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Wedding Welcome Sign – Save Hundreds!
Hello fellow DIYers…
Who am I kidding?
I do not DIY anything. I am the worst. I am creative – when it comes to processes to follow. Not so much when it comes to painting and art. I’ve been trying to write a book practically my entire life, but writers block prevents that.
But weddings are EXPENSIVE!
I really want a beautiful dream wedding… can I do it for a couple hundred dollars? The answer is no. Venues alone run you thousands of dollars (in my area). So I have to find ways to save. And some of the design aspects I found I could DIY for drastically less (🥲).
Here we are. My first major DIY for the wedding! And I’ll walk you through how I saved hundreds so that maybe you can too! (Also some mistakes I made/things I would do differently so maybe you can avoid those yourself).
Wedding Welcome Sign
First – I have a free app on my iPhone (works on Androids too) called Da Vinci Eye. This app uses your phone as a looking glass of sorts – where you can put the image you want over top of the paper you are working on and pretty much trace that image.
I designed the image I wanted in another app called Enlight (basically photoshop editing type app – I do not know if this app is free still, but any editing app that lets you overlay images on top of each other will work). I used images off google searches that I liked, overlaying letters and words and images to design this mock-up:
I bought this large 5.5ft sign at a local thrift store for $50. (Sometimes thrift stores have bargain days, so I probably could have waited and gotten it even cheaper!)
After that, I used the Da Vinci Eye app to project my image on my TV so that I could see where I was drawing / writing at… and I painted away! (The great thing about acrylic paint is it dries quick and if you hate it – you can paint right over it to fix any mistakes!)
I did end up free handing the greenery, and I watched Pamela Groppe’s YouTube video on “how to paint leaves (beginner friendly)”
Things I would have done differently:
I definitely would have used painters tape to line out straight lines with the highest and lowest points I wanted the letters to be. Whether I moved the tripod or if it was just me… some of my letters became a bit slanted or not as big as I would have liked.
While this isn’t what a professionals work would have come out to look like – I paid less than $75 and a few hours and likely saved $400-$500 (as I am sure a custom 5.5ft sign like this isn’t cheap)
Subscribe for future crafting updates! I’ve got a few more up my sleeve (and luckily some friends who love me)
Bucket List: Fish and Chips in London
We may have missed our flight from Greece to London, but there was no way I was missing out on Fish and Chips in London. ♥️ (Also our flight back to the states was out of London… so really not a huge decision to be made here)
So after waiting hours in the airport, we caught a second flight late to London.
We slept in the most beautiful penthouse overlooking the London Eye and woke up bright and early (just kidding – we woke up at noon) and made our way to The Rock and Sole Plaice (which are apparently types of fish! Clever name).
Yum!
Bucket List: Greece
So I enjoyed both an authentic Greek salad and olives while in Greece. However, I ran out of time to get my Gyro! I know, I know – how could I be so careless? I guess it just means we will have to go back again…
One of the best parts of our stay in Athens was our AirBnB. We had a huge covered patio with direct access to our own rooftop 360 degree view. From our patio we were able to see the Acropolis (and for whatever reason my camera makes it look further away than when you are actually standing on the patio looking at it.)
There we’re so many cats!
Bucket List: Miss my flight
On Craigslist there is this whole page dedicated to missed connections (to people, really.) But what if I told you that sometimes missing a connection can be a good thing?
Like in this instance, where my boyfriend and I missed our flight from Paris to Greece, and we were stuck in Paris for the whole week. (Wah, wah.. right?)
At this point, you could ask “how is that a good thing?” But you could also ask “how is that even a bad thing at all?” At the end of the day, you’re stuck in a beautiful city with so many options; the city of love with the man you love. A city filled with so much history while your boyfriend is a history major. This just can’t be a bad thing.
But this is also how it’s a good thing – sometimes you don’t really know people until they are disappointed or upset. When someone is thrown into that situation, you quickly learn who they are deep down.
For me, I know that I need space (without distance – try figuring that one out. I’m a woman. Let me have it.) so that I can gather my thoughts and plan of action. I become withdrawn, and my initial reaction is typically that of the situation- disappointment or negativity. If you allow me that space, it will pass, as logic and reasoning sink in. “Woah is me, I am stuck in Paris for a week” becomes as sarcastic as it should be with the twist of first world problems. I’ll then joke about it. Laugh it off. And I’ll move on.
Scottie – he stayed so upbeat and loving the whole time. He believes everything happens for a reason (which I chimed in “and sometimes that reason is because you’re not paying attention and it’s your fault” lol) but this man always, for the last 7 years, has stayed positive, upbeat, and loving. He kissed my forehead and told me we will still make this a very romantic trip – and in that moment I realized all he cared about this whole time was me. I am over here wallowing in a lapse of momentary self pity because we didn’t make it to Greece and I wanted him to have the best Birthday, and he’s over here having an adventure with loving me on his mind.
So, an adventure it will be.
✈️😍
It’s not me, it’s us.
😍❤☕️
I understand that there are challenges in relationships. I just don’t think more challenges should come from INSIDE the relationship than from OUTSIDE the relationship.
You pick a companion to face the world together, not to have to face.
That’s why I think it is so important to find someone you are compatible and in sync with. If you date a partygoer and you’re a homebody – you will probably hit a lot of opposition, etc.
It doesn’t mean everything has to be aligned. You should just have an honest conversation with yourself about your’s and your partner’s compatibility.
Wanting or having the desire to be compatible and being compatible are two entirely different things.
There are A LOT of aspects of another human being to look at and compare yourself too. If you are opposites in a majority of those categories, prepare for a lot of opposition and tension in your relationship.
Only you will know if the relationship will work.
Love is deliberate. But if love is exhausting, then I would dare to say that it isn’t love.
Try to breakdown your Compatibility in these areas:
Lifestyle (partygoer, homebody, drinking (if yes, how often, how much), drugs, fitness, career oriented, travel, working class, students, military, retirement, beach/surfing, concert/music, artsy, introvert/extrovert, etc.)
Love language (Read the Five Love Languages book – Physical Touch, Quality Time, Gifts, words of affirmation, acts of service) [how you show love and how you receive love, compare both]
Hobbies
Goals
Career (current, ideal and the steps you are making to get there, work schedule of both current and ideal)
Place to live (current, ideal)
Types of food
Religious beliefs
Family relationships
Previous relationship(s) status (married, divorced, single, friends with ex, kids from relationship)
Types of sexuality/relationships (open, monogamous, view on porn, bdsm, vanilla, etc)
Education (current, ideal and the steps you are making to get there)
Desire for kids (if yes, when. If yes/no or when changes, how open are you to those answers)
Politics
Finances (current, ideal and the steps you are making to get there)
Current 1, 5, 10 year plans
Habits (good, bad, current, ideal)
Disclaimer: Again, just because you are opposite in some areas doesn’t mean it won’t work. It’s just important to be aware of your comparability with another person.
Ashlee Karin 