Monday, February 22, 2016

Pinterest Challenge Accepted: Bridal Party Boxes

Hey Friends,

I was planning on sharing my recent vacation adventures with you, but apparently I don't have enough space on my computer, and apparently that means I can't load anymore until I solve this little problem of apparently having 80,000 pictures on my computer. Apparently.

Anyway, on to something just as fun!

Even though the wedding is still pretty far off, the OCD Planning Maniac inside of me has been on a roll getting as much done as I can in advance. One of the things I really wanted to do was make a version of the "Will you be my bridesmaid?" box, as seen on Pinterest. I liked bits and pieces of what I'd seen, but nothing quite matched the feel I was going for: something modern, elegant, and helpful to the ladies from both a planning-for-the-wedding and relaxing-because-of-all-the-planning standpoint.

I'm not gonna lie, I was scared. In most Pinterest vs. Normal People cases, Pinterest wins and the Normal People come off looking like they were doing crack while attempting whatever the heck it was they were actually trying to make. You've seen these Pinterest Failure pictures, yes? If not, grab a cup of tea, click here, and have yourself a nice little laugh fest.

Anyway, I did it, y'all. I am so crazy proud of these boxes that I want to tell strangers about them and show them off in pictures like parents do with their children. I made collages, for crying out loud. Like this:
Ins't it so *tear* beautiful?
First, I cultivated the box design around the colors of the wedding, which I actually got from some wrapping paper and gift bags I saw at a store two years ago. Weird, I know, but I get inspiration from a lot of unusual places and it always seems to work out perfectly. Case in point, I bought the aforementioned bags and wrapping paper way back when because they were so pretty I figured one day I would find a really special use for them and BAM. I did.

I started making these beauties right around Christmas, which ended up being perfect from a timing perspective because the stores had a lot of beautiful gift boxes and ribbon, not to mention those lovely gold glittery initial tags that I used as a nice finishing touch to the ribbons.

One of the very first things I did was get these lovely cards from Etsy. I liked them because they were blank on the inside so I could write a special message to each of my girls. Plus, they totally matched the base colors. Bonus.


From there, I started piecing together the "feel" of the box. Tea is an important component of the wedding theme, so I made sure each girl had a tea mug, plus a little canister of my favorite loose leaf Strawberry Green Tea from Kusmi. (This stuff is to die for, you guys. Seriously) I bought little notebooks that will hopefully serve as an important planning tool for the ladies. I included the date and location of the wedding, along with the other activities we have planned for our wedding weekend so they would be prepared in advance. I included the names and phones numbers of everyone in the wedding, including the parents, and I wrote another little thank you note to each of the girls. The wrapping paper turned out to be even more helpful because I was able to cut out a piece for each girl and tape it inside the notebook. This way they had the exact colors. I also included the wedding theme.


Last, but not least, I found soap rose petals for the finishing touch. Not only did they match the color scheme, but they were the perfect "relaxing" thing I was looking for to add to the box. Not that I plan on stressing my ladies out, no no no. On the contrary, with the way I'm planning this shindig, they really shouldn't have anything to do. I just wanted to ensure that if they did encounter any stress, they could kick back in a bath and have a nice cup of tea.


The result: The girls loved the boxes! In fact, they liked them so much that a few of the ladies made me re-wrap everything after they had opened them so they could show their moms/husbands/friends, which I took as a very flattering compliment. (Side Note: One of the girls is yet to receive her box, so shhh! She just had a baby and bought a new house, so she's been a leeeetle busy. But just in case: Ashley - Stop reading this! Never mind, she's too busy to read anything right now. She already knows she's in the wedding, so we're good.)


I also made little boxes for our flower girls. I filled them with ring pops and fake flowers and used the same cards from Etsy. Not to brag or anything, but I've got some pretty cute flower girls, you guys. They're going to melt hearts at the wedding. Watch out!


I offered up my Pinterest crafting services to The Fiance, but he said dudes don't really care about things like this. Sorry, guys. I tried. I tried! That being said, one of his best friends is his cousin, Lisa, who will be standing by his side on our special day. I didn't want her to feel left out from all the bridal boxes, so I made her a slightly different one. More emphasis on the relaxing with hers. I figured being the only girl with the all the dudes may require more relaxation time. Lots, probably.





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