This is a follow-up guest post from my sweet sister, Mary, who just got married. She shared with us previously about personalizing a wedding.…

Your wedding can be however simple or fancy you want it to be – it’s your wedding. If you are in the midst of planning one or you know someone who is remember that this is your special day and it matters. You’ll always look back on your wedding – even if it was just last month.

Ours wedding was so great. No stress and very chill. Our near hiccup was the rain, as we had planned to exchange vows outside. As it was pouring outside, the soon-to-be husband looked at me, looked outside and we both nodded. “Let’s do this!”

Over the summer I shared with you how I knitted flowers and I also knitted the ties for the wedding. These really personalized our wedding attire, added meaning, and kept the cost down.

Since we had a small and distant wedding, I wanted to send an announcement with a photo. Even though our families and friends didn’t share the day with us, we wanted to be on their refrigerators. My husband’s parents and my mom did join us in Alaska for the wedding ceremony.

I kept the announcements handmade – just like the rest of my wedding.

Handmade and planning keeps more money in your pocket when it comes to a wedding.

How to make wedding announcements

To start, I did have some supplies at home already and I just used those. I had a paper cutter, this hole puncher[amazon_link id=”B0001DT3ZE” target=”_blank” container=”” container_class=”” ][/amazon_link], white acrylic paint, sponge brush, and a printer.

I ordered the paper and envelopes from the Paper Source Stationery. I ordered their blue cards, brown envelopes, and vellum paper.

I also picked up[amazon_link id=”B0013JLC5E” target=”_blank” container=”” container_class=”” ][/amazon_link] at the local craft store. I used these to keep the vellum paper to stay put inside the card.

I had my best friend’s mom design the wording and font inside the card.  She created this beautiful monogram with our initials.  I wanted something for the front of the card and decided to use the monogram.

I researched having a stamp made and found those to be in the $75.00 + (yikes!) range. If you don’t want to spend that much money, you can make your own stamp!  Don’t let the idea of making your own stamp scare you. It was SO easy.

Go to any craft store and get this kit [amazon_link id=”B000BYXF4S” target=”_blank” container=”” container_class=”” ][/amazon_link]; it comes with carving tools and instructions. (I’m not sure why it’s called Speedball, the name reminded me of a stimulant medication!)

I got started carving and couldn’t stop. I drew and then traced my design on the rubber and carved away. Next, I sponged some acrylic paint on the stamp and stamped away!

I printed the announcement on the vellum paper. This was done on my computer and printer.

Once the paper was printed and the cards were stamped, I was a little assembling factory. I ordered one photo from the wedding for the insert.

For the envelopes, I printed return address labels and used a silver pen to write people’s addresses. Then I used a sponge to moisten the envelopes and seal them.

This approach to a formal announcements or invitation is a great way to keep your spending low. And, who doesn’t love handmade cards??

I should also add that my mom sewed my wedding dress. Thanks, Mom!

Love note from Sara: Mary, I love how you made so many of these items yourself. Your announcement turned out so nicely and it’s sitting on our mantel. Thanks for sharing this with us.

Which do you prefer store-bought or homemade? Do you make your own cards and announcements?

Go Gingham related links:

How to make new candles from old ones – a fun project that reuses old candles
Pretty lanterns – perfect for a backyard or a wedding celebration
Using nature to decorate your home – frugal and fancy decorating
How to arrange flowers – this was my first attempt, too!
What newly weds need to know: How to turn a house into a home