Friday DIY: Paper Flower Bride

Tuesday's post, {Trend Tuesday} was all about wedding flowers.

Take heart, DIY Bride, we have a post for you, my dear.

For the bride who is crafty or frugal or both I tracked my time and my costs so you can decide if this floral adventure is worth your while.

All you need are some skills and inspiration (as seen below).

...that's Indonesian blend (thanks Joel) with hazelnut creamer, and Ray Lamontagne singing sweetly to me in the background. 

Raise your hand if you've made tissue paper flowers before and been a little disappointed.

*raise*

Yeah, if you do this, you have to start with shopping. Here's the skinny on the Materials:

• FLORAL CREPE

When I first read about floral crepe, I thought, "What the crepe??" (Couldn't resist). But really, it's just like birthday party streamers but it comes is a huge roll! 10 feet by 3 feet, actually. And guess how much each roll costs? $2.50. IT'S CHEAPER THAN TISSUE PAPER, PEOPLE. Just order it. Believe me, I looked at Target, Michael's, Hobby Lobby, Paper Source, JoAnn and Walmart and no one has it. (I know, right?!)
I ordered mine from Castle In The Air.  You'll have to wait a few days for it, but it's so worth it {bonus: their packaging is adorable}.

• FLORAL TAPE

Floral tape is the weirdest. It feels like thin paper until you stretch it a little bit which activates the stickiness. It pretty much only sticks to itself, and boy is it swell for stems. I don't use any glue, I just wrap my leaves and petals into the tape. Works great.

• FLORAL WIRE

18 gauge is the best. It's not expensive at

For the leaves on the left I used DOUBLE ply crepe paper. It's like thin cardboard almost. It's super thick paper and absorbs paint nicely. 

Foliage: 6 minutes per stem,
              approx $0.30 of materials per stem

Poppies: 7 minutes per stem, 
             approx $0.25 of materials per stem

Rose Buds: 4 minutes per stem, 
                    approx $0.30 of materials per stem

You can find lots of petal and leaf templates online. I definitely suggest purchasing a book of how-tos. Hopefully this post will give you enough info to experiment with, so if you decide to get serious you'll know if you want to invest in a crafty undertaking on a larger scale. Who knows- maybe you can get your bridesmaids in on it!

I'm gonna be honest. These first two Peonies took me almost 30 minutes each. My third one took only about 15 once I got the hang of wrapping the petals. The time was worth it though, considering the materials for one peony total around $0.45 (compared to fresh peonies which go for SIX BUCKS a stem around here).

OH, and by the way: if you try out this DIY, let us know on Facebook, share a pic, and we will send you a bag of goodies, compliments of Laurel Avenue.

Happy Crafting!
 

Elena

Small Beginnings

by: Elena

I have often wondered if starting a business was a great idea, or even a good one. With several events, a marvelous styled shoot, and multiple design jobs RIGHT out of the gate, there was almost no time to question.

Before we get too far from the start, I will share the verse that God has placed in front of me every time I start to question. Blind entrepreneurial optimism aside, I am confident in this:

Isaiah 46:10-11

 ...declaring the end from the beginning
    and from ancient times things not yet done,
saying, ‘My counsel shall stand,
    and I will accomplish all my purpose,’
 calling a bird of prey from the east,
    the man of my counsel from a far country.
I have spoken, and I will bring it to pass;
    I have purposed, and I will do it.

{Emphasis added}

And here, friends, is the verse that says it all. Every word.

Zechariah 4:10

Do not despise these small beginnings,
for the Lord rejoices to see the work begin.

And begin, it has.

Have a swell Wednesday,

e

Summer Garden Party

HOW blessed we were to get in touch with Southern Vintage who provided all of the vintage rentals for this inspiration shoot.

Jeanne Brock was our remarkably talented and passionate florist! She was wonderful to work with. She's so creative and charming.

As usual, Johna Castro was our flawless photographer, as well as fellow stylist. This girls seriously knows aesthetic.

These details are perfect for a spring or summer wedding reception, a tea, sophisticated graduation party, bridesmaid's luncheon....the list goes on!

We fell in love with this blush glassware first. The mix and match vintage china was a must. Gold flatware and soft aqua napkins round out this whimsical place setting, and a fresh apricot to top it off. Jeanne's choice of whites, blushes, and natural greens really brought the place settings to life with gerber daisies and hydrangeas from our wonderful local florist Davis Wholesale.

Hey, Macon! This amazing spread is right at your fingertips and it is definitely a deal.

Stick around for our fall inspiration post very soon!

Have a swell day,
Elena