How to make

  DIY Name Banner Want to set up the perfect backdrop for your evening wedding? Create a banner with your names on it! Tie a 12-inch piece of ribbon to the top of each letter so that it hangs secure and straight. Attach each of those ribbons to a super long rope between two trees or posts outdoors. Twist a string of large Christmas lights to the rope so that sparkles of light are in between some of your hanging letters. This serves as a great backdrop to both celebrate your day and to eliminate confusion when everyone's looking through their summer wedding photos -- they'll know exactly which ones were from your gorgeous outdoor reception! (Another way to use these without making them the focus of your decor: hang them at the entrance, where your welcome sign would be! For other welcome sign ideas, go  here  and  here .) Image by  Jason and Anna Photography . Get even more DIY ideas in our  photo gallery . Have a DIY question?  Let us answer it . by Le...

  DIY Water Bottle Labels Maybe you saw our  DIY wine bottle label , but here's another twist on the same idea: try it on a water bottle. Instead of prepping the label for your party favors, you can sweeten up a basic bottle of water for those dancing late into the night that want some H20 and a little break from the cocktails. Or, if you're having an outdoor wedding in the heat of summer, leave a water bottle at each of the chairs so your guests can stay refreshed during the ceremony. All you'll need are some basic blank labels (tip: use business mailing labels bought at an office supply store in bulk -- they're often a few dollars cheaper than buying craft labels), an ink jet printer and the photo you want to use. You can design your own photo and words combination or search for downloadable templates (we love  Just Something I Made , which frequently posts vintage-inspired templates and images). You can also add the wedding labels to your favors, out-of-town guest we...

  Link Love: All About Accessories This week is all about those extras that can really complete a wedding ensemble. The best part about these projects? Minimal sewing expertise is required to get these totally fashionable looks. 1. Potato Print Accessories.  These cute accessories use buttons in various sizes to add to headbands or even bobby pins. We also think that a cute cluster of these buttons would make an excellent non-floral boutonniere.  ( Incy Wincy Stitches ) 2. Melon Necklace.  Yup, you read right. This necklace is actually made from melon seeds that have been painted and then had holes carefully poked through their centers. Bet you never knew it wasn't wooden beads from looking at that photo, right?  ( The Little Treasures ) 3. Skinny Ties.  Keep your wedding as hipster as you want with this simple project to convert any old regular wide tiny into indie-rocker skinny fabulous-ness.  ( DesignMom.com ) 4. Petal Sandals.  If these look f...

  New DIY Wedding Book: "Handmade Weddings" Direct from the girls who started one of our fave letterpress studios,  Hello! Lucky , comes this: the ultimate book for the crafty bride.  Handmade Weddings  features over 50 gorgeous crafts, each one with photos and step-by-step instructions. What I love are the ratings (easy, moderate, advance -- most crafts are either easy or moderate) and the classic-with-a-twist projects. Eunice and Sabrina of Hello! Lucky enlisted the help of top weddings stylist, Shana Faust, for the book, so each project feels homespun and beautiful. The book hits stores in January, but you can try out this excerpted project right now. Bride & Groom Cake Topper   With a little creativity, guy and girl doll blanks can be transformed into an adorable personalized cake topper. Simply follow the templates or sketch out your own interpretation (you may want to get a couple of extra doll forms in case of mistakes).   Materials Makes 1 cake ...

  Link Love: Endless Summer Fall may be on it's way (and it's totally raining here today in NYC), but these crafts have us thinking it's an endless summer....   1. Colorful Mason Jars.  We'll admit -- we're a bit tired of seeing the mason jar centerpiece again and again and again. This new twist however, puts it right back on our trendlist.  ( 100 Layer Cake )   2. Lace Cutout Laterns.  These ethereal lights are so simple -- and they're just the thing you need to set the mood as the evening winds down.  ( Kootoyoo.com )   3. Herbal Boutonnieres.  So after flowers, buttons, fabric and paper -- what's the next new thing to do with boutonnieres? Use some sweet smelling herbs, like the lavender and rosemary seen here.  ( OnceWed.com )   4. Pink Drink Parasols.  Maybe this one is more bridal shower than wedding reception, but we love the delicate cutout in these drink parasols. (Can you just imagine them making an appearance alongsi...

  Fruit and Veggie Escort Cards Coordinate your place card display table with your centerpieces, all while giving your wedding decor a unique rustic touch with this simple DIY idea. Use a different fruit or vegetable to designate all of your tables. Arrange each type of fruit or veggie below a numbered table card and simply pin each place card to the appropriate artichoke, radish, carrot -- or whatever else happens to be in season. If you like the earthy look for your table numbers (pictured above), try a hardware or craft store for broken pieces of bark or wood scraps that could easily be turned into table number holders. Just remember -- live vegetable or fruit seating cards won't last long -- you'll need to have these done the morning of or the day before the wedding so that your vegetables are still smelling fresh. Not into the rustic feel of fresh veggies? Substitute them with marzipan fruit escort cards for an early spring wedding (they'd also be great for a bridal sh...

  DIY Wine Bottle Centerpieces We've seen loads of mason jar centerpieces -- but making wine bottles look chic? Now that's another story. These minimalist centerpieces have plenty of style, even without tons of flowers. Here's how to try the look: Start saving your empty wine bottles now. Soak them in hot water and a little dish soap to easily remove the labels. (Or, if you're going for a more rustic feel, buy wine from only one country, like France or Italy, and leave the labels on as part of the look). But maybe the best part about these centerpieces is that you won't need to buy a lot of flowers for them to look fabulous. Like these calla lilies, any long stem, large blossoms (sunflowers, roses, or orchids) will look great on the table. Use only one to three flowers per bottle to keep the minimalist look. Want more DIY ideas? Check out 100s of DIY photos in our  gallery . by Kendall Pfeffer Photos by  She-N-He Photography See more photos from  Katrina and Andrew...