craftgrrl | will-you-be-my-bridesmaid bags (Reply)

I made these bags and much of what is in them to give to my friends when I asked them to stand beside me in my wedding.

Presenting the will-you-be-my-bridesmaid bag reveal complete with photos! I was very excited to put these bags together for my ladies. I wanted them to feel special and to show I really thought a great deal of them. I ♥ them.

All agreed to be in my bridal party! Giddyup! :o) I am a happy bride-to-be. So without further ado - the bags, their goodies and the maids!

Upon receiving their bags, the first thing my maids-to-be were to see were the cards I had made for them on my computer (I did graphic and laid out the card).

Inside the card I printed another smaller red heart at the top of the page and below it this poem that I wrote -

He held out the ring box, his heart all a-dance,
on Christmas day 2004, and asked me for the chance
to be my husband and I, his wife
and we began to plan a wedding, our start to married life.

On October 21, 2006, we’ll walk down the aisle
and take our vows amid blissful tears and smiles.
In the company of our beloved family and friends,
happiness and love shall surround all that attend.

Such a wonderful and important occasion as this
leads me to wonder if you’ll grant me one wish
I’d be delighted, proud and such a happy bride
if you’d do me the honor of standing by my side.

Underneath the poem I wrote a personal note for each maid-to-be in their card.

Inside the bags, my ladies-to-be found -

Some choc-oat-chip cookies! Yummy! Just call me Betty Crocker. *wink wink*

A cheery little notepad (with a magnet on the back, so they could stick it to their frig if they wanted but they could probably take the magnet off as well)

A flower pen to write notes with

Here are all five of the flower pens I made (since they weren't all the same but they were pretty similar) from the side

And the pens from the top

The Everything Bridesmaid Book by Jennifer Lata Rung

Each book had it's own beaded ribbon bookmark made by yours truly tucked inside, you can kind of see them in the above photo and here they all are side by side

A bar of vanilla, honey and milk soap that I made and wrapped up all pretty

A round glass candle holder with a frosted stripe. It holds tealights and I thought the color was appropriate because the bridesmaids dresses will likely be burgandy

The candles came in a clear plastic box with one tealight already in the holder and three to the side. Here they are all together

I also burned a CD for each maid-to-be. Not a music CD but one with a word file on it introducing all of them to each other (though most at least know each other if they're not already friends). I called the CD and file Meet the Maids. The file began with a note from me to all of them, following that there was a photo collage of each maid with her title (they each got special titles as you'll see below because I am going to post the collages that I made for each of them with their bags) and then below that a bit of information about the maid-to-be, how we know each other and her contact information. (They're not the prettiest CDs in the world but... they do the trick.)

Now it's time for you all to meet the maids and see their actual bags (which I diligently worked on and finished over a couple of weeks, my sewing machine got quite the workout).

Yay!

Introducing the maids.

Up first, my Maid of Honor and Love.

And her bag all packed up with goodies (I picked this fabric for her because she had a star-themed bedroom when we were growing up and because a couple of years ago we went together and got matching tattoos of two stars on our hips.)

and with the handles up

and the lining

And next we have, my Maid of Mirth and Merriment.

And her bag all packed up with goodies (I picked her fabric because it is fun, bubbly and bright. I love it. I may have to make a bag for myself using the fabric used as her lining as the outer fabric on my bag and her outer fabric as the lining on my bag. It's just cute.)

and with the handles up

and the lining

And now, my Maid of Friendship and Devotion.

And her bag all packed up with goodies (I picked her fabric because it was very laid-back and mellow but still had understated beauty.)

and with the handles up

and the lining

Next up, my Maid of Kindness and Compassion.

And her bag all packed up with goodies (I picked her fabric because it was bright and fun but still soft.)

and with the handles up

and the lining

And last but certainly not least, my Maid of Understanding and Romance.

And her bag all packed up with goodies (I picked her fabric because it's nature-y, forest-y and earth-y and lovely.)

and with the handles up

and the lining

They all seemed pretty thrilled with the bags and were impressed with the effort. :o) They were also quite pleased that I had asked them to stand beside me (at least, I think so!). Some even used the word 'honored.' Hehe. Yay! Hooray for my bridesmaids! Hooray for them being happy! And hooray for me being happy!

So... this has been cross-posted all over... I couldn't help it. I'm too excited... *looks ashamed and shuffles feet, trying to hide a smile*