IMG_0371 Exactly 3 months ago, my living room looked like Paper Source threw up everywhere. Paper, ribbon, labels, chalkboard (everything) covered my dining room table, while old cafeteria cans turned in to “old” fruit and vegetable cans lined the floor… Painted lanterns, mismatched crystal votives, big vintage windows, would-be wooden table runners surrounded by painters tape… to give an accurate sense of table schematic, of course.

IMG_0245

Ahh, those were the good ‘ol craft-tastic pre wedding frenzy days.

Now, a lonely bunch of peonies sit in a mason jar atop the dining room table… which is now home to honeymoon central. (More on that later!)

There are still so many details, DIY how-to’s and photos of the wedding day I wish to share with you, but with Jonah wrapping up Kindergarten, a full plate of work on my desk, and like I said, a honeymoon to plan, it’s been tough to get blog posts up about all those details as fast as I had hoped.

For now, I wanted to share with you one detail that was an added “touch”: Welcome Bags.

Essentially, our wedding was a destination wedding. Almost every guest drove up to Santa Ynez, Santa Barbara County’s “wine country,” on Friday and night and stayed through the weekend at a darling hotel in Solvang. It was so fun to have everyone in one place and we wanted to make sure that guests had a note welcoming them upon check in with details on the events throughout the weekend and suggested activities in the area (ie. WINE TASTING. Hello, when in Rome…).

I found really inexpensive kraft paper gift bags online and found a great shop on etsy that I purchased downloadable design with our initial to print on round labels. Using a cute gingham blue and white tissue, the bags got stuffed!

IMG_1473

Inside the bags, I included a welcome letter printed on kraft paper:

Thank you for traveling to be a part of our wedding weekend!  It means the world to us that you are here to celebrate our special day with us.The Santa Ynez Valley holds a special place in our hearts and we hope you’ll get a chance to explore the area.  Here are some of our favorite wineries and places to eat, along with a map of some great wine trails (who needs hiking). 

Speaking of wine, please enjoy this bag of goodies for your Wine Tasting (Pellegrino, Popcorn, Nuts, Nutella) and then, of course, for your Wine Hangover (Coconut Water, Mini Muffins, Advil, Emergen-C). 

IMG_1476

I think it’s safe to say that after the welcome reception on Friday night, most of our friends had plowed through the “wine hangover” portion of the bag.

In the next few weeks, I will share some serious (and properly photographed) DIY details like the hand stamped desert bar bags, an easy bar menu, hay bale lounge area,  a very unique guest book idea, ideas and activities for the “kid’s table,” and the super simple and sweet stenciled plates/ table numbers (sneak peek below!)

Hand stenciled table numbers on mismatched china. Photo by Leah Lee.

Hand stenciled table numbers on mismatched china. Photo by Leah Lee.

Hand stenciled table numbers on mismatched china. Photo by Leah Lee.

Hand stenciled table numbers on mismatched china. Photo by Leah Lee.

FILED UNDER: DIY & Crafts
TELL THE WORLD!

Leave a Comment

Comments

  1. Mimi B
    Thursday, June 5th, 2014
    They say love is in the details... and as a guest and witness to your craftastic process - it was a perfect event with nothing overlooked!!!