Category Archives: Miss Deco

Bride Blogger // Strike a Pose

From Miss Deco: I am sure you know the trend of chicks recreating the pose from the Bridesmaids movie for wedding pictures … well my mother went completely a different direction. My parents are in love with the movie ‘The Diner‘ (its filmed in Baltimore, where we are from) so she had our wedding photographer (Note: Bellus Photo + Film) recreate something similar to the movie cover. At the time, my father was the only one to have seen the movie, so the guys just went along with it to be good sports. My mother loved the photo and turned it into Christmas presents for all the men and taped the picture to a copy of the movie for each of them.

Read more from Miss Deco’s wedding planning adventures here.

Bride Blogger // How to make picture frames for your photo booth

From Miss Deco:We have all been there…a boring wedding reception. Mr. Deco and I were determined NOT to have one of those. A trendy idea to keep guests entertained is a photo booth. In choosing our photographer we decided to go with one that offered a photo booth in the package. It wasn’t your traditional booth with sepia toned picture strips, but a backdrop with a photographer taking the pictures. We loved the idea since this option gave room for more people to be in the photos. The larger the group, the sillier the picture! Usually most people set out props like hats, boas, mustaches, etc, but we went another route with FRAMES!

We shopped around several thrift stores to find a couple of large frames that people could hold up around themselves. We did not worry about the color or what the frame is holding, since that would soon change. We removed the matted art and glass until we were left with just plain old brown frames. Next, we set up some plastic tarps in the backyard and spray painted them the colors we desired. Several coats and some touch up paint was needed, but other than that, VOILA…DONE!

We printed out a sign for the reception to let guests now about the photo booth and to use the frames to create fun photos. The pictures don’t print like traditional booths but are available online thru our photographer (they were also included on a disk with our formal photos). The photos got sillier as the night went on!

More fun tutorials by Miss Deco here. Photos by Bellus Photo + Film

Bride Blogger // Our Rocking Rehearsal Dinner

From Miss Deco: The guys had played golf, the girls had gotten their pedicures and the out of town guests were arriving … everything was set to kick off our wedding weekend celebration!

Since we were going a non-traditional route we didn’t need to hold a rehearsal in a church. Instead, we had a few members of the wedding party, my father and our ‘minister’ (a buddy living in NYC who got ordained online) check our the ceremony area at the Durham to get a feel of the venue and how things would be laid out.

After the Durham we headed to Lucile’s in the Old Market (where Mr. Deco’s parents hosted the rehearsal dinner) to help setup for the evening. Mr. Deco and I had several decoration ideas that we needed help with and really appreciated all the help from both families to make our eclectic and vintage visions come true.

For the table centerpieces we created Picture Wreathes made up of the wedding photos of our family members and wedding party. We collected the photos and Mr. Deco scanned and printed out tons of pictures and my mother and a family friend assembled them. They were the foundation of our centerpieces and they prompted several laughs and really opened up conversations for those that hadn’t met yet. Next, we had our thrift store love title books that Mr. Deco glued together. On top of those were votive candles, mini wine bottles with fresh flowers (which matched our large wine bottles for the reception centerpiece) along with the paper flowers I made and glittered white mini pumpkins his mother made. Mr Deco setup our ipod with their sound system so we had the music for the evening ready to go.

After everything was setup at Lucile’s, Mr. Deco and I snuck off for a quick drink at a nearby pub for our last moment alone before the festivities really started. I highly recommend to do this if given the chance.

Once the guests arrived at Lucile’s, passed canapes began and the bar was open. We gathered the wedding party for a quick run-through of what the ceremony was going to be. With no children and a small wedding party that were all married themselves, it was pretty self explanatory leaving more time to enjoy cocktail hour. Dinner was a plated steak with grilled vegetables, roasted rosemary potatoes and a candied walnut fresh salad with vinaigrette followed by creme brulee for dessert. The food was great, drinks were refreshing and the company even better! After dinner, we did toasts and handed out gifts to our wedding party.

The party continued in the courtyard, where the weather was perfect for cigars and drinks. Lucille’s courtyard is wonderfully landscaped and sets the perfect atmosphere to stretch your legs after a hearty dinner and laugh with family and friends. The night was perfect and really captured our vision of our wedding weekend celebration!

Bride Blogger // Making our Wedding Invitations

From Miss Deco: Nothing sets the tone for an event or wedding like an invitation. Its the perfect opportunity to give your guests a preview of what is to come, whether it’s the theme, style or color scheme. Mr. Deco and I are both graphic designers so were most excited to get the chance to design our invitations to reflect our style and get everyone ready for our wedding celebration.

Since the wedding and the reception were both taking place at the Durham Museum (formerly the beautiful art deco Union Station), we knew we wanted to to incorporate the art deco style into our invites. We did several preliminary sketches on bar napkins before finally settling on a design concept. Mr. Deco designed a grand invitation that not only incorporated the art deco elements but had a vintage feel as well. I loved that he played with the type rather than sticking with the a traditional text layout.

I do admit that we went a little overboard with our invitations, but it was just so much fun! I ordered 3 different sizes and colored envelopes online (One to return the RSVP card, one for the invitation and one to hold everything and address). We also did what I call address wraps. They saved us from handwriting out all the addresses and they included our return address as well. Assembling them took about 7 hours total spread out over 2 nights (and a couple bottles of wine). It also gave us the chance to listen to the mix that Mr. Deco put together for the rehearsal dinner.

First, I cut out our logo circles while Mr. Deco scored the ‘belts’ that wrapped around the entire invitation to keep it all together and address wraps. After that, he scored the invitations to help with the folding process later. The next night I hot glued the logo circles to the ‘belts’ around the invitations that Mr. Deco folded. This took a majority of the time so Mr. Deco handled the RSVP cards, envelopes and stamps. Now we were able to stuff the inner envelope with the invitation and RSVP card. We had our guest’s names printed on the inner envelope so we have to match the address label with the correct inner envelope (I only mixed up 2 invites, but to my defense the men had the same name and their wives names both started with a K and both couples lived in the same small town).

This next step is very important, we took a completed invite to the Post Office to have them verify the correct postage we needed before we started to stamp them all. Once they were all ready to go, Mr. Deco took them to the Post Office to have them hand canceled (otherwise they would have a bar code sticker placed on the bottom of the envelope which we didn’t want). Don’t forget to mail one to yourselves to see how your hard work arrives.

It was a long process from concept to completion, but I am thrilled at the way they turned out! They were also the jumping off point for all our other print items such as programs, menu cards, escort cards, etc.

Bride Blogger // Welcome Bags

From Miss Deco: Hotel Room Blocks are great for out-of-town guests and what better way to show your appreciation for their travels than to great them with a Welcome Bag. There are many great and creative ways to put these together and have them relate to your wedding. We chose to highlight our backgrounds with a East Marries Midwest theme.

The bags featured a variety of snacks and beverages from Maryland and Nebraska (our home states). Obviously the Nebraska goodies were pretty easy to find and buy locally. The Maryland treats required ordering most of the products online and we even had friends traveling to New Jersey to bring us back the National Bohemian Beer.

East:
National Bohemian Beer
Tastykakes Kandy Kakes
Utz Salt & Vinegar and Crab Chips
Dolle’s Dark Chocolate Crab Pops

Midwest:
Lucky Bucket Beer
Omaha Steaks Beef Sticks
Herman’s Peanuts
Single Serving Kool-Aid with water bottle
Eileen’s Cookies
Old Market Brochures of Attractions & Maps

We bought plain canvas bags from Hobby Lobby (several trips using their 40% Off coupon) then screen printed them at home with a simple version of our wedding logo. Mr. Deco designed some printed cards that matched our wedding invites that we tied on the bags explaining the contents. In the end, we found that the gift bags were a unique and personal touch that reflected each of us and were something that our guests really enjoyed.

Bride Blogger // Passports

From Miss Deco: Everyone assumes that the passport process is a pain. Of course it can be, but if you just simply follow the directions they lay out then it’s a breeze. This was Mr. Deco and I’s first time applying for passports so I made sure we followed all the rules just to make sure we would get them in time for our honeymoon.

1. Fill Out Form DS-11: Application For A U.S. Passport

You can print one online or pick up from the post office. Be sure to fill out in black ink and don’t sign it until you turn everything in.

2. Submit Completed Form DS-11 In Person

There are several places in Omaha to do this. Check online for the one closest to you. You will need to set an appointment so think ahead as these fill up fast. I did not realize this and had to wait 3 weeks

3. Submit Evidence of U.S. Citizenship

A state issued birth certificate with a raised seal will work. I thought I had the correct document, but mine was rejected in the middle of the process. If this happens, the steps to get a new one are rather easy. I am originally from Maryland so I was a little worried. I mailed in my $24 check along with all the required proof of citizenship they requested and even a few extra just in case. About a month later I had a new birth certificate. I suggest making photocopies of your birth certificate because they mail the actual document with your forms to be processed. You will receive it back once your passport has been issued.

4. Present Identification

A drivers license works just fine.

5. Submit a Photocopy of the Identification Document(s) Presented

A black/white or color photocopy of your ID. One page (8.5×11) for the front and one page for the back on regular white paper. You may increase the image size, but don’t decrease it.

6. Pay the Applicable Fee

One Adult Passport Book and Fee total $135

7. Provide One Passport Photo

We went to Walgreens to have ours taken. Seems like a total rip off, but they are cheaper than having it done at the post office.

Once you have all this and your appointment, then you are set! Having everything organized really speeds up the appointment and keeps the postal worker happy. Your passport will arrive by mail separate from your birth certificate.

Happy Traveling!!

Miss Deco // Shoes!

From Miss Deco: Let’s just start with I am not a shoe girl. My usual rotation consists of Toms and flip flops. So when it came time to shop for wedding shoes I was a little worried that I wouldn’t find anything I liked. Our wedding is set on the more formal side so I was trying to stay away from something too causal. As I am not too graceful, heals were immediately out of the picture for safety reasons. I started out finding two sandal options at Von Maur that I thought had potential.

The first pair was a Grecian type and on sale! They fit great and would be excellent for an all day affair, but I was worried that then may seem too relaxed. Next, was a pair with some fun beading. These even included an ankle strap so that I wouldn’t walk out of them. $98 was a little steep for me, but I figured this was the one day to splurge. As soon as I talked myself into that reasoning, I found out that they didn’t have my size. Oh well, made that decision easy. Moving on, I soon found the perfect shoe! A simple black flat with some silver and gold on the back and they even had an ankle strap and only $55 from DSW. Once I put them on, I was sold. And bonus, I can even wear them after the wedding :) Mr. Deco even approved and liked the fact that they were a closed toe just in case he stepped on my feet while dancing.

Looking back, I have no idea why I was so worried. This decision has been one of the easier ones since saying YES!

Side Note: Good thing I didn’t by heals because I forgot to bring my shoes for my dress fitting out of town.

Miss Deco // DIY pillows

From Miss Deco: Using our five wedding colors, we made pillows for our wedding reception. They will go on the wonderfulDurhamMuseumbenches in the main lobby where our reception will be held and to go on lounge furniture in the ballroom, to tie the rooms together. That puts the final pillow count at 50!

We chose 6 fabrics in one shopping trip here inOmaha. With coupons and in-store specials, the price wasn’t too bad. Next was the hard part: Pillow Fills. Local stores had 14×14 pillow fills for $5-$10 each. Totally bummed that this fun project was going to cost way too much, I turned to the internet. A blog mentioned there are pillow fills at IKEA for $1.99.

Since IKEA wouldn’t ship, my parents said they’d pick up all 50 fills from theMinneapolislocation on their long weekend there. The last step had turned out to be the easiest thanks to a co-worker who specializes in quilting. She had Mr. Deco and I set up on an assembly line cutting and ironing the fabric while she sewed the pillow covers together. We were able to make 26 in 3 hours!! They are turning out better than I had hoped!!

These directions are for a 13” pillow form. Adjust size of pieces accordingly.

iron fabricto smooth out any creases
Cut fabric into 3 pieces (14×14, 11×14, 8×14)
Surge one end of the 11×14 and 8×14
Fold the surged ends in about half inch and iron on both pieces.
Place fabric pieces right sides together with backs overlapping and sew with a ½” seam
Right side out the pillow case and Fit onto pillow.

We are only 3 months til the BIG DAY and everything is starting to come together!!! All our crazy ideas, personal touches and hard work is really going to make our wedding unforgettable!

Chatty Bride // DIY paper flowers

Chatty Bride // Engagement Session