As you all know, one of my favorite spots to visit weekly, if not daily is Maharani Weddings. It is truly a South Asian Cultural Haven. With that said, I wanted to share with you more fantastic finds from her site! Last week she posted from one of her rani’s 5 Easy Steps for creating DIY save the date cards. What I like about these cards, is they are more functional than the average card. The bride chose to include a personal family recipe along with the heads up to her guest about her upcoming wedding! What a great way to get people involved. Checkout her tip to create your own Save the Dates!

After much creative brainstorming, I decided to design my own Save the Date recipe card magnet, complete with directions and a sample of masala. I know… this sounds a little tricky, but if you read on right here, you will see how easy it can come together.

Step 1:

You need a great digital picture of you and your new husband-to-be! Why not utilize one of those fabulous engagement photos you splurged on? I picked out a great shot of us with the Golden Gate Bridge as a backdrop. To reflect the Indian fusion tone, I chose a shot where my fiancé was wearing American clothes, and I was in a sari.

Step 2:

Next, pick a great, simple recipe. Indian food has so many fabulous yummy things you can choose from. Maybe a family recipe passed down to you? Maybe something that you and your fiancé enjoy to eat together? For us, I found an Indian masala that reflected a fusion of our names. Mine is Anar, meaning pomegranate. My husband’s is Dan…. I found the perfect masala in the aisle of the Indian grocery store, Anardana! It is pomegranate seeds (ground or whole) that give great flavors in vegetarian curries and even meat dishes. I bought a couple bags and then got to work.

Step 3:

Ideally, you have a good editing program like Adobe Photoshop or something similar. If not, you can paste your picture into a blank Microsoft word document and use text boxes to write over your photo. Or, if you don’t have a good photo with enough blank background space, use a big text box, fill in with a color of your choice, and paste your cropped digital photo on top. There are endless possibilities here, so be creative. Just remember to include the date of your event, your website (if you have one), and the recipe. I tried to keep everything the size of a postcard. Once complete, copy and paste your masterpiece a few times in order to print more than one on each page. Print copies (preferably in color laser) on a light toned paper (plain white works just fine). If you don’t have a good printer, you can always go to your local photocopy store.

Step 4:

I chose to laminate my recipe cards as I felt they would be more durable this way, and also look more like a real magnet. For me, my fiancé and I went to Kinko’s and used their paper cutter and laminator (hint: fit as many as you can on to one lamination sheet to save money). After, go to your local craft store and buy a roll of self-adhesive magnet tape. It’s very reasonable in price and easy to cut with a regular pair of scissors. I cut one inch strips and attached two to the backside of each laminated recipe card. My Save the Date recipe magnets were complete!

Step 5:

An optional step is to include a bit of the recipe with each card. When I was at the craft store, I bought a bunch of mini organza bags and filled each one with a teaspoon of anardana masala. I stuck the magnet and bag of spice in large card-sized envelopes (also easily bought at the craft store) and glue gunned the envelope shut (it can be slightly bulky). I printed out labels at home for all my addressees and sent them off in the mail. You can avoid the bulky bag and magnets to save on shipping costs. Simply use your laminated card as a postcard! Or, print on heavy cardstock and sign a personal note on the back!

I must have received a hundred phone calls once my Save the Dates were received by our guests. Some of my girlfriends even tried the recipe the first night they got it! Probably the most liked feature was that these creative magnets were homemade, creative, and set the tone for the upcoming wedding activities. Nothing can beat a DIY creative idea in your family and friend’s mailboxes!

Fantastic idea, right!!! I just love her creativity and challenge you to something similar. What creative ways can you send out save the date cards to your friends and family to add that extra special personal touch? Feel free to share with all of us by leaving a comment below!