The third and final wedding of August this year (one, two) was my sister-in-law Emily and her boyfriend Lindsay. The were married at Minnehaha Falls amid stunning foliage and loving family and friends.

I was so excited when they asked me to make their wedding stationary! I had already made their save-the-dates, so I knew the feel they were going for with their invitation as well. Simple, elegant, natural, and light.

I found a delicate leaf die-cut to add to the top of the invitation. And I didn't even know that the ceremony site had a canopy of leaves! It was perfect!

I kept the whole invitation pretty simple. I did add a pocket to the back to hold the RSVP card/envelope and an insert card for directions and information.

The reception was at a fun local restaurant. Emily and Lindsay wanted assigned seating, but the meal was a buffet, so we didn't have to deal with individual seating cards. Instead, I made a poster telling everyone which table to go to.

The tables were marked with different herbs. Sage, Rosemary, Thyme, etc. I also made the signs that went into the pots of the plants on the tables. And as a wedding favor, each guest got a small package of the herb on their table!

I am so happy for Emily and Lindsay! I hope their life together is as beautiful and full as the amazing garden they were married in.

Photos of the couple were taken by Melissa Hesse.

Happy Crafting!

Happy New Year!

I hope everyone had a wonderful holiday season. I had a great time relaxing, hanging out with family and friends, and getting caught up around the house.

And I got my Christmas cards done!

These cards are the most complicated cards I ever made multiples of. There were a bunch of steps and techniques, but I love them! And I loved making them!
First, I used distress inks to watercolor full sheets of paper using the smooshing technique that I've shared before, then I heat-embossed poinsettias on them.

Then, because the stamp didn't have a matching die, I had to fussy-cut them all.

I added foam tape to the backs of all the poinsettias to make them pop off the background.

The background of the card was a green water-colored paper, colored with distress inks, just like the poinsettias. I matted the green paper with black cardstock and adhered the whole thing to a gold card base.

The last part of the card was the sentiment. Gold heat-embossed stamping on black cardstock and matted on gold cardstock.

And voila! All done!

I made 45 cards and I loved making every single one of them! I know these cards were way fussier than I usually make. I know they took me a lot of time and effort to make, but I made them because I may not have a lot of time to make crazy Christmas cards for a while.
And I slipped a little something into each card:

That's right! That's my announcement! We're going to have a baby! I'm due in May and we're so excited! This is why I may not be able to do any fancy Christmas cards for a while - I'll be a little busy!

So, my holiday season was great, how was yours?

Thanks for visiting again, I've got another card to share with you today.

Unfortunately, someone close to my family passed away recently and we do not live nearby, so I felt it was important to send a card to the person most affected.

I used Versamark ink and black embossing powder to create the sentiment and floral detail on the card first. Then I used distress ink to make a watercolor background.

Here's a closeup of the embossed flowers.

I trimmed down the background, added it to a black card base with some foam adhesive for dimension, and the card was done.

The hardest part of this card was to figure out what to say on the inside. I always have trouble writing in cards. Sometimes, I feel like nothing I say will be the right thing to say. I have to remind myself that it doesn't matter what I say, as long as I mean it.

Does anyone else have trouble writing on the inside of a card? Or do you have any go-to phrases that I can learn from? Please share!

Happy Crafting!