Handmade Weddings: Hobocampcrafts' DIY Wedding

2008-03-29T12:01:00-05:00

The Handmade Wedding Series has been delighted to bring you some real weddings. And hobocampcrafts' self-described "hobo" wedding kept it so real with a budget of only $5000!

Many little girls dream about their weddings, but the idea of getting married never even dawned on me. So when my boyfriend got down on one knee, I knew I had a lifetime of planning to catch up on.

We had a budget of about $5,000 — a generous amount from my retired parents. Well aware that if we went over budget it was coming out of our pocket, we decided to keep our wedding fun and unique, but simple. We were inspired by a DIY wedding article in the now-defunct “Budget Living” magazine.

Collaging our own “Save the Date” postcards, we copied them onto cardstock on my parents’ color copier.
For the invitations, we bought long, chocolate-brown envelopes, smaller orange reply envelopes and a ton of pink cardstock, on which we printed the invitation, the reply card and the directions. Thank goodness for my husband’s inkjet printer!

My lovely sister-in-law (a former wedding photographer) offered to take our photos as her gift to us.
She did a great job and saved us thousands of dollars!

I wanted to make my dress, but I fell in love with a very inexpensive, classic dress. When I saw how expensive veils were, I laughed. No WAY was I paying $100 for tulle!

So I fashioned a cute little pinwheel-esque clip with lace and ribbons attached to a barrette. All of my bridesmaids wore inexpensive dresses in shades of mocha, latte and truffle, and we did each other’s hair and makeup.

We’re both movie buffs, so we chose to hold our ceremony at a local theatre built in the early 1900s. We figured it already had dramatic lighting and popcorn, so what more did we need?

We hired the theatre’s organist, who played old movie scores and Marx Brothers tunes as everyone made their way toward their seats. They even played the old ”Let’s go out to the lobby” film clip after the ceremony! It was a really fun, quirky touch that made the event feel special.

The flowers (kindly paid for by my mother-in-law) included some of my favorites: gerbera daisies and hyperion berries. The local florist gave me a flower-by-flower breakdown of price — each bouquet was about $40. We picked up the flowers two days before the wedding and invited my bridesmaids over to each construct their own bouquets. My mother and I purchased lace and ribbons in my colors to wrap the flowers in, and we also made boutonnieres for the rest of the wedding party, as well as some arrangements for the ceremony. Not only did we have a great time creating these, we saved a ton of money! It all came out to about $300, versus $800 or more for someone to make them for us.

Our reception was super laid-back, held at a local VFW hall for a mere $400. Our families enjoyed homemade punch and pastries (my mom studied Martha Stewart’s baking books), light fare and cupcakes instead of the usual cake. Somehow the sign fell off of the adult punch, so one or two of the kids MAY have had some bourbon. But hey — when you go handmade, some kids are gonna get drunk.

We made a seating chart by tacking everyone’s name and table number on a fabric-covered piece of foam board. For the table numbers, we scavenged our local library for discarded hardcover books, covered them with paper grocery bags (old-school!) and glued buttons on them in the shape of numbers. Some of the books had ridiculous titles and even more ridiculous love scenes, which our guests got a big laugh at. On the tables, we scattered 1-inch pins with hand-drawn self-portraits on them (printed by KateBlack.etsy.com). The tables also had disposable cameras candids.

Our guest book, which started off as a scrapbook, was transformed for about $30 into an adorable memory keeper, with tiny envelopes for messages and advice from our loved ones. After people left us a note, they could take home a small votive candle, which were decorated with Anais Nin quotes, and my father used his printing press to create tiny balsa wood wedding announcements.

Overall, we got great satisfaction out of doing so much of the work ourselves, and look back fondly on the handmade details. Our friends and family said they had never been to a wedding quite like ours!

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It's Felty Underground

2007-10-17T14:32:00-05:00

When attempting a new craft, I’ve always felt it easiest to start small and gradually work my way into it. Felt, one of the oldest fabrics, is making a comeback. Ideal for its versatility, affordability, accessibility and fuzzosity, it’s no wonder DIYers everywhere are taking their scissors to the streets.

In Felt Underground: 12 Hip Projects from the Urban Crafts Revolution, compiled by Marisa Mouton (of Urban Craft Uprising fame), DIY crafters from the US and Canada show you 12 easy ways to transform a sheet of felt into a cute and functional accessory. All 12 projects have detailed directions and color photos to guide you, and helpful hints are offered after each project that allow for individualization. The book also includes a brief history of felt, as well as all the supplies necessary to make the first three projects!

Felt Underground also has a strong Etsy connection. Reading the contributor list in the back of the book, I was amazed to see that all of the contributors had Etsy shops!
•   Alison Odowski (appleseeds) contributed a bird-adorned makeup case and an apple-adorned checkbook cover.
•   Mary Bell (pinxit) contributed an eye-popping black shoulder bag.
•   Derya Aksoy (jewelera) contributed an adorable wire and bead flower necklace.
•   Wendy Aracich (circlecircledotdot) contributed a vintage-inspired headband.
•   Colleen Baran (colleenbaran) contributed an ever-changing amoeba wire bracelet.
•   Tana Lauristen (ponybeaver) contributed a playful striped throw pillow.
•   Emily Sessions (technocutie) contributed a modern floral sash belt and an argyle laptop case.
•   Jenny Conte (monkeydocollective) contributed a “Zippy Monster” pencil case and an iPod cozy.
•   And yours truly, Melissa Oat (hobocampcrafts), contributed a knotty t-shirt scarf.

Perfect for the inquisitive felting mind, The Felt Underground provides the groundwork to familiarize you with the wonderful medium of felt. This book-combo kit is sure to open up a new perspective for young and old crafters everywhere—whether you’re a novice or a felting mad scientist, everyone can learn something from this kit!

Exclusively available at Barnes & Noble stores here.

Storque articles by hobocampcrafts

Handmade Weddings: Hobocampcrafts' DIY Wedding

It's Felty Underground