Helen, 35 & Neil, 35

Toronto, Ontario

Wedding Date: September 19, 2009

Number of Guests: 75

Wedding Cost: $50,000

Wedding Ceremony Location: Enoch Turner Schoolhouse, schoolroom

Wedding Reception Location: Enoch Turner Schoolhouse, hall

I wish I could say that these cupcake wrappers made from paper doilies were my very own idea. I wish I could say that I was the genius behind this DIY brilliance.

I discovered these cupcake wrappers over here. I was skeptical at first, thinking that it looked too easy.

I asked Brittany over at Pink Peacock Paperie to whip me up a template for the cupcake wrappers. Then I tested it out on some doilies that I had kicking around in my arts and crafts room. They just happened to be the perfect size.

I was amazed at how easy they were to make and how pretty they looked. And if you lack patience like moi, you can stack multiple doilies on top of each other and cut out several at a time.

Here is the free cupcake wrapper template download.

Tutorial for Cupcake Wrappers Made from Doilies

You will need:

paper doilies
(Mine were just over 11 inches.)

pencil

scissors

glue stick

cupcake wrapper template

I learned a life lesson the other day. And I owe it all to the rhubarb plant in my garden.

I planted the rhubarb last year. I’m not sure why I planted it. I disliked rhubarb. Very much. I think the only reason I planted it was for nostalgia’s sake: growing up, we had a big rhubarb plant in the garden and I remember my brother tearing off the stalks and devouring it raw. I would stare in both disgust and admiration: how in the hell could anyone eat this stuff – raw??!! Just watching him made my cheeks pucker. (I recently read that rhubarb is a natural laxative. Hmmm.)

My husband doesn’t like rhubarb either. My two girls? Nope.

So there I was, wondering what I was going to do with my thriving rhubarb plant, when my dad informed me that he wanted to make a rhubarb pie.

“Have at it dad! It’s all yours!”

Dad came over and harvested some of the stalks – but there were still plenty left.

“Hmmm. Maybe I should look up some rhubarb recipes, just for the heck of it.”

So there I was, scanning Allrecipes.com for recipes for rhubarb when I stumbled on this one for Rhubarb Crunch.

The rest, as they say, is history. I am now officially in love with rhubarb. Madly. In fact, this dessert is one of my all-time favourites. Now I am very sad that my plant has been plucked clean. I will be forced to buy rhubarb from the grocery store just to get my fix. (BTW, my fellow rhubarb-shunning husband and oldest daughter also LOVE this dessert.)

Life lesson? Dare to revisit the things that you think you don’t like! And this doesn’t just pertain to food. You might be delightfully surprised!

Based on comments on Allrecipes.com, I made a couple of adjustments to the recipe.

BTW, I had no ice cream in the house when I made this. I went out and bought some vanilla ice cream the next day and, well, it went from delicious to divine!

Christine, 29 & Jimmy, 31

Braselton, GA

Wedding Date: May 1st, 2010

Number of Guests: 30

Wedding Cost: $6,500

Wedding Ceremony Location: Chateau Elan

Wedding Reception Location: Chateau Elan

Why did you have an intimate wedding?

We had an intimate wedding because it’s just us. They way we are. We weren’t “big” wedding people. We are really close to our friends and family and we didn’t want to spread ourselves so thin on our special day. And going into massive debt for our wedding isn’t us either. So having an intimate wedding was perfect for us and made the day that more special.

Looking for unique save the dates? Personalized wedding invitations? Thank you notes? Look no further! Photo Card Creations is offering IW readers a chance to win a $100 gift card!

Photo Card Creations is a leading online retailer of premium custom photo cards, announcements & invitations.  They specialize in wedding, baby & holiday cards.   Their cards are designed by talented graphic artists who will work with each customer to customize their cards to reflect their own personal style.

They just launched a shiny, brand spankin’ new website with hundreds of fresh card designs, and they’d LOVE your feedback!  Just leave a comment below telling us which card style from their website is your favorite & why you’d like to win this giveaway. And don’t forget to fan Intimate Weddings on Facebook!

Here’s what you need to do to have a chance at winning:

1. Fan Me on Facebook (already a fan? no prob.)

2. Leave a comment at the end of this post telling me which Photo Card Creations card style is your fave, and why.

3. Cross your fingers and wait until I announce the winners on June 1!

You have until 11:59 p.m. May 31, 2010  to enter. This contest is open to residents of Canada and the U.S. only. Winners will be selected by random number generator.

Good luck!

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