Etsy Wedding Finds

Etsy is a wonderful place to purchase unique and/or custom items for your wedding.  Especially if you're looking to add extra personal touches to your day.  From wedding gowns to invitations you can find almost anything wedding-related on Etsy.

our guest book tree with some placed leaves... it filled up well in the end

I wanted to be able to display our guest book instead of putting it in a box and never looking at it again.  However, I didn't feel comfortable doing the thumbprint guest book tree because I didn't want to creep out my guests by asking for their finger print so this was my compromise.

The leaves are self-adhesive.  Guests sign the leaves and stick them onto the tree.  I highly recommend having guest book attendants to aid guests in the process.  You are going to be hanging this on your wall and you don't want a wonky looking tree.

The custom guest book tree I purchased is made by Absinthe Custom Printing.  

I wanted to have a custom wedding gown label because I thought it was a fun tradition.  I purchased a quatrefoil label with my initials and our wedding date.  I went with the quatrefoil because it's the symbol of my college sorority.  My seamstress sewed it into the bottom side seam of my dress in case I wanted to show it to someone at the wedding.

The custom wedding gown label I purchased is made by Initial Impressions.

I always wanted to wear a flower in my hair.  Choosing the right flower was the hardest decision for me-- the right color, size, look...  I finally went with a 4" peony (my favorite flower) made of white silk and white sheer with a rhinestone center.

The hair flower I purchased is made by Silver Pencils.

our guests loved our cake topper -- most had never seen one like ours

I wanted a customized topper that looked like Brad and me. And I couldn't forget Jack. After searching for a while I stumbled upon Lynn's Little Creations.

Lynn makes custom toppers starting at $65 for the couple (add $5-$10 per pet, depending on size). Most custom toppers I've seen are easily $100-$500+.

I wanted to get our program and guestbook attendants a little something to say thanks for being part of our special day.  I decided on rose resin earrings because I think they're cute and fun.

I purchased their earrings from Once Upon A Peony.  

For our favors, we gave our guests sugar cookies from Brad's favorite hometown bakery.  They had our college Alma mater's symbol airbrushed onto them. To seal the bags, I purchased these custom stickers from MAU Promos.

I also purchased our cookies bags from an Etsy seller.  I mostly bought them because I didn't have to buy 1,000 and they are BOPP (biodegradable, FDA approved for packaging food items; oil and grease resistant; water vapor, gas, and aroma barriers).

To see what size bag would work best for the cookies I was able to order a sampler package of bags from the same seller for less than $3, which was great.

I purchased my resealable BOPP flat cello bags from Artistic Ephemera.

I ♥ Etsy

I'm not ambitious, nor talented, enough to DIY everything for the wedding, which is why I'll be turning to Etsy! :)

I already put down a deposit for our custom cake topper from Lynn's Little Creations.

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I plan on purchasing a custom embroidered wedding dress label.

This will be my "something blue".

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I love the thumb print guestbook tree idea, but I don't want my guests to get their thumbs all inked up. {Plus, after thinking about it, I think it's somewhat strange to finger print your guests.} So, I found this compromise on Etsy. It's a guestbook tree with self-adhesive leaves. Guests sign the leaves, and then place them on the tree.

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I'm going to jump on the hair flower band wagon. :)

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I found my wedding cake topper.

Sunday evening I set out with a goal: find a wedding cake topper.

I took to Etsy.

I had already decided that I wanted a customized topper that looked like FI and I. I also wanted to include our pup. After searching for a while I stumbled upon Lynn's Little Creations. She makes custom toppers starting at $65 for the couple (add $5-$10 per pet, depending on size)! Most custom toppers I've seen are easily $100-$500+! I'm very excited to see how it turns out-- especially my dress!

Pretty Program Box

I finished our program box tonight. I started it yesterday so this has been my fastest DIY project so far. Yay!

I was inspired by this program box/card box that I found on Etsy a few months ago (FYI, the seller, Shea Chic Designs, has evidently filed for bankruptcy recently. She didn't send a ton of buyers their purchases and owes many of them money. Not good.). Now, back to happy thoughts of DIY!

I used the same green paint that I used for my card box. I also used the same kind of pink peony that I used for my topiaries, except I edited it a bit to get it to lay more flat.

My supplies:
10" paper mache box (JoAnn Fabric)
Paint (Lowe's)
Sponge brush (Lowe's)
Silk peony (JoAnn Fabric)
Ribbon (JoAnn Fabric)
Rhinestone button (JoAnn Fabric)
Double-sided tape
Glue gun & glue
Scissors


Instructions:
1. Paint the inside and outside of the paper mache box. 2-3 coats is best. Allow for ample drying time in between coats.

2. To get the flower to lay more flat, carefully cut out the first layer of clear pieces inside the flower that lift the petals. If needed, apply double-sided tape in between some petals and adhere petals to one another in order for them to lay flat.

3. Cut the yellow center off of the flower.

4. Cut the button part off the back of the rhinestone button.

5. Apply glue to the center of the peony.


6. Stick the rhinestone button onto the glue and hold in place while it dries.

7. When paint is dry on box, begin applying ribbon, securing with double-sided tape.


8. Make bow by cutting approximately 20 inches of ribbon. Make two big loops with the ribbon.


9. Secure the loops with small bead lines of glue at each lower fold and/or where the two pieces of ribbon meet.


10. Glue the peony to the bow.


11. Glue the bow/peony to the box on top of the ribbon.

Wedding Cake Toppers

There are so many choices! I just can't decide! I'm not huge a fan of the traditional cake topper. However, if there was one in the family and it was a tradition to pass it down I wouldn't hesitate for a moment to use it. Hmmm... maybe I should start my own tradition. Anyway, I've found some cute and interesting cake toppers while on the quest to find my own.

I've come across traditional cake toppers with a twist on Etsy. Most can be custom designed to look like the bride and groom. The downside: the price-tag.




I've found cute, whimsical cake toppers.




I've founds tons of love bird-inspired cake toppers (one of my considerations).






And of course, the monogram wedding cake topper. Most I've seen are DIY by the lovely ladies from theknot. Many of them get their letters from Crafty Eddy. Crafty Eddy, Edward Reitler, lives in Georgia and makes various wood creations. He doesn't have a website, but you can contact him directly at craftyeddy@gmail.com.