The June Couple

This is a bridal shower gift I recently finished. In my post here I mentioned looking for a poem for a young friend of mine who will be getting married on my anniversary in June. While looking through an old copy of the works of Edgar Guest, I came upon the poem, "The June Couple." Thankfully, the poem was fitting for the young couple, and conveyed the proper sentiments, so I set out to find a way to present it to the bride as a gift.

I was able to find this lovely frame at a thrift shop...it had a Nolan Miller dress design print in the center which I discarded. The frame was originally a tacky, silvery/goldish color, so I used one of my favorite trash-to-treasure tricks and painted it with black acrylic paint, making sure to get it into all the crevices, then wiped some off with a cloth, just leaving highlights of the original color showing through. It set off the intricacy of the frame's carved design, and toned down the harsh metallic finish. Black paint is a bargain-hunter's best friend!

Next, I formatted the poem on an 8 1/2 x 11 sheet of cream paper, which I trimmed down slightly. This was mounted onto a sheet of pumpkin-colored mulberry paper which was then trimmed to fit and glued into the inner frame. I added a strip of taupe velvet ribbon and a paper flower I purchased from Michael's scrapbooking section.

I washed the glass and reassembled the elements and used a reproduction victorian floral wrapping paper (a previous find from the thrift store) for the backing.

This was one of those projects that I didn't feel particularly inspired about, but I am pleased with the finished product. I hope the bride and groom display it in their new home and that the message of the poem will speak to and encourage them often.

(You can click on the photo to enlarge it and read the poem.)