Pulling it all together- The Programs

Hive, I have been a busy busy bee these past couple of weeks trying to complete all of the little details for our big day! I can't wait to share all of my hard work with you, but I am most excited about my programs, which I am so happy to say are complete!  Because I am having an outdoor ceremony (weather permitting- insert dance to the weather gods), I thought fan programs would be a nice detail for guests, assuming it is actually warm at the end of May.  I really didn't think these would be all that difficult- just print, fold, glue in a stick and voila you have yourself a fan program.  But hive, let me tell you I was WRONG.  These took forever, but I love them so much I don't even care!

So I started by creating a document in my favorite program ever (Powerpoint- because I am not advanced in the whole computer department).  Next I added in Audrey's illustrated bridal party and my brother's hand painted flowers (which we scanned so I could use throughout the wedding).  Here's what they looked like: Next I printed the image out onto ivory cardstock. This alone took me over three hours, because my printer took a whopping 1.5 minutes to print each one (yes, I was so annoyed with how long it was taking that I timed it!). After the printing was completed, I used a fancy Martha Stewart bone folder to get a crisp line on which to fold the programs in half. 

 

After the folding was complete, I decided the programs needed rounded edges.  Because the programs were folded, there were actually two sheets of paper being punched per every corner I rounded.  This meant I needed a whole lot of strength to round those edges, and I ended up having to put on shoes, crouch down, and step on the freaking punch to get it to work- hive I actually worked up a sweat doing this!

Finally, after folding and punching I was ready to attach a popsicle stick and glue these suckers shut.  I used hot glue to make sure the stick stayed in place, and a glue stick to keep the paper folded over.  I added a little bit of hot glue if the glue stick didn't seem to be holding enough. 

And finally, after hours of work my programs were complete!

I apologize for the horrible blurry cell phone photos!

I am so happy with how these turned out, even if they did take WAYYYY longer than anticipated!

 Did you take on a project that you thought would be quick and easy, only to realize it required a whole lot more time and effort? Was it worth it?