Sarah Hearts

As I continue to catch you up on what I’ve been up to, here’s a little design work I’ve done recently. Above, a save the date card for my gorgeous friend Jen and her cute fiancé.

Save the date post cards for Amanda and Tim’s gray and yellow destination wedding.

I was honored to create the wedding stationery for my friends Janna and David. Hands down the most fun I’ve ever had making a wedding invitation. And yes, that’s an Ugly doll holding a Swedish flag.

Here’s an infographic I made for Summit Church.

Time for camp! Here’s a fun logo I made for the high school group at Summit Church.

I had the opportunity to make a logo for Nick West. Who is always on tour.

Neon is in and I had the opportunity to finally use this color palette. I created a shirt design for Young Life, a ministry that loves kids and Jesus.

Today I’m continuing my “what I’ve been up to” posts and I’m finally getting around to sharing a few photos from my friend’s wedding. Haley and Kevin were married in October in Kevin’s parents lovely lakeside property here in Orlando, Florida. The wedding was truly beautiful, I mean, isn’t her dress just amazing?

I met Haley and Kevin through our Summit Church connect group. They are kind, caring people that love each other dearly. Their wedding was a great display of love as friends and family helped decorate the property, and even cooked all the food. I made the little craft paper “cones” that held baby’s breath on the aisle chairs.

The small plate were the guests gift to take but also served as a pretty place setting. Haley collected vintage plates for months then stenciled their initials and wedding date on each one.

A Florida wedding wouldn’t be complete without the bride wearing sandals.

Haley’s dress was handmade by her aunt. It was a silk slip dress with a lace dress on top. The slip was a warm, mocha ivory hue that looked lovely with the lighter lace on top.

Don’t I have the beautiful friends? Haley and Kevin thanks for letting me capture your special day. You can see more photos on my flickr page.

{Photos by me}

Here’s a gift that is cheap to make and fun to give! I made this chalkboard frame in a couple of minutes by simply painting a ready made frame. This would be a thoughtful way to present you holiday card with a portrait of your family. It’s also a great gift for newly weds (like my gorgeous friends Haley and Kevin) so they can frame a wedding photo.

This would also be a fun gift for kids (or kids at heart) because the chalk drawings can be erased and re-drawn each time you change the photo.

Supplies:
• Chalkboard paint (I used some that I purchased for making chalkboard wine glasses, it’s $9.99 for 30 oz., you can probably make 20+ frames with one can)
• Ready-made wooden frame, unfinished ones work best. (I got the one above for only $1 at Michaels)
• Foam paint brush
• Chalk for gifting

Directions:
Apply a thin coat of paint . Allow to dry and repeat with a second coat. Once dry, insert a photo and you’re done! If you would like to the chalk drawing to be permanent, I recommend drawing with a china marker (I used one for the chalkboard garden markers). It’s an oil-based pencil that won’t rub off.

Cost: $1.50 per frame

This past weekend I had several friends over for an evening of holiday crafting and cocktail making. One of the crafts was making these adorable chalkboard wine glasses. We also made chalkboard painted drinking glasses. This is a perfect holiday hostess gift, or for friends that are wine or beer lovers. The would also be great to make and give as a wedding gift! I found Ikea to be a great source for the glasses.

You can dip the glasses in chalkboard paint, however, we found it easiest to use a small foam brush and paint the stem of the glass.

Supplies:
• Glasses (I purchased wine and beer glasses at Ikea)
• Chalkboard paint (I got mine here for $9.99 for 30 oz., you can paint about 50 glasses with one can)
• Small foam brush
• Painter tape or masking tape (optional)
• Chalk

Directions:
Use the tape to create a straight line towards to top of the stem. If painting a highball or beer glass, you can freehand (not use tape) the bottom portion of the glass. This creates a lovely organic look. You can also use the tape to create a rectangle shape to paint in on the side of the glass. Use the foam brush to apply the paint. Apply the paint in one thin layer, allow to dry (about 30 minutes), then apply a second coat. And that’s it! Super simple and looks so cute! I would recommend waiting at least a week for the paint to cure before hand washing the glasses.

Cost: $1.00-$2.20 per glass

{photos by me}

I love fall. The leaves turn to a intense orange and yellow hue (which are my favorite colors) and the air gets crisp. Here in Florida we don’t really get fall. Only a few trees change color and the air remains humid but it’s still my favorite time of year.

This season’s palette and produce can create such a lovely wedding. We got married in November and used the season’s colors to inspired our wedding look. Here’s a few ideas on how to incorporate fall into your big day.

1. Orange ties and gold buttoniers via Ruffled.
2. Calligraphy on pumpkins via Pinterest.
3. Fall leaf garland via Martha Stewart Weddings.
4. Silhouette painted pumpkin via Birch and Bird.
5. Lovely at first sight dress via ModCloth.
6. Pie dessert bar with photo garland via Pinterest.
7. Vintage-inspired pumps via Zappos.

Hello again! I wanted to provide you with a little update as I still have been “away” from here for sometime. I’m working about 35 hours a week at my “day job” and I’m working with about 10 different clients right now so unfortunately my blog has taken a back seat. I will try my best to post a much as possible over the next month.

With that said, I wanted to share a super cute and easy diy invitation I made this week. My friend Janna is getting married next Saturday (I made the invitations and cannot wait to show everyone!). In lieu of a typical bachelorette party, a few of us are getting together for a delicious dinner and perhaps wine tonight at her favorite restaurant.

I made these invitations with supplies I had on hand. They only took a few minutes and I absolutely love the way that turned out. If you would like to make them too, here’s how:

Supplies:
• 8.5″ x 11″ cardstock (I used a cream color)
• patterned or colored paper (scrap booking paper works great for this) cut into 4.25″ x 5.5″ rectangles. You will need one per invitation
• washi tape (I told you I love it!)
• A2 envelopes
• Download the invitation template for Word.
• Download the fonts I used here and here.

Open the template in Word and edit the info. If you would like to use the fonts I used, download and install them (links are above) before you start editing the template. You could use this for a bridal shower or luncheon, a birthday party, anniversary dinner, or anything else! Once you’re done save and print on card stock. Cut it into 4 rectangles, each 3.25″ x 4.5″. Then adhere the smaller, printed invitation to the patterned card stock with a small piece of washi tape. I cut mine with scissors so it looked clean. And thats it! Please let me know if you have any questions. Enjoy!

-Sarah

I’m a big fan of cupcakes. I think it’s because I’m a big fan of cake and small things. They are the perfect combination of my loves. So in honor of the cupcake, here’s a free customizable template to make your own cupcake toothpick toppers.

They are perfect for weddings, birthdays, or just because. The Word template includes the red hearts shown above. It also has a place for you to type in whatever you please. I made the ones above with our wedding date. You could add your initials, monogram, age, or anything else you wish.

I used the free font, Later On. I posted step-by-step directions here.

Download the Word Toothpick Topper template.

All photos and template by me.

This summer my brother’s good friend’s Jeff and Laura got married in Orlando. Both the ceremony and reception took place at Leu Gardens, a beautiful garden in Orlando. Laura was kinda enough to send over some photos of her gorgeous purple, jewel-toned wedding. Their simple wedding was filled with galerous, handmade touches like her unqiue bouquet, that Laura said, “was made by my mom out of vintage brooches and the bridesmaid’s were made with ribbon and reclaimed fabric/buttons by a Tallahassee “eco” artisan.” Such a unique idea! I love how these fabric and button bouquets will last forever.

The flower girl held a floral and ribbon wand rather than a basket of rose petals. This really creates such a whimsical look and matches the bridesmaids bouquets so well. They also added another handmade touch by creating a beautiful collage of photos in memory of loved ones and displayed it in the reception area.

Laura, thanks for sharing your gorgeous wedding!

Photos by Terri Smith Photography, Pantone color board by me.

Today’s wedding board is for my new friend, Haley. We met last month in our connect group. Connect groups are Summit Church‘s lingo for small groups. Kevin and I are hosting a group in our home of young married couples. It’s been a lot of fun! We meet once a week and we’ve been getting to know each other and discussing how we can love people more like Jesus.

Haley and her fiancé Kevin are getting married this October in Kevin’s parents backyard. They are looking for several ways to make their wedding “rustic/vintage/outdoor/understated beauty” says Haley, while on a budget. I put together the board above to provide a few ideas. One of the cool things about being in a connect group is the community you form. We are all pitching in to help make Haley and Kevin’s big day even more special. During the upcoming weeks, I will be posting new tutorials of decorations and such that we’re making for their wedding. I’m really excited!

1. Haley’s aunt is making her dress (she’s a seamstress, how awesome is that?) and this is her inspiration.Gown by Allure Bridals.
2. There are a lot of tree in the yard so we may make tissue paper pom poms to hang from them. Image by Nessa K Photography.
3. Burlap is cheap and looks so lovely as table runners. I also love these simple floweral arrangements. Image by Vitalic Photography.
4. Fabric Rose Wreath by FaSewLaStiches is a great source of inspiration. Fabric roses would make great boutonnières. A wreath, like the one shown, would look cute hanging on a tree or gate in the yard.
5. Babies breath is such a beautiful, delicate flower and it’s so cheap! I think bouquets of only babies breath are gorgeous! Image by Tiffany Bolk Photography.
6. I posted a tutorial for washi tape cupcake flags earlier this year. I never thought to write on them! They make such cute markers. They could be used to label desserts, as shown above, or placed in little tiny pots with herbs as place cards (that could also double as guest gifts!).  Image above by Nessa K Photography.

Today I’m continuing with the back to school theme so I made a wedding board for a school-inspired wedding. I think this is the sweetest idea for a couple who were high school sweethearts or for those that met in college. School is usually associated with fall, however, I think this theme would also work for a late summer wedding.

The color palette can be kept to a minimum, with touches or golden yellow or apple reds. It would even be cute to incorporate plaid too! I love the idea of using chalkboard for all the signage. This is such a cute theme that can add charm without break the bank.

If you were to have a theme wedding, what would your theme be?

Wedding board by me, great images by:
1. Via The Sweetest Occasion.
2., 3., & 5. via Martha Stewart : Real Weddings.
4. via Elizabeth Anne Designs.