Ah springtime…budding flowers, warmer weather, and bridal shower after bridal shower.  My wedding will not be anytime soon because I require the $15,000 Tiffany Soleste Halo engagement ring, but I do have a lot of  slightly less high-maintenance friends getting married this year, so I live vicariously through them.

Banner:   When my friend Jill told me the banner she wanted to order for her cousin’s nautical themed shower was $50 on Etsy, I told her to leave it to me.  A quick, cheap trip to A.C. Moore and a few hours later Jill had a thrifty (and cuter) banner for her bride to be!

Materials:

• 4 sheets blue Chevron scrapbook paper
• 2 sheets yellow chevron scrapbook paper
• Gold cord (in sewing section)
• Blue and gold circular letters (found online)
• Scrapbook glue
• Hot glue

The letters I used were 4 inch circles, so I cut out 6.5 inch triangles as the background.    Attach cut out circular letters to individual triangle, spelling out “tying the knot”.   Glue triangles of each word together to create curve effect.  Hot glue gold cord to the back of each section.  Leave the cord long enough to hang at different lengths.  I also used the leftover chevron paper to make an anchor banner.  Happy sails!  

Kitchen Gift:   Buying from a bridal registry can be frustrating for guests, especially if the bride registers for a $100 gravy boat when you know full well she doesn’t cook (yes, you Fanning…). Sometimes it can feel impersonal giving a friend something like pots and pans, but these things can be necessities for couples who have recently bought a house, like my friends Jared and Jess.  Instead of just throwing pans in a bag, I put together a baking essentials kit that will be functional long past the honeymoon.

Materials

• 2 cookie sheets, 1 9×13 cake pan, 1 circular cake pan (from registry)
• Spatula, flipper and wooden spoons
• Kitchen towels
• Mason jar
• Dry chocolate chip cookie mix
• Ribbon

Lay towels in 9×13 cake pan, then the circular cake pan; stack on cookie sheets.  Tie together with a wide ribbon.   I found cute, colorful kitchen tools at various stores, and painted the handle of two wooden spoons with non-toxic paint.  Tie together with ribbon.  Layer dry ingredients of a cookie recipe in a mason jar.  Use chalkboard paint to make a personalized label on the front.  Tie some measuring spoons to the jar; you can also put the recipe but I thought it looked cluttered so I just included it in the card for the whole gift.  Tuck cookie mix and kitchenware in the front of the pans and add a cute card.  

Also, demand that you get to sample the cookies if they turn out good.

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