This week, I had to finish 6 cards for a Christmas In July swap at one of my scrapbooking groups and as I worked on them I realized they would make wonderful Save-The-Date Cards, Thank-You Cards or Invitations for a winter snowflake themed wedding. So - here is DIY project #2:) Enjoy.

(Legal Disclaimer: The following instructions and photos are my own original content and are copyright protected. If you wish to share this project with others on your own site/blog - please do but don’t copy the instructions. You may use the photo above, and link back here so your readers can read the instructions if they wish. Thanks - Crystal)

Supplies / Cost Up Front - for each invitation you will need:

- 1, 5 1/2″ x 8 1/2″ piece of textured white cardstock - about 25 cents depending where you shop. Try searching eBay or contact online scrapbooking boutiques for deals on bulk purchases.

- 1, 5 1/2″ x 2 1/2″ piece of patterned paper, I used Jack Frost from the Basic Gray Blitzen Collection - about 10 cents per invitation

- 1, 5 1/2″ length of 1″ ribbon, price varies depending where you get it. I purchased mine at the local dollar store for about 15 cents/invitations.

- 1 snowflake embelishment. I used Dimensional Stickers from K & Company. I paid $6 for 6 at my local scrapbooking story but if you are make a large amount, I suggest checking out eBay, dollar stores, etc - for more reasonably prices embelishment ideas. The ones I used came to $1/card.

TOTAL: Using the more expensive embelishments, $1.50 per invitation not including envelopes.

Step 1: Gathering Supplies

- 1 - 8 1/2 x 11 piece of white textured cardstock for every 2 invitations

- 1, 12 x 12 piece of printed paper for every 10 invitations

- 5 1/2″ of 1″ ribbon for each invitation

- 1 large embelishment for each invitation

Step 2: Cutting/Folding

a. Cut the white cardstock in half creating 5 1/2″ x 8 1/2″ inches pieces, fold each piece in half to create a tent card.

b. Cut the patterned paper into 5 1/2″ x 12″ pieces, and then cut into 2 1/2″ sections

Step 3: Taping/Gluing

a. Tape or glue the patterned paper to the bottom of the tent card front

b. Tape or glue the ribbon centered across the top of the patterned paper

c. Tape or glue the embelishment to the ribbon, off centered.

Step 4: Finishing

a. For a finishing touch, use a corner rounder to round the bottom edges of the front and back of the card

b. Print your invitation wording onto a colored paper and tape or glue to the inside of the invitation. If you prefer, you could save time, money and paper by print the wording onto the inside of the white cardstock before cutting/folding instead.

VARIATION IDEAS:

There are plenty of ways to vary this design - or to use it for other themes! In the photo at the beginning of this post, you can see two examples using the same paper but different ribbon and embelishment colors. Here are some other ideas:

- change the paper colors/pattern

- use a different embelishment: holly, flowers, poinsetta, butterfly, cally lily, etc - to match your theme

- change the size, for a larger invitation try using a full 8 1/2 x 11 sheet folded into a 8 1/2 x 5 1/2 tent card

- change the size or location of elements like the paper, ribbon or embelishment

- Add stamps! Customize each invitation by stamping your names, the date or a sweet sentiment onto the front. Suggested places: above the ribbon, just opposite the embelishment or along the bottom, centered on the patterned paper.

Christmas Weddings, DIY Weddings, Invitations, Snowflake Weddings, Wedding Themes, Winter Weddings | 3 Comments »

For our butterfly theme brides - here is some wedding sugar from my cousin’s wedding this past weekend:) Enjoy. When I return from Chicago, I will spend some time sharing some of my favorite parts of her wedding with you:) For now, I hope this sparks some inspiration for you.

Butterfly Weddings, Real Weddings | No Comments »

I found this amazing Tiffany Blue and Chocolate Brown wedding cake design in the Cake America Wedding Cakes Gallery. If you are looking for cake ideas, this gallery is wonderful! They feature cake designs from many different designers and each cake includes a photo, contact information for the baker, and often a price as well so that you know what to expect. They have quite a few small/low budget wedding cake options as well.

Some of the examples include a chocolate brown fall wedding cake for $65, a gorgeous brown, ivory and blue swirl design that feeds 70 people for $150, and a beautiful orchid design that starts at $100.

Black & White, Breakfast at Tiffany's, Flower Wedding Themes, Garden Wedding, Orchid Weddings, Wedding Cakes | 1 Comment »

One of the gals over at WeddingBee recently posted her unique table numbers! Her and her fiance took a plain white sign and took photos with it all around the places that were important to them. They then added numbers to the signs on black and white versions of the photos. The result - a GORGEOUS and very personalized table number idea! LOVE IT!

Food and Meals | No Comments »

Remember that episode of Friends where Joey got ordained so he could preform Chandler & Monique’s wedding? I always loved that idea - it’s so much more personal! When I got married, we hired a JP who came to our location. I think her name was Judy, lol. I meet her the morning of the wedding for the first time.

Now, having a loved one get ordained to preform your wedding is not only easy - but budget friendly as well! Ordain Me Now is a website that allows just about anyone to become ordained in most States so that they can preform weddings - and it costs about $35! That’s cheaper then most ministers or JP would charge to do the ceremony! They also offer a rush, one day service for $13 extra which is great for those last minute emergencies as well.

I personally just love the idea of having a loved one preform the ceremony.

Wedding Planning | No Comments »

Orchids make a gorgeous wedding cake accent - real flowers, silk flowers or sugar paste orchids as you can see below. The collection below contains different versions for different budgets. The more elaborate styles with a great deal of gum paste floral work are generally the more costly choices but as you can see = there are many gorgeous styles that would be more budget friendly as well.

For example, take a look at the third column, second cake. This is a simple fondant 3 tier cake with some icing detailing on the middle tier and three stunning orchids to finish it off. Simple, stunning, modern yet elegant, and much more budget friendly then some of the more elaborate versions.

Here are some inspirations to get you planning your stunning, celebrity worthy, orchid wedding cake:)

Flower Wedding Themes, Flowers, Orchid Weddings, Wedding Cakes | No Comments »

This is going to be the first in an ongoing series of tutorials that I hope to offer here on Budget Dreams! I have decided to start with a very simple invitation idea for my first one - I hope you enjoy it. Here is what we are making:

(Legal Disclaimer: The following instructions and photos are my own original content and are copyright protected. If you wish to share this project with others on your own site/blog - please do but don’t copy the instructions. You may use the photo above, and link back here so your readers can read the instructions if they wish. Thanks - Crystal)

Cost Up Front - Cause this is the whole reason we are making them ourselves right?

White Cardstock with ink - about 35 cents per invitation.

Patterned Paper - about 15 cents per invitation

Ribbon - about 25 cents per invitation - I used ribbon from the dollar store - if you pick a more expensive ribbon, it may cost a lot more.

Envelopes - Recycled Paper A7 Size Invitation Envelopes from Genesis - 20 cents per invitation.

Total: 95 cents per invitation including envelopes!

Step 1 - Gathering Supplies

You will need:

1 - 12 x 12 piece of thick cardstock for every 3 invitations

1 - 12 x 12 stripe of patterned paper for every 6 invitations

Matching ribbon (about 15-20″ per invitation depending on the type of bow you want)

Double Sided Tape

Step 2 - Cutting

Cut the thick cardstock into 3 - 5×7 invitations (click here for cutting instructions).

Cut the 12 x 12 patterned paper in 6 - 2 x 12 inch pieces.

Cut the ribbon into 15-20″ pieces. Do a test invitation first, to determine how much ribbon you really need, and then cut the rest.

Step 3 - Adding Your Wording

Open your writing program (word, works, etc).

Change your page settings to custom size 5 x 7, portrait, with .5″ borders all around

Type in your invitation wording, experiment with fonts, etc until you have what you want. I suggest printing off a test copy and showing it to your fiance, the mothers, the maid of honor, etc to make sure no details or errors are overlooked.

Step 4 - Adding the Patterned Paper

Paper Tip: You can used any patterned paper, or even a solid color if you prefer. When picking a pattern, keep the size in mind. A paper with a very large pattern might look great in 12 x 12 but the pattern might be completely lost when it is cut into 2 inch lengths.

WARNING: Don’t tape the patterned paper to your invitation, lol. I will be honest - I did that with one of the samples without thinking. You want the patterned paper to slip off and on so your guests can move it to read the entire invitation.

Center the piece on the invitation, then folded at the edges. Use double sided tape to secure the two ends where they overlap in the back.

Step 5 - Adding the Ribbon

Ribbon Tip: For a great contrast - pick a ribbon in a color that is in the patterned paper but not dominant.

I started by securing the ribbon to the back of the patterned piece with a small bit of double sided tape. I then proceed to secure it to the front on each end as well because it made tying the bow easier and helped keep it centered.

Finish it off by tying a bow and trimming the ends at an angle.

Crafty Tip: For ribbons that tend to fray, use a lighter and very gently/quickly run it over the end to melt it slightly. Test a spare piece first as some ribbons do this perfectly and others don’t.

VARIATION IDEAS

There are SO many ways you can very this idea. You can customize by changing the colors to match your color scheme: the invitation itself could be white, cream, ivory, tan, yellow, pink, blue, etc - as long as the wording is readable. For the paper stripe, there are thousands of patterned or solid options out there to pick from and of course, hundreds of different colors and sizes of ribbon as well.

Variations Shown Here: Thin Pale Green Ribbon or a Thicker Pale Blue Ribbon

You can also make changes to the design. Things that can be changed include the width and/or location of the patterned paper or even the location of the ribbon. Imagine a thicker patterned piece, with the ribbon placed near the bottom instead of centered. Or, change the bow. Use a different style bow or use something else all together - a large paper flower, a buckle, a button, or any other embellishment you wish. Alternately, you could add a small charm to the bow for an extra touch.

Variation Shown Here: 3″ patterned piece with a thick orange ribbon and a different type of bow, placed in the center of the invitation.

For more color, you could use a 4.5 x 6.5 piece of white cardstock for the invitation, and then mount it on a piece of 5×7 color cardstock that matches your ribbon - thus creating a colored border for the invitation itself.

You can also change this to make a card-style invitation if you prefer. On the front of a 5 x 7 card, print just your names along the bottom (so it ends up right under the patterned paper) in a color that matches the ribbon. Then place your invitation wording and details inside. Or, purchase pre-printed invitations in a simple card style and add the patterned paper and ribbon to dress it up.

DIY Weddings | No Comments »

Looking for a way to bring your orchid theme into your bridal gown or your bridesmaid gowns? Take a look at this lovely gown:

The dress is a bridesmaid version of Madison from Chrys Cross Bridal - with a burgundy sash. The dress came with a large floral flower which we removed and replaced with a simple orchid hair clip that we purchased for $5 on ebay! Voila - a lovely orchid bridesmaid gown!

You can match the sash colors to the theme/flowers as well. If you are using orchids with a pink center - choose burgundy, pale pink, yellow, sage green etc. For the yellow centered flowers, try yellow, baby blue, dark blue, sage green, etc.

You can get the bridesmaid version (which has a slimmer skirt the then bridal tea length version) by special request for $199 including shipping. And of course - the bridal version for an informal or semi formal wedding would be perfect as well! Want it more formal? As them to make it floor length with a train for $399 and you now have a perfect orchid themed formal gown!

Bride's Attire, DIY Weddings, Flower Wedding Themes, Flowers, Garden Wedding, Orchid Weddings, Wedding Themes, Weddng Party Attire | No Comments »

Flowers may be one of the tricker aspects of a black and white wedding. Yes - you can just go all white - but many brides are looking for something more - a unique way to bring black into their flowers as well. This selection of photos should help inspire you with ideas on how to add black into your bouquets and floral decor as well.

- Dark, nearly black leaves and black ribbon

- These lovely anemones have black centers

- black berry accents

- Black Calla Lilies (actually, a very very dark burgundy)

White Calla Lilies with Black velvet ribbon

- more anemones have black centers

For something totally different - try this stunning beaded black and white bouquet.

Black & White, Flowers, Wedding Themes | No Comments »

Destination Feature: Dublin, Ireland

Looking for a unique wedding or honeymoon destination! Most people automatically assume that a honeymoon at an all-inclusive beach resort is the best bang for your buck - but that’s not always true. Thanks to the internet and the amazing amount of information available online - planning your own honeymoon to just about anywhere can be both a fun and cost friendly option!

Ireland may not be your typical destination for a bride and groom - but it is unique, beautiful and definitely a memorable occasion. And it can be affordable if you are willing to do the leg work to find the best deals on Dublin Hotels, flights, activites and actractions, transportation and even meals. For example, you can find Dublin Hotels for as little as $30/night! Not a bad deal at all - that’s only about $210 if you stay for an entire week!

Who needs to lie on the beach when you can be touring romantic castles, visiting old style pubs, taking in historic sites and museums, and visiting or even getting married in historic churches that date back to the sixteenth century! SO romantic!

Destination Weddings, Honeymoon | No Comments »