One Tree, Many Ways - The Holiday Pine / Christmas Tree

As an adaptation of our classic conifer signature tree, the Holiday Pine is just the right size and so versatile! We have been selling it for a while for winter weddings or small mountain events to be used with signatures as the pine needles. The original artwork is on 18x24" archival, artist-quality paper. Just right for framing in any spot in your home!  Shown here with two red fingerprint birds for a happy bride and groom, used much like our conifer tree. But lets explore the many ways you can have fun with the same design!

 Add the Holiday Pine to your annual Holiday Party as a fun activity for kids, young at old, or those that are kids at heart. This example tree was actually decorated by children from my church. They had a blast stamping their finger and thumbprints all over it, then turning many of them into ornaments or lights with their own unique drawing. 

Decorating the Christmas tree is a post-Thanksgiving weekend tradition for many. This would be a fun way to prolong the activity and get into the Yuletide Spirit. Hang it in a frame over your mantle, and your house is beautifully decorated with personal Holiday Cheer! 

 Here it is shown used as a guestbook for a Christmas Season Wedding or anniversary party.

But this doesn't have to only be for Christmas! For those of you who celebrate Hanukkah or just the joys of December, decorate the tree with brown fingerprints decorated as pine cones and colored fingerprints for birds. Or, order a triad of blue inks that we carry for beautiful snowflakes all over your pine tree! 

Whether you use this like our conifer or go to town, making it truly unique, this design is alway both beautiful and fun! On sale this week for $10 off the usual price!


Order this week for RUSH delivery before Thanksgiving and we will waive our standard $50 rush fee.
Order between now and Dec 17 for Christmas delivery and just let us know when you need it!

Introducing a New Service! Damaged Fingerprint Guestbook Reproduction

We would like to think that all of the guests at your wedding will be perfectly behaved angels and that that the fingerprint guestbook concept is fool-proof.  But, in reality, people are human and sometimes it doesn't go all as planned. The vast majority of guestbooks we send out do turn out fantastic, but when they don't, we have a new solution to help you out! This sister of the bride had some trouble with their guestbook balloon at the wedding. A pen got dropped on it on one corner, a few stray thumbprints were wiped in another and someones drink dripped on it and smudged the text. She was devastated that it was not perfect, but I'm so glad we were able to help!

 

She sent us the original damaged guestbook art, after the wedding, and we had it professionally scanned, then edited it remaking what was damaged and preserving the most important parts (the fingerprints and signatures of her loved ones). We thoughtfully reproduced the poster on the same beautiful fine art paper the original was made on, matching each color, that you would never be able to tell that it had been reprinted.

Maybe you weren't happy with the results of your special artwork after your guests marked it all up or maybe you are just worried that your guests might mess it up. Rest at ease knowing that it can always be fixed! Just send us what you have and we will make it beautiful and new. The service is just $35 plus the cost of return shipping to you (prices vary based upon country mostly).

Contact us if you think you might need help cleaning up a mess.

Come Stand Under Our Umbrella: Presenting Baby Shower Umbrella with Thumbprint Raindrops

Snuggling up in a blanket during a storm with a warm cup of hot cocoa and your loved ones can be some of the best moments. While rain may scare some, we here at BDT see the peacefulness and tranquility that rain can bring to the home.

 In addition, bringing your young one home for the first time or celebrating a birthday sculpts beautiful memories that will last with you for a lifetime. Thus we have brought together the tranquility of rain and the joy of your child with our new product: Baby Shower Umbrella with Thumbprint Raindrops. 

This is also a great theme for your nursery or a baby shower you might host and perfect for the happy mamma expecting boy, girl or a gender neutral shower.

Find the perfect way to remember your little one'e special day at BDT Handmade . 

'Cover' your that special day with our Thumbprint Raindrops Umbrella. You and your guests will shower your baby with love and comfort. 

Tree Love: The Willow

Ive always felt that the weeping willow is the most romantic of all trees. It just oozes drama and soft affection which makes it the perfect backdrop for intimate couple wedding or engagement photos or an even better wedding ceremony cite. I love this anniversary photo shoot by Becca Dilley Photography in Minnesota.

 

If you have a special willow tree in your love story, our guest book fingerprint willow tree is just the design for you! Elegantly drawn with streaming tendrils coming from an asymmetrical tree body, this lovely design is the perfect place for your guests to make their mark on a special day. The memories will live forever as artwork on your wall. This design is only available in sizes M-XL. 

Order yours today! 

 

The extra large guest book fingerprint willow tree, just another BDT Handmade Original.

Up, Up, and Away Nursery!

Hot air balloons are so colorful and whimsical! I love catching a glimpse of them in the distance when driving! As a child I remember thinking they were the greatest thing ever. Here are a few inspirations for a hot air balloon themed nursery, baby room, play room, baby shower or birthday party. Enjoy!

Check out this DIY paper hot air balloon mobile pattern here. 

Come Fly away with me, Pillow Cover from Olive Handmade on Etsy.com

Add some color along a wall, behind the crib or across a window with this DIY fabric streamer (also great for wedding cake backdrops).

Up! cupcakes with sprinkled cake pops on top!

A poppy red and aqua color palette is so fun and perfect for this theme and would work for boy or girl rooms!

This balloon wreath is so fun!

Check out this clever use of paper lanterns!

So many of our balloon designs would work dashingly in a nursery along this vein. Find the one that speaks to you most to welcome your little love today!

Why we dont do canvas with fingerprints

For many reasons, we do not offer any of our fingerprint designs on canvas.

First is that the texture of canvas makes getting detail of the beautiful delicate lines of our drawings nearly impossible.

Second: While doing a fingerprint in wet paint on canvas may work, stamp ink does not stick well to canvas. Wet paint is messy and hard to deal with for a wedding and lots of people (think dry time...) and may turn out to be a disaster. The dye based stamping ink we offer dries quickly and works well off of skin. Trust us, weve done A LOT of testing all sorts of ways to do this.

Thirdly: While a stretchered canvas may be nice because its ready to go and you don't have to frame it, its much more expensive to mail than artwork rolled in a tube.

Four: The give of a stretched canvas makes it hard for the average non-artsy Jo to make neat marks. It is helpful to have a hard surface behind the artwork for people to stamp their fingers and write their names without give.

All that said, if a guestbook fingerprint art is what you are looking for, we recommend you do it on paper and not canvas.

All of our designs are both drawn and printed onto an artist grade watercolor type paper. It is thick enough to be substantial and thin enough to roll (for shipment). Archival and made to stand the test of time, just dont spill your drink on it;)

Visit our shop today and see our full selection of original drawings on PAPER.

Custom Couple Balloon Examples

One of the most fun things about what we do is getting to connect with so many brides, and grooms, in such a fun stage of their relationship and wedding planning. We love all of our customers, but we do have to communicate quite a bit more with those that chose to order custom couple balloons from us.





These can be personalized by choosing one of three stances, then sharing with us what you and your sweetheart will be wearing on your big day. The artwork, in the end looks like you two holding, or being carried away by, balloon thumbprints of all of your special loved ones that attended the wedding!



Here are a few examples of custom couple drawings we have done.

 A few colorful inks brighten any room in your home as this cheery design reminds you of that special day.

 Three different stances are available to customize with your dress, suit, hair and veil details.

Visit our etsy shop today and pick out which one you like best, then an artist will email you for details on your wedding attire.

On the go! New Design: Red Getaway Scooter Couple with Thumbprint Balloons

Its always exciting when a client's vision inspires a new product to offer to more possible couples. This sweet red scooter is the perfect getaway vehicle for a cool couple of newlyweds donning helmets and shades. Strings are drawn tied to the back of the scooter, flying behind them so that they carry the mark of their loved ones in tow.

This idea came to us from a couple in Australia. The design is now for sale in our shop and comes in red, though we could change the color of the scooter, upon request.
Book your vintage Vespa today then come on over to BDT Handmade and let us make you a personalized guestbook that will blow your guests away!

We were inspired by these stylish rides!

Photo by Kailey J. Flynn Photography

Client Wedding featured in Southern Weddings Blog

I just love all of the creative weddings that our alternative guestbooks are a part of. Its especially exciting when they recognized by such a wonderful publication as Southern Weddings! This sweet bride was married this spring in Charleston in a beautiful and perfectly southern seersucker wedding gown. Oh and she also used our classic twisted oak guestbook fingerprint tree to commemorate the special day. Enjoy a few highlights here and hop on over to her feature in Southern Weddings for the full dish. http://iloveswmag.com/2013/08/21/seersucker-and-pink-wedding-by-pasha-belma/

What a dress!

On THE Dress: Before we went dress shopping, my mother bought several wedding magazines and passed them on to me. I found an amazing dress in Southern Weddings: The Libertine by Ian Stuart. I called my mom as soon as I saw it and told her I had found my dress. She asked me to describe it and said, “When I saw that dress, I knew it was the one for you.” I called several stores trying to locate a sample in blue and we went to see it a few days later. Since I had chosen such a distinctive dress, I decided to keep it a secret from everyone except my parents until the big day. On the morning of our wedding, I had the photographer and videographer capture my bridesmaids’ reactions to my dress.

I love the idea of an Adventure Book for your marriage, what a sweet way to join bucket lists, and create a life of complete adventure. How well this would go with our Up! inspired guestbook thumbprint balloons as well!

 

Did you decide to do a “first look”? Why or why not? We decided to stick with tradition and not do a first look. I am glad we made that decision because my favorite part of our wedding video is seeing my 6’8” husband stand on his tiptoes trying to see me above the crowd before I walked down the aisle.

Reception details:

The finished guestbook fingerprint tree in our beloved twisted oak design by BDT Handmade. https://www.etsy.com/shop/bleudetoi/search?search_query=twisted+oak&order=date_desc&view_type=gallery&ref=shop_search

For more details, visit Southern Weddings Blog.