Guest Book Trial

After seeing this gorgeous AND practical AND sentimental AND fun guest book idea:

at Vintage Glam and then a million other places, my Lambalicious Planner convinced me that we could make this work at my more-early-20th-century vibed reception.

I wasn't completely convinced though. I had to do a trial run. I thought perhaps the tree would look dead with black and silver leaves. I thought perhaps it wouldn't fit into the decor of our house after the wedding. Then the light bulb went off! What if I paired it with a lovely black and white photograph from the big day? As soon as I had this thought, I decided I wanted to make this work.

In about 5 minutes, I whipped up this mini prototype. With Crayola markers and black stamp pad, I sloppily wrote our names and then pressed on a few leaves. My Lamb Lover looked on, his chief concern being the ease with which the ink would wash from my thumb.

Good news: The ink washed away with soap and water. I think that a box of baby wipes by the table will be the ticket on the big day though.

One last staged look at my handiwork:

For the actual print that we'll be using, I think I'll be using my bamboo brushes and india ink on water color paper. I just have to dig it up from somewhere at the house in Durham. Right . . . Some day I will live in one place for longer than 18 months so that I avoid hassles like this.

Are you opting for a non-traditional guest book?