Questions are always swimming in my head: What do I need to follow up on? To whom do I owe a call or email? What appointment is next? Where's the receipt for that? Do I owe anyone money, my signature or my first child? Who still hasn't RSVP'ed?
I'll be the first to admit that thus far the planning hasn't been that stressful. God has been either a) Merciful or b) Equipped me with the attitude that "eh.. it'll fall into place". Perhaps it's a little bit of both.
I've definitely learned to pick my battles and also prioritize. One area those necessary skills come into play is regarding those lovely "Do It Yourself" aka DIY projects. I think anyone who has planned an event has run into his/her fair share of DIY projects, but what I've found with weddings is that DIY projects can save you HUGE bucks. What is it about the wedding industry that the moment you say you're going to need something for a wedding dollar signs start lighting up in neon and alarms go off? Also, prices automatically jump 25-50% of what they would be for the same piece of paper NOT featured in a wedding. Thats all to say that some projects made from scratch can really save some cash.
Mike and I have already done some DIY projects together (and look, folks, we survived and are still getting married!). When it came to our invitations we decided to design them ourselves and get them printed at Kinkos. It saved us about $100-150 going that route. Also, we're designing and assembling our own centerpieces and ceremony programs. These projects aren't yet done, so here's hoping we're still having a wedding in three weeks.
DIY projects are a fantastic way to save money, but I also learned last night that one should always listen to that little voice that says, "hey, you've got some skills, but maybe you should outsource this one." Cuz that voice wasn't talking to me anymore at 12:30 this morning. It was just laughing at me.
Mom and I decided that we would create my fascinator and also use her existing, super long and plain veil to make a shorter, more embellished veil. The average store-bought fascinator runs about $75-$200. Veils start at about $50 and can run you into bankruptcy. Our thinking was that I could save minimally anywhere from $100-300 just by working on these items ourselves.
Two projects and two women. Seems like a balanced equation, eh?
We decided to start with the fascinator. It's smaller and obviously the easier project. Right? Here are some pictures of the beginning of our night, which started about 7 PM. Notice the fresh smiles. Can you see the joy and lightness in us? There's anticipation with what's to come and a "we can do this" air about us.
We started with a simple comb. It sparkled with crystals, but didn't have too much to offer beyond that. I'd bought lace, feathers and more crystals with which to embellish the comb. Our tools were spread before us and we began our preliminary exam. We cut lace, folded it and twisted it into different positions. We threaded it through crystals and let it just serve as a backdrop. We arranged feathers, hid feather stems and fluffed them as best we could. We tried lace alone, feathers alone and then put them together. We did this for over an hour. When we were done with our preliminary assessment, we concluded that we'd move on to the veil and that we'd have to come back to the fascinator. The comb is still lying unglued, unaltered and in its original state on the table. DIY Project 1, Two Women zero.
The veil. It was worn by my mom in her wedding almost 40 years ago. In it's original state it was about 15 feet long. It's the perfect shade for my gown. No longer white, the veil pairs nicely with my ivory gown. The first problem: Towards the top of the veil there were some snags and holes. It needed to be cut and reattached to the comb so that an unblemished part of the veil could be used. The second problem: It was too plain. Crystal embellishments needed to be added to the edges of the newly cut veil in order to make the it sparkle more and match the embellishments on my dress. Essentially, we were taking a 15 foot long veil and making it a two foot long veil with added personality.
Mom and I decided we'd go with glue rather than sew the beads and crystals. About 10 minutes in, my finger tips were sticky with semi-dried glue and I was having more luck sticking the embellishments to myself rather than the veil. Glue dots were on the surface all around me and only about 12 beads were actually sticking to the veil. I looked up from the veil at mom and she laughed. She knew the "what the heck are we doing?" look in my eyes. So, we changed course. Mom discovered that the glue pen I was using had a handy suction cup on the back that would pick up the beads and place them into the glue. It was a small miracle and a really ingenious concept. No more sticky fingers! Then, we also used some tweezers to place smaller beads into the glue. We were really rolling then...
This delicate placement and replacement of beads and crystals went for another TWO hours. At 12:30 AM, we'd finished the first round of embellishments. At this point, I still want to do another round of crystals, but at 12:30 AM we decided that round 2 could happen at a later date. We were at a good stopping point and still had hair on our heads, so we called it "paused" for the time being. DIY Project 1, Two Women 1.
Below is a picture of the veil after we cut and resewed it.
I forgot to take a picture after the embellishments were added.
I forgot to take a picture after the embellishments were added.
In summary, I've learned that not all projects are worth the endeavors in hopes of pocketing some money. I've yet to decide what to do about my fascinator. It may not make it to that stage. The comb may remain a comb. And it would be the prettiest comb I ever laid eyes on.
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