DIY Bridal Party Invitations

It's time, my dears, to talk of pretty wedding things. You have the date, you have the place, but do you have the people you want to stand by your side? Choosing your bridesmaids and groomsmen (as I've talked about before) can be a stressful process, but asking them to be in the party is such a rewarding experience! They will light up with joy when they learn that they are the "chosen ones" (it's never a wrong moment to insert a Harry Potter reference), especially if you do it an adorable way! For my ladies, I looked at a few options, such as these adorable cards from Rifle Paper Co.:

                                     

But Jordan and I really wanted to hand make something (DIY is pretty much the name of our wedding) that both the girls and boys would appreciate. And like most of my good ideas, I saw something someone else did on Facebook that inspired me! They gave their bridesmaids a frame with a note saying "Reserve for a picture of the bride and her bridesmaid on (wedding date here)". We loved that it was surprising and cute, and the frame could (and should!) be used again!

So, we headed to Michael's and found these raw wooden picture frames for $1.99 each. We grabbed some cheap drawing paper, a small tin of wood stain and headed back home. We deconstructed the frames, laid out some tarp (a.k.a. the Michael's plastic shopping bag), and got the stain ready.

Jordan carefully and meticulously stained the frames (outside because it's stinky) and we laid them out to dry (on another plastic bag).

As you may know, I received Calligraphy pens for Christmas because I really wanted to try my hand (so punny) at lettering! So, I've been practicing and practicing (shown above)... And honestly, it's not really looking like the real thing, BUT I'm still enjoying it and like the results! So I figured I'd put my amateur skills to work and start writing these cards.

I played with a few styles until I found what I liked! I tried to be a little manlier for the groomspeoples. 

So, we put the frames back together and lined them up for shipping. We have 11 attendants each  (don't judge me) so that's a lot of frames.

Without a lot of research, I figured the best way to ship them was to stuff them in 6"x9" padded envelopes (which you can find at Target or the post office). I was right, but kind of too right. A 6"x9" envelope on a 6"x9" frame means a very difficult time stuffing. I love that they fit perfectly (twas adorbz), but the amount of time I spent tugging on the frame while trying not to rip the envelope was not fun. Get bigger envelopes people.

The funniest part of this story is when (due to mishaps in scheduling) we had to move our wedding date. And thus re-write all of the cards and haphazardly reseal some envelopes. And two of the frames broke, so we had to buy some replacements at Target. We are learning that you cannot control everything.

Once they were REALLY ready to be shipped, I dropped them off at the post office and sent them away for $2 each. Within a few days the flood of texts came in. our attendants loved them and couldn't wait to be a part of the party!

How did you propose to your bridal party?