This is what I came up with: Tags created in Word, printed on white cardstock and glued to red cardstock for color.  I didn't end up going with the cookies, as they would have to be done the week of the wedding and I didn't need anything else to do! I did find 'hot chocolate pops' on Oriental Trading and using them to mix cocoa -- heavenly.  Then i just popped them all into my cheap little favor bags, tied with ribbons with hot-glued silk leaves.  Word to the wise: Take a year to plan your wedding so you can stock up on seasonal clearance the year before!

This is my take on the Little People topper.  I loved this idea from the moment I saw it -- thank you so much for posting it!  I deconstructed a thrift-store topper, repainted Little People from eBay, then fired up the hot glue gun and this is what I came up with. :-)

This pattern came together over a weekend, though I still have to face the armholes and hem the skirt.
The pattern was -- decent-ish.  The instructions were awful.  If I hadn't sewn anything before, I'm afraid I would have made a terrible mess out of it.  Also: not a fan of the new "cup size" pattern pieces, which conveniently exclude "A" as a cup size.  Sorry, I'm a small woman.  And it seemed that they missed the "b" cup (which is the size I used) top facing entirely, so I cut down the 'C'.  Also, their "14" inch zipper -- the space in which to sew it only requires about a 10 inch. 

It has a cute bow tied in front, and the top wraps -- hard to tell because of the busy pattern.

Other than that, I think it's cute! and I'm looking forward to making another one in a plain color. :-)

I did it! The magnetic snaps worked great, and they were only $1.50 apiece.  I used the plastic canvas (at a whopping 29 cents a sheet), and sewed in buttonholes to fit the prongs on the magnetic snaps.  No tearing or fraying so far, nor any sign of it in the near future!  I know the pics are bad, but trust me, looks great in person.  Thanks for all the help!

What do you think about the little picnic basket as a pedestal? It kind of ties in with our camping/outdoorsy theme...
Maybe paint it white, add some little flowers? Feedback would be appreciated!

That's a great idea! I bet that would be handy for the carrier, too. Thanks for the suggestion!
 My only worry is that even with cardboard, the acetate lining won't hold up to the snap -- it is "reinfored" with stabilizer, but still pretty thin.  I've never installed one of these before - In your experience, do you think it would work?

Here's a pic of the nearly-finished product.  The outer fabric and lining are not together yet (because of the closure).  This one will be my sister's. 


(Sorry for the bad pic, but it's actually quite cute "in-person".  I made her monogram a little bit "metal" to suit her personality, and the embroidery is black satin-stitch lined with a single strand of silver.)

I am making purses similar to this one (for my flower girl) for my bridesmaids.  I have all the pieces cut and ready to go, but I need to put closures on these, and I do not want to do zippers.  The outer fabric is black satin-y acrylic and the lining is sparkly red acetate - they will have short black handles from the same black fabric, and I have embroidered initials on the front panels.  Any ideas for a simple closure would be much appreciated!!

And here are the ornaments I'm making as gifts for our wedding party, as yet unstained because it's too cold to go out into the garage and stain them. :-)

Thanks so much for all the encouragement and suggestions!!  I got some evenweave and a packet of the cheap carbon paper - works better than anything else.  This little sample has taken me 3 hours.  Seriously.  And I'm going to need a lot more practice, but I think it's getting better.  The key seems to be the even fabric and a nice bright light!  I'm going to keep posting - we'll see how it looks after a few more practices.  Thanks again so much to everyone!

[Update]

You guys are wonderful.  Needlenthread is a brilliant site. Brilliant.  I am going to give this a whirl tonight and will post results of the prototype as soon as I have something to show.  Thank you all so much!
Update: My first try...  Wow. obviously, this is going to take some practice! ( I should probably also post it in Stitch and Botch!). The padded satin stitch is a very cool technique, and seems to work great, I just need to get a good feel for it.  Also, I need to find a better transfer paper.  I bought expensive "wax free" washable paper, and it is not only barely visible, it seems to disappear as you handle the fabric. Bleh.  I will keep practicing -- I will be happy if in 8 months time I'm able to get just one section of the pattern done for the yoke of the dress.