Homemade Bridal Shower Favors

  Homemade bridal shower favors make thoughtful, distinctive gifts for your shower guests. They’re fun to create and make a marvelous impression, as well. Your guests will love the fact that you took the time to fashion a special gift for them.

Cookies are probably the easiest edible homemade bridal shower favors to make. If you’re good at decorating cookies, the ultimate cookie favor would be cutout cookies in shapes such as wedding cakes, purses, flowers, etc., decorated with royal icing. If you’re not a cookie artist, don’t worry. There are plenty of super easy cookie recipes that are equally delightful. Even good old fashioned chocolate chip cookies make first-rate homemade bridal shower favors if they are placed in a fancy box or bag that is prettied up with a cute ribbon or bow. It’s all about presentation.

Cupcakes make extra sweet homemade bridal shower favors and they are so easy to make. Ice them using a pastry bag for a professional look. Then, top with a Hershey’s kiss, cinnamon candy hearts, sprinkles, a fake wedding ring, or a tiny paper flag on a toothpick announcing the upcoming wedding. There are many pretty cupcake boxes designed for giving cupcakes as gifts. There are also numerous fancy cupcake wrappers on the market. If you’d rather make your own cupcake wrappers, it’s as easy as making a template from a standard cupcake wrapper and tracing the pattern onto pretty paper or even a doily. Cut them out and wrap those cupcakes!

Of course, you can never go wrong with chocolates. Present them in a creative container and you have turned ordinary chocolate into an extraordinary bridal shower favor. Container ideas include a box wrapped in pretty paper or fabric “bags” made from squares of beautiful fabric and tied with attractive ribbon.

Pre-measured mixes in a jar are always popular and add an old-fashioned, homemade touch. Is the bridal shower going to be in the colder months of the year? How about giving cocoa mix in a jar to your guests? Add a touch of elegance and create a flavored cocoa mix. Other excellent “mix in a jar” ideas are soup, cookie, muffin, and scone mixes. Again, appealing presentation adds a touch of class to any gift. Insert a piece of pretty fabric (cut with a scissors with a patterned blade) between the jar and the lid. Add a matching ribbon and a personalized label for an extra special homemade gift.

Summer Wedding Invitations

When you are getting married, everything needs to be perfect. From the venue to the dress to the decorations and the invitation. If you are getting married in the summer, then you have

quite the perfect season for a wedding and you can choose from one of many brilliant themes and colors for the wedding. Designing summer wedding invitations can be a lot of fun; and if

you are getting married in this season, then we give you some summer wedding invitation ideas that you can use.

How to Choose Summer Wedding Invitations

Picking ideas for summer wedding invitations can be quite an easy task as there are so many brilliant ideas out there that you can use. From a simplistic, elegant design to something that

is bold in its very appearance, there can be no end to the innovative ideas that you can use for wedding invitations. There are many different features that need to be paid attention to in a

wedding invitation. We tell you what ideas you can use for every decision that you need to make.

Themes
For a summer wedding invitation, you need to choose a theme that matches the mood or the weather. Your invitation should be a reflection of those things that are synonymous with the

weather. There are many different ideas that you can use to create summer themed wedding invitations. A popular theme, of course, is the beach which is probably the one place people

look to for respite in the summers. Create invitations that have themes from the beach; starfish, shells, sand, water, they are all synonymous with the beach. Another great theme for

summer wedding invitations is something to do with flowers and blooms. Use images of flowers as your background image or choose a plain background with images of blooms or petals

highlighting the wording on the invitation.

Colors
Choosing the right colors for the invitation can be an important task. Of course, if you have already decided on a theme for the wedding, then this task can become quite easy as you can

choose the colors accordingly. If you have decided to forgo a theme completely and have made a decision to stick to summer specific colors, then there are many colors that you can

choose from. If you are aiming at a delicate invitation, then we suggest that you stick to pastel shades in pink, blue, yellow, or even a pristine, virginal white. If you want bolder colors

associated with the summer sun, then orange, red, citrus green, turquoise, magenta, etc. are all great colors for the invitation.

Paper
While not many couples tend to pay attention to this, the fact of the matter is that the paper you use can in many ways reflect the mood of the wedding or in this case, the weather. There

are many different types of papers available in the market that you can use for your invitation including vellum, bond paper, recycled paper, or handmade paper that have flowers

pressed into them. Depending on how you want your invitation to look, you can choose a thin, delicate paper, or a thicker variety of paper.

Accessories and Embellishments
Finally comes the question of how do you send out such an invitation. Well, there are many different design ideas that you can use. If you have decided on a beach theme, then send out

your invitations rolled up inside tiny bottles, filled with sand. If your theme has something to do with flowers, then send out every invitation with your wedding flower or a corsage. You

can also choose to send out invitations folded inside muslin cloth bags filled with potpourri. You can also choose to decorate your invitations with ribbons.

When looking out for summer wedding invitation ideas, remember that at the end of the day, the aim of the invitation should be to create something that is not only unique but also a

reflection of the couple getting married. Create something that your guests will identify with you and also be impressed by.

DIY Wedding Invitations

There are many ways to find a good wedding invitation. Hiring a PR for the wedding, and the PR will find you a good designer. Another approach which is pretty common these days is finding the card you like on the internet, selecting the design you like, changing the text line by line and word by word and paying for the print.

You can even customize in some cases, change the colors, size and maybe even the design. This is probably the most financially beneficial way.
There is another way for preparation of your wedding invitation other than these which not only gives you the pleasure of making the cards as unique as you and your ceremony, but also gives you the ultimate freedom in customizing your card, and it can be financially way better than the other methods! How? Do it yourself!!!

Designing a wedding invitation does not need you to know rocket science. You need to pick your favorite colors for it (which I am sure if you are a female you already know, and if you are a male you can ask your wife to be!!), decide on the text you want to put on the card ( if you are throwing a very formal ceremony, it should be along these lines: Mr. and Mrs. Tooth Ferry invite you to celebrate the marriage of Princess Fiona and Shrek on, or if you want a non-formal cool card choose a text which suits your taste) and then use Microsoft word or Microsoft publisher software to everything together and send the card off for the print. One very important thing which is often neglected is the font that you want to use for different words on the card. You need at least two elegant fonts to be able to make the names more pronounced compared to the rest of the text.
To make your card even more YOU, you can add some graphics to parts of the card. A flower that you like, a sketch of the dream house you want both to live in, a leaf in or whatever else.

An important thing to consider is that you do not want to overdo the card. Keep it simple, elegant and readable.
Wish you all the best!

Free Wedding Invitation Templates

Using free wedding invitation templates is the perfect way to create inexpensive wedding invitations. But, you may think that free equals cheap, that is not the case if you consider the following points.
1. Give Yourself Plenty Time

Give yourself plenty of time to get it right. You don't want to rush and make your invitations - it will show in the end product. And the more that you experiment with different layouts, text and colors the more ideas you will get which will only improve the look of the finished invitation.
2. Use Good Quality Printer Supplies

For the best results when using your printer use quality inks or toner for your invitations and set the printer to the highest print quality before printing, you will use a little more ink/toner but the results will be worth it.
3. Experiment with Different Paper Types

Purchase a small quantity of different paper types and experiment by printing out sample invitations to see which papers gives the best results. Once you are happy with a particular paper type then purchase enough to complete your wedding invitations.
4. Select a Template Style That Matches Your Wedding Theme

To give your guests a glimpse of your wedding style, select an invitation that matches your wedding theme. For example a black and white invitation with a simple clean uncluttered look would be ideal for a formal wedding style.
5. Proof Read Invitation Wording

You must proof read your invitations several times and to be doubly sure have someone else proof read too, then make the necessary corrections before printing. What I would suggest is that you not print out your invitations for a few days after proof reading. When you are ready to print proof read again, you may be surprised at what you have missed the first time around.

Personalized Wedding Invitations

1. Write in a way that mirrors you and your family's unique spirits, attitudes, and personal qualities. You shouldn't be forced to use arcane language that no longer sounds personal or colloquial. The old phrase, 'Mr. and Mrs. Doe request the honor of your presence … etc.', is not the final word on wording. Your wording should be fun, light, and recognizable as your own. Otherwise, guests will feel bored, or at the least, unimpressed. A sample that demonstrates how to spice up your introduction is as follows: 'Because you have been such a good person to our family, we request the privilege of your presence at so-and-so's wedding.'

2. If you can afford to hire a graphic designer, and some at the college are kind of cheap, then you can ask him or her to include hand-drawn images of the theme you'd like to get across. Some people are getting married in the place where they live, either because it's special to them or because of budget. Either way, get the graphic designer to draw a beautiful color sketch of a creek or the church where you're getting married. People will remember it and think it's very personal. Only a minority of invitations goes into such detail about the significance of the location. Plus, it will be a nostalgic treasure if you move, a keepsake for posterity.

3. Some think it's cute or special to include a photograph of the couple on the wedding invitations. This is smart except some guests will think it's distasteful. Instead, get a hand-drawn or computer-illustrated silhouette that looks just like you and your spouse. These silhouettes are sexy sleek and sensual to be sure.

4. Include some favorite lines of text from music lyrics, a poem, or a book, and this will set the stage for a fantastically romantic wedding invitation.

5. You can always write your invitations with pen and ink. They look really personal that way. What better way for the invitations to express you than your own words and signature writing style? However, you only need to write it once and then do a high-resolution, scanned copy on the rest. Send the original to one special friend.

How to Write Christian Wedding Invitations

Your invitations let guests know what to expect at your wedding, from the ambiance to the color scheme or theme. Letting prospective guests know that religion will play a large part in your ceremony will help them figure out what apparel is appropriate, or to make the decision to avoid your ceremony if it goes against their own religious convictions. Word your wedding invitations to reflect your personalities and your beliefs as a couple; this may include inserting Christian wording or Bible verses.

Design---or choose the design for---the front of your invitation. Some invitations won't have any wording on the front, although you may be able to add custom wording which can serve as the perfect place to share a Bible verse or phrase that means a lot to the two of you. For example, Invitation Consultants offers an invitation with the phrase "Believing in His word and growing in our faith...we join hands in God's love and begin our life together..." and the couple's names on the front of the invitation.

Write the actual wording that provides the details for the wedding. The exact wording will largely depend on who is hosting (or paying for) the wedding. For example, if the bride's parents are hosting, you could use something similar to the following wording from Wire Grass Weddings:

        "Mr. and Mrs. Thomas Robinson
        request the honor of your presence
        at the marriage of their daughter
        Sarah Jane
        to
        Raymond Earl Sims
        when they ask God's blessing on their union
        and His presence in their new life together."
     

        Conclude the invitation with the specific church name, address, date and time. Close with a Bible verse, if you desire. For example, "A chord of three strands is not quickly torn apart," Ecclesiastes 4:12 or "This was the Lord's doing; it is marvelous in our eyes," Psalms 118:23.

Winter Wedding Invitations

How do you imagine your winter wedding? Is it just like every other wedding, or is it playful and spirited, with whimsical decorations, a special menu, and unique bridesmaid jewelry full of charm? If the second one sounds more like your style, get the ball rolling with a whimsical winter wedding invitation.

What sets an invitation apart from the pack is being a little different. Or sometimes even a lot different. It depends on the size of your guest list and the size of your wedding stationery budget. If you have a small guest list and a large budget, you can do some really creative things. One fantastic idea is to have relatively large gingerbread cookies made in the shape of a chapel. They can be decorated with the traditional white icing in fanciful patterns to create an edible wedding chapel invitation. You could write the wedding details right on the cookies with icing, or if that does not allow enough space, overlay the gingerbread chapel cookies with a piece of vellum printed with the invitation details. Of course the whole creation will need to be carefully packaged to ensure that it arrives in one piece, but what a unique (and tasty!) way to invite your friends and family to join you for your winter nuptials.

Another fun idea for a non-paper winter wedding invitation is to have a professional calligrapher write the wedding details on large Christmas ornaments. The frosted glass balls will make the best backdrop, and they are easy to write on. Tie a large festive velvet or tartan bow to the top of each ornament as an extra festive touch. Again, careful packaging will be key so that your amazing invites arrive safely. This would be a spectacular invitation for a holiday theme wedding where the bridesmaids are wearing traditional velvet dresses with claret crystal bridesmaid jewelry.

There are certainly some charming winter wedding invitations made in the more traditional paper format. A cute idea for a cozy reception in a rustic ski lodge is stationery made with a classic red and white Nordic ski sweater pattern. You could even customize it with a monogram across the top that is designed to look like it was knit. Yes, there really is a knitting font available for both Macs and pcs! It would look wonderful to present the invitation in a brown paper envelope tied up with a red piece of yarn. Everyone would definitely get the style of your wedding from these special invitations.

A very sweet design for a whimsical winter wedding invitation is a letterpress design featuring a pair of reindeer with hearts hanging from their antlers. Choose a chic brown and pink color palette to take the reindeer motif away from its Christmasy associations. A pair of reindeer with interlocking antlers is another charming motif. Think of it as the winter version of a pair of lovebirds. It is both romantic and whimsical at the same time.

Unique and playful invitations will help set the tone for your wedding. From DIY to custom to imprintables, there are some charming options available for the offbeat winter bride. Make the most of your only chance to make a first impression with a special winter wedding invitation that no one will ever forget!