Confessions of a DIY virgin.

Hi, my name is Miss Pencils and I am a virgin- a quick-learning, dedicated, industrious, perhaps insane-to-think-I-can-this DIY virgin!  I woefully lack a sewing background or a handiness with yarn and glue, and they didn't even offer home ec at my high school.  In fact, it seems that my killer skillz at scrapbooking are my only proof that I have the ability to create at all.

But I've pondered releasing my inner craftiness on this wedding thing and try to actually handmake some of the elements to reflect the Pencils.  And I will do it, come hell or high water.


I think I lack the inherent my-mind-first-goes-to-how-I-can-do-it-better-myself gene.  I think Mama Pencils, as much as I love her, lacks this gene too.  Case in point- when I was 7, I wanted to be Princess Jasmine for Halloween.  Of course, this was a very popular choice at the time, and the costumes were either sold out or too expensive because my parents began the adventure of creating the costume for me by hand.  About halfway through the planning and execution of this costume, it became apparent that Mama Pencils rocks (I mean rocks) at planning something but when it comes to actually measuring, cutting and sewing....let's just say, it wasn't working out so hot.  Enter Papa Pencils.  The man who braided my hair every morning before school, creates his own leather goods, and carves wood for fun.  My father proceeded to hand craft my Jasmine costume- and.it.was.phenomenal.  Good god, I wish I had a photo to show you.


I know I possess Papa Pencils' gene for DIY- I just have to find it.  I've displayed it before- just look at the door tags I created as a Resident Assistant my senior year of college (our floor theme was the zoo):

Not bad huh?  Minus the fact that creating 50 of them took Mr. Pencils and I about eight hours, they turned out so well- and we made them from scratch, working from some random templates I googled to find.  These were the product of my only all nighter in college.  Sweet.


That about ends my escapades into DIY until I started planning this wedding.  I discovered there were some things that I could create better, and for much less money, if I did them myself.  After a lot of research, I realized something.  Miss Cola and Miss Poodle I am not.  They're true DIY women.  Me? I couldn't photoshop my reception hall and the plans for our favors if you paid me a million dollars, and there is very little chance I could turn this:

into this:

with as much success as Miss Poodle had.  (See the step by step here! She is freaking awesome!)


Then I remembered  other women and bees that aren't always super crafty and I realized they have things that I (think I) have too: a sense of style, vision, resourcefulness and the perfect dash of craftiness to pull off the wedding I envision. Other's have outsourced a fair amount of craftiness- something I am quite adept at, if I do say so myself.

See, there is a fair amount of two things in my blood that I DID get from my mom: stubbornness and independence.  Inside this 24 year old body is still the four year old that shouted "I do self!" when anyone attempted to help her with something- shoe tying, dressing myself, cutting my meat, and everything in between.


So, I say to all of you, with this wedding, " I DO SELF!"  I am determined to DIY a few choice elements of our wedding- and when I'm determined, it gets done!  (Mr. P likes to point out that when I put my mind to something, I do it.  Funny, he tends to bring this up when he thinks I'm going insane over something small....)


I have a list of projects that I will complete in the next four months.  I have planned, planned, planned.  Now, it's execution phase.  I won't bore you with the complete list, and you already know some of them in terms of our travel and ribbon elements.  However, with amazing examples from bloggers like me around the globe, I'm going to pull of what I've dreamed of.  Want to help?


And, in the spirit of full disclosure, here are photos of my first attempt at DIY one aspect of our day: our thank you cards.  Yep, simple Michael's 20-in-a-pack cards that I have stamped myself.  Stellar, I know:

mouse found here

What do you think?  Did you have any tips for my DIY virgin self as I embark on the execution phase?