If you are up for the challenge of doing your own wedding florals, one of the most difficult (and important) design elements is decorating your wedding arch. Here are some tips on how you can do that:

For more information on DIY Flower Design, visit FlowerDIYvas.com for their video.

Happy Decorating!

Do you want to make a cool, custom wedding pillow for less than $10? You can if you can put some time into it!

Here is your strategy:

• Cut out some coupons for your local craft or fabric store. (With any luck, you’ll have a 40% off coupon.)
• Go pick out your fabric and have them measure 1/2 yard (1.5 feet/ 18 inches/ 45.7 centimeters). If they will cut the fabric in smaller portions (like 1 foot), have them do that as you will only need about 10 inches square.
• Purchase 12 inches of wide ribbon
• Purchase 20 inches of thin ribbon
• Purchase any other embellishments you want on your pillow (optional)
• Purchase some pillow stuffing
• Watch this video that shows you how to make it:

Making a pillow is quick and easy (it is actually a super simple sewing project). I do recommend you sew it so it is nice and sturdy, but if you have to glue it, give it plenty of drying and setting time.

Hot tip:  If your ribbon edges fray, put a little bit of clear nail polish on the edge (or you can use the product “Fray Check”).

Happy Sewing!

Hi again DIY Brides!

I had a TON of fun on this seventh video for the eHow Wedding DIY series I shot last summer! You can tell I really liked how these little scrapbook idea books came out. I personally don’t have time to scrapbook much and I’ve always admired some of the books my friends and family have made over the years. Scrapbooking makes it fun and easy to accentuate your favorite pictures.

In this segment, I give you a few ideas to inspire you on mini-albums because I know how pinched for time Brides-To-Be and Newlyweds are. You could do a small album in an hour or so! Check it out:

I purchased the materials from Paper Source for the accordion (which you could buy individually or in kits) and the mini-album materials were from Michaels.  Have fun and be creative!

Hello DIY Brides!

Have you wondered how to create a simple map for your wedding invitation? In this, the sixth video of my eHow series, I’ll show you how to do just that!

Keep in mind that I am no expert artist (as you can tell by what I’ll be showing you) and I did the digital version on a PC. Now that I have a Mac, I could use Pages or Keynote to create it (and if you want to do an amazing design, I would recommend a One to One training with your favorite Apple Trainer.)

I saw a map one of my brides created just by drawing freehand. Her wedding had more of a casual feel and it fit her theme perfectly. You can adjust the map to suit your theme too!

Happy Mapping!

Hey there DIY Brides!

You have just found the fifth video in my eHow series. This clip will teach you how I make bows using a wired-edge ribbon. There are several ways to make bows by hand (and many more gadgets you can buy to help you such as the Bowdabra).  This is simply showing you one way to make a bow.

If this is your first experience making bows, be patient. It took me several tries to get the twisting and layering just right. You can also change the shape of the bow after you’ve completed it by adjusting the loop placement.

Good luck!

Hello there DIY Brides!

This is the fourth installment to my eHow Wedding Tips video series. It shows you how to print your wedding invitations at home. I used my trusty HP LaserJet 1320 which only prints in black. They have newer models that print in color (so if you are looking for a new printer, get the color printer!)

If you can imagine it, you can print it! Good luck!

Welcome back DIY Brides! This is the third video in my eHow series. It is very similar to the second video, but I give you more ideas by showing you different examples.

Why is it so similar to the last video? When eHow sent us the content for the series, they had specific phrases they wanted each video to be titled. These are based on popular search engine searches.

All of the materials I used were purchased from the Costa Mesa, CA Paper Source Store. You can visit them at Paper-Source.com

Just remember that if your invitation has 12 steps and you send out 100 invitations, that makes 1,200 steps! If you don’t have time to make them alone, enlist your family and friends and have a girls night! The process goes along a lot faster if you have good conversation!

For all you DIY Brides out there, you are going to love this video!

This is the second video I created in the DIY Series for eHow.com.  It shows you how to make wedding invitations with a simple card and a lined envelope.

I purchased all of the materials from Paper Source (except for the tape gun). Here is what you need to make your own invites just like these:

• Cardstock paper
• Accent paper (I didn’t use cardstock, it was an accent paper)
• Ribbon
• Double-sided tape (you can get a scrapbooking tape gun that will do the trick faster)
• Hole Punch
• Pencil
• Scissors
• Ruler

You can make them more elaborate by having a folding card or using more layers.  Don’t forget an RSVP card and any other inserts with information for your wedding celebration. Have fun being creative!

Last Summer I shot a video series for eHow.com on various “How To’s” for weddings.  This is how it works,  eHow gives you the topics and you create the videos.  Sounds simple right?  I had about 4 days to prep myself (create content & buy supplies) and stayed up until 1AM the night before.  I was amazed I didn’t have serious luggage under my eyes!  I must say, I look “mellow”.

In this video, I’ll show you how to make a cute card box using wrapping paper and a chip board box!

Here are the materials you will need:

• Chip Board Box
• Cute Wrapping Paper or Fabric
• Glue Gun/ Glue
• Scissors
• Craft Knife
• Pencil
• Ribbon

You could use any shaped box (as long as it is tall enough to fit a card inside).  Send me a message if you have any questions!