound neurotic.

Anyways from the save the dates, to the invitations, to the programs, to the decorations at the wedding, and finally to the thank yous I wanted all of the pieces to flow nicely together. So I set my artsy cousin to work (you met Julie here). I am not craft-illiterate so I had some good insight, but the whole thing was really her masterpiece….and I must say: I’M THRILLED.

(Do you notice the lines? And the knots? And the font? Keep those in mind!)

Our Save the Date magnets went out with our Christmas cards this year (which weren’t exactly “cards” they were rack cards…read SAVINGS…and they didn’t exactly match…but it did have the same font and color scheme) to save some $$$ on postage…also a Julie design:

Next we went to work on putting together all of the invitations, envelopes and liners, maps, and reply cards. It only took eight (LONG) hours of assembling with my wonderful family (thanks guys!), but because we were able to shop around for prices on the invitations with our own design and then put them together ourselves we were able to save big bucks!

Making Our Own Envelope Liners

I didn't take pictures of the inserts myself, but here is the printing proof!

I learned how to make my own wedding map here, it was SO easy!

Next, my wonderful Granny B put the program/fans together. It is missing the bow at the bottom, but you get the idea! I created a crossword online here and then Julie did some design magic on it. I think they turned out pretty cool.

We (and by we… I mean Julie) haven’t started working on the thank yous because we’re trying to get all the details taken care of for the wedding because it is right around the corner. I can’t believe it!

In the words of Ferris Bueller and some great wedding advice: “Life moves pretty fast. If you don’t stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it.”

Cost Break-down for Invitations (all numbers rounded up):

Printing of invitation, reply card, and map/accomendations (200): $210

Envelopes, Paper, and Ribbon: $115

Total Cost per Invite (without postage): $1.63

Printing of the fans: $104

Popcycle sticks: $4

Total Cost per Fan (ribbon was purchased with invites): $0.54

_________________ Thanks for reading {Jess} Creating a Theme from: The Budget Savvy Bride

{Jess} Searching for a Photographer

Jess — Mon, 13 Jun 2011 13:00:27 +0000

To me, photography is the one great, tangible keepsake that you get to have forever from your wedding. These pictures will be displayed in your home, mocked by your children as they grow up, shown at your children’s weddings, and displayed at your Ruby Wedding Anniversary: basically, these pictures are a big deal.

When I began looking for a wedding photographer I went in with a couple of things in mind:

1. Style: I think it is a good idea to go in knowing or at least having some sort of idea of what kind of pictures you like. I would say that the style of photography that I am most attracted to is photojournalism-esque pictures. With that being said I wanted someone who had a creative eye, was energetic, and most importantly FUN! I went in thinking that I wanted this photographer to hopefully be involved at and capture every stage of our lives.

2. Price: Before entering into any vendor discussions or meetings I went armed knowing how much of the budget I was able to spend. I knew that this was an area to not skimp on (because of how important it was to me), but I also knew it couldn’t be a budget blaster either.

I met with several photographers. Some just weren’t what we were looking for creatively-wise and others were a perfect match but WAY over our price range.

And then…

We met Ericka.

While trolling on Facebook one day I came across the photos that Ericka had taken for a childhood friend’s wedding and they were beautiful: exactly what I was looking for. I was in Indiana at the time and was able to call and discuss a little over the phone with her what I had in mind for our wedding. She even agreed to create a custom package for Todd and I to suit our needs! Without even meeting her, I knew she was the one and we booked her. We didn’t meet until months later when she took our amazing engagement photos.

Let’s just say, I love this lady! She is amazing and I can’t wait for her to shoot our special day. She also gives great advice (and a shout out to BSB) on selecting a wedding photographer here. If you are in the Ohio area I would HIGHLY recommend her!

p.s. Todd and I sort of had a bonus engagement session when we wanted to get pictures with our puppy Zoey. For the record, Zoey wasn’t really ready for her picture debut so it turned into more of Todd and I. Here is one of the amazing shots that the highly talented Thor Bisher took for us.

_________________ Thanks for reading {Jess} Searching for a Photographer from: The Budget Savvy Bride

{Jess} Before We Go Any Further…

Jess — Mon, 06 Jun 2011 13:00:38 +0000

Before we go any further there are a few things that I need to tell you about myself and how these things will be impacting my wedding:

I am DEATHLY allergic to all milk and milk products.

Photo From allergyware.com

No, I am not lactose intolerant. Yes, I literally can die. It’s like the peanut allergy…only with milk (and ALL milk products). This has proven to be a bit more annoying than normal while planning my wedding with the cake and catering. I have had to request special EVERYTHING and I feel like such an inconvenience. But hey, it IS going to by one of the most important days of my life, so I need to be sure I can enjoy everything without the threat of an impromptu trip to the ER.

My beautiful, amazing, wonderful cousin is a graphic artist/designer.

Julie, my cousin, is the most artistic and creative person I know and as her wedding gift to Todd and I she has GENEROUSLY donated more than her fair share of time and design skill on our Save the Dates, Christmas Cards, Invitations, Reply Cards, Wedding Information, Programs, and I am sure in the not too distant future our Thank You cards as well. Her knowledge of printers and resources as well as her impeccable taste has given my wedding more of an upscale flair than I could have ever hoped to do on my own!

I am very non-traditional and conservative is not a word anyone would ever use to describe me. Todd is traditional and conservative.

As mentioned before, Todd and I are complete opposites. Something that we are still discussing is the: to change or not to change my last name. More on this later as this is still an ongoing conversation.

My Mom has been extremely sick over the last several months.

I always expected that planning my wedding would be super fun and exciting. However, it has been more sobering than I could have imagined. My Mom has been too sick to do any of the planning with me or even have a conversation about what I am thinking. It has been heart-wrenching to go through what I thought we would do together alone. This has impacted some of the decisions that I have made.

My family is HUGE…and LOUD…and FUN!

This picture is of my first and second cousins…and we’re all pretty close. So before I even invite friends (or the other side of my family…or Todd’s!),I have lots and lots of family to invite!

I am busting my behind to look like this by the wedding:

www.victoriassecret.com

…yeah, yeah, I know unlikely…but hey I’m trying.

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{Jess} The Quest for the Perfect Bridesmaid Dress

Jess — Mon, 30 May 2011 23:30:24 +0000

Once I had gotten engaged and the fiancé and I had decided on a color palate (which was an entire battle in itself…), the first thing that I wanted to do was to go shopping for my bridesmaids dresses.

I had asked my four best friends from college along with all of our sisters (7 girls total) to stand up with me. These ladies encompass all of the different body types: petite, tall and skinny, short and curvy, and the catch-all awkwardly proportioned (I can say this, as I am awkwardly proportioned). So I knew that there was no one dress that would look good on all seven of them.

Photo from http://www.fashion-n-beauty-tips.com/

I had the brilliant idea to go shopping with all of them at several different bridal stores on one day, affectionately coined “The Bridesmaid’s Extravaganza.” Our mission was for each of them to find their own short, gray dress. Seemed easy enough.

The staff at several of the chain bridal stores (not naming any names here) were less than helpful. First, gray is not that common of a color. Silver, yes. Pewter, yes. Gray, no.

Not Exactly the Direction I was Going For…

There were several different shades from the several different brands, and then all of the brands had different fabrics so even the same color looked ended up looking different. UGHHHHH!

Rather than explaining this to us up front, the consultants suggested that the girls simply pick dresses that they liked. So after they had spent hours trying on dress after dress (after dress, after dress, etc.) to find the perfect one for their shape, we discovered that the girls had all fallen in love with different brands and fabrics, i.e. different colors. None of the dresses worked.

Three of My Beautiful Bridesmaids

A few weeks later….

My bridesmaid Bekah is from a small, tiny, teeny, itsybitsy, rural town in Ohio. After her college graduation party at her parents’ home, she suggested we go to the local bridal shop.

Along with two of my bridesmaids in tow we walked into the biggest bridal store I’ve ever been in and the second dress Bekah picked up I fell in love with.

THE Dress

Enter the earlier problem: different body shapes.

Katy and Bekah both tried the dress on and even on their different shapes it looked great!

SOLD!!!

It’s a little risky that I didn’t have them try it all on and Amy (petite) is worried that she may get lost in the empire waist, but I think we’ll be alright. Hopefully, they will all feel beautiful and confident on my wedding day.

So I had to redirect my original vision for the bridesmaid dresses, but I think it will work out perfectly! Did that happen to you?

_________________ Thanks for reading {Jess} The Quest for the Perfect Bridesmaid Dress from: The Budget Savvy Bride

{Jess} Inspiration Board

Jess — Mon, 23 May 2011 17:30:45 +0000

The H2B and I went back and forth about what colors we should have for our wedding.

I first suggested we use a black and white damask pattern with a royal purple for an accent color.

He thought that those together looked like a bruise.

H2B then suggested we use maize and blue as our colors…as in Michigan’s colors. Ummm…. NO! Then he suggested baby blue and Carolina blue… as in North Carolina’s colors. Another emphatic NO!

We went round and round about what would be the most appropriate palette for our outdoor summer wedding (in Ohio btw).

And then… gray and hot pink. He totally went for it.

Gray will be our main color with the pink as the accent color. The pink will give the neutral of the gray enough pop to really stand out. I think it will look awesome!

How did you get to your colors? Was it a compromise?

Photo Credits:

Photo of Todd and Jess: Ericka from www.picturefizz.com

Photo of the Cake: http://www.ericaobrienblog.com

Photo of Bride and Bridesmaids: http://www.doodledogadvertising.com

Lanterns: http://ruffledblog.com

Shoes: http://www.stylefeeder.com

Flowers:http://www.weddingbycolor.com and http://www.flowerexplosion.com

Centerpieces: www.weddingbee.com and http://happytodesign.blogspot.com

Escort Cards: http://www.elizabethannedesigns.com

Light Strands: http://onelovephoto.typepad.com

_________________ Thanks for reading {Jess} Inspiration Board from: The Budget Savvy Bride

Meet Jess!

Jess — Fri, 13 May 2011 17:00:26 +0000

Greetings B.S.Brides! I have been a fan of the Budget Savvy Bride since my college friend Becky became a guest blogger last fall. Since the day of her first post I, who was newly engaged, have been an avid follower.

Todd and Jess September 2008

My name is Jess and I hail from Springfield, Ohio. I am currently living in the suburbs of Columbus, Ohio (shout-out to my Buckeyes!) working as a higher education fundraiser and attending school part time to obtain my Professional M.B.A. I recently moved back to Ohio from Indiana and am living with my wonderful fiancé Todd and our AMAZING puppy Zoey!

Zoey

My story starts six and half years ago, the summer before my senior year of high school…

I had always been a reckless flirt and was determined to go away to college with no strings attached to my hometown. One hot summer evening I was dropping my friend Sarah off to go camping with her boyfriend. As we pulled in I spotted a yellow Ford Mustang (at the time, my FAVORITE car) and a group of boys leaning lazily on it.

“Who’s car is this?”

“Mine.” He was tall, had long hair, and looked like he belonged on a beach in California, also known as: my type. I was immediately attracted to him. We talked for a few minutes, joking around about how he should let me drive the car, whose keys were mysteriously two miles away at the camp site, and then I left. I thought that was it.

Todd and Jess Summer 2004

Two weeks later my friend Sarah insisted that we meet up with her boyfriend and the long-haired, Mustang driver for a movie. He got up with me to refill my pop (that’s soda for everyone outside of Ohio) probably 100 times. As we talked and joked, something changed inside of me. As I drove home that night from the movie with Sarah I told her: “I think I love that guy.” And I did… and I have. We have been together ever since and are getting married on our SEVEN year dating anniversary on July 30^th, 2011.

Although Todd and I are different in every way imaginable (I mean he likes Michigan and I went to Ohio State, this is like the Red Sox and Yankees, Capulets and Montagues, etc), we work. We complement each other and it doesn’t matter what I’m doing or where I am: with him by my side life is better. Todd is my best friend, my cheerleader, my lover, and everything in between. I feel so honored to soon be his wife.

Engagement Picture Courtsey of the Lovely Ericka at www.picturefizz.com

I look forward to sharing with you all of the craziness that is sure to ensue with our loud and outrageous mothers (I love you both!), seven bridesmaids, $10,000 budget, and 250+ person guest list! Stay tuned, it will be interesting.

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