Wedding Wednesday: Stitched Wedding Programs

While in Brooklyn, Alessandra, her two sisters and I gathered together to assemble the programs for her wedding.  Loosely based on a pin I found on Pinterest shown here, we created the programs with color photocopied covers that were punched with a Doily Punch and layered over a single fold sheet of wedding details.

Here is the Martha Stewart Doily hole-punch pictured below:

Alessandra made 12 different patterned cover variations featuring patterns from one of her favorite artist William Morris. Using a William Morris calendar she has treasured she used the paper the interior details are printed on to the copy center since it was both recycled and off white so the inside of the cover would match.

Before the trip I made several "tester" programs so Alessandra and Paul could get a feel of what they could do with the programs. I think it makes it way easier to plan out what you want just by testing out your options. The original test had a 3 part cover as shown below.

I am quite glad that we just did the one printed cover with the punched edge at the edge of the paper. While it still wasn't "quick" punching each edge, we were able to sit in assembly line and punch the edge of the cover, layer the cover over the printed info / middle section, machine stitch everything together, then tye the strings and trimming them up.

Using the presser foot as a guide, I straight stitched down the covers of each program. All 140 of them!

Once finished you have a 4 page program perfectly customized and special for your wedding day :)

On a scale of 1-10 on how easy and accessible this project is I would rate it a 3. It is quite easy in that you really just need to know how to sew in a straight line, use a decorative paper punch, and have some patience if you are making +100. Handmade art is time consuming but honorable!

Thanks for checking out our hard work! Hope you enjoy them for yourself on your big day if you try it out. Let us know if you do - we'd love to see pictures!!
XOXO, KC

How-To's Day: Mercury Glass Wedding Votives

Alessandra really liked the look of Mercury Glass which can be quite pricey.  Wanting votive glasses and candles filling the two-stories of the historic Montauk Club would be a challenge if not for this easy DIY project.

For this project you need Looking Glass Mirror-Like Paint and a spray solution of equal parts vinegar and water in a spray bottle.

Solution = 1 part Vinegar to 1 part Water

After pooling loose votives from various sources we came up ~300 short from our target so Alessandra ordered some votive holders to complete the project.  This project is WONDERFUL for upcycling (Making  use of recycled items as materials while saving energy and resources that would be used in recycling) and is a great way to refresh new life into old jars and other glass items.

Spray the votives or item you are working on with a light layer of the silver paint.

Here Alessandra is showing off her technique rolling the paint around in the glass to make sure there wasn't a big glob. Set aside to dry.  After around 3 minutes you can spray a light amount of the vinegar and water solution inside the painted area and lightly dab the paint with a paper towel creating the variation in the paint making it look "cracked".

As the layers of paint build up you can control the opacity more, just make sure the beginning layers you have a light touch with the vinegar solution because it strips the paint creating the technique.  It is super helpful that this paint reacts to vinegar because clean-up is a breeze with non-diluted vinegar unlike regular spray paint.

Layer #1 down! As you can see it is very light and you will need several layers to create a wonderful effect.

Ale` finishing up a votive

We worked on this project in sections which is helpful to not get burned out mid-project. It also helped the enjoyment level by being in beautiful Prospect Park where we could sit out and work in the grass.

Now for some examples from the big day :)

Along side the mercury glass votives and flower centerpieces, we used vintage number cards from Etsy seller 30one for the table numbers shown above.

Here the candles around the cake shows off the hint of pink this Brooklyn Bride highlighted in her Navy & Pink celebration. The bow theme (which will be highlighted in a soon-to-come post) is continued on the two -tiers of their cake which was two of my favorites: red velvet and carrot cake. As a wedding gift and added touch they received the Kate Spade New York "Grace Avenue" Dessert Serving Set which was the perfect addition to the fabulous cake table.

We had a wonderful time working on these votives and we hope you enjoy making some for yourself too.
Happy Making!
XOXO, KC