When I decided that Aaron & I’s wedding was going to be totally Do-It-Yourself, I knew that I wouldn’t REALLY be able to do it all myself. This will probably be a shock, but I’m not actually Superwoman. With planning a wedding, preparing to move half way across the world, and working, it just wasn’t realistic… AND I work from home! Which is just a dream, by the way. That being said, I would say 80% of our wedding details were DIY… That’s a lot. Thanks mom & bridesmaids. :)
In order to retain my sanity, or as much as possible, I really had to sit down and figure out what would be easy for me to do, without having to learn a whole new skill, which would obviously take a ton of time. For example, all of our tables had burlap runners that we cut ourselves. It doesn’t really take a genius to figure out how to cut in a straight line, so that was easy. On the other hand, I wanted a flower to wear in my hair. I’d never made a hair flower before, and while I knew I could probably get the hang of it, I also knew that I would #1 – spend a lot of time watching tutorials on YouTube #2 – have to make a lot of practice flowers #3 – spend a lot of money on said practice flowers and #4 – run the risk of seriously injuring myself with a hot glue gun. Seriously… Those things are my nemesis. And at the end of that whole process, would I really be 100% satisfied with my creation? Like enough to actually wear it on my wedding day? Probably not. Enter Etsy…
Etsy is a website where people all over the world can sell their homemade crafts, artwork, vintage treasures, etc. It’s kinda like Amazon & your Pinterest dreams collided… The result a website that makes me dream of rainbows & butterflies. Oh, and it happens to be as addictive as crack. This is what they tell me… I don’t actually know from experience. If I’m not careful, I can spend HOURS browsing Etsy’s incredibly creative & unique items, and this was only escalated when I was wedding planning… Once I got my addiction under control, I was able to utilize the site to find what I could not make myself… Like my hair flower! Not only was it just what I was looking for (and only $8.55… Holy steal!), but I didn’t have to spend a week learning how to make it myself! This is also where I bought my veil for $19.99. Yes, the EXACT same veil the bridal shop tried to sell me for $85!
So despite the fact that Etsy might rope you into browsing for hours, it seriously ROCKS. Right now, I’m on the quest for the perfect posters & printables to decorate my fancy new office with, and I am just in love with what I’ve been finding! :) If you’re a bride, and you’ve been getting frustrated with DIY projects gone wrong or can’t find what you need at Michael’s very limited aisle of wedding supplies, give Etsy a try! :)
.jpg "2012-05-30_001")
photos by Julie Cate Photography
Happy Wednesday, Internet! :)