Here at Home & Family we love celebrating June Weddings and today I have a SUPER CUTE way to get your pups involved in that long walk down the aisle.

The first thing you want to think about is SAFETY.  It might be really cute to dress up your animals, but we have to think about their safety, what’s best for them, and how they will be taken care of throughout the wedding day.  When I first thought about doing this, I thought it would be really cute to use real tuxedo buttons for the ring bearer and a tutu and basket of flowers for the flower girl.  But in reading up on safety, I WAS WRONG!!! We must keep safety in mind even before we get started on this project.  So think…no choking hazards, no tripping/walking hazards, nothing too big for your little pup, and designate a handler for your precious pup for the entire event! 

Although we are going to be making these pups adorable, we want to start with an actual collar and/or harness that is sold by a pet retailer. This way, we ensure the safety of our pups – a collar that fits, a harness that fits, and a leash.  As long as be start with a sturdy base, we can pretty it up!  So with safety out of the way, we can really have fun!

For Buddy and the ring bearer’s outfit, I started with a black harness and black collar.  I took an old men’s shirt and a bow tie and hot glued them onto the existing collar, making sure to leave the metal part of the collar exposed.  This would normally be where you would attach a leash, but we are using this particular section to hold the rings.  Remember Ring Bearer pillows?  Those had the rings on them tied with ribbon.  That can be nerve wracking if you are worried about losing your rings!  Well, I attached a lobster-claw clasp here which can only be opened by someone with opposable thumbs (aka a human).

So that is the ring part of the outfit but why stop there?  I also wanted the pup to look fancy, wearing a pup-tuxedo. I would stay away from the pre-fabbed “costumes” they sell, as those are just decorative.  Stick with the safety of the harness.  All I did here was add black fabric to look like the “tails” of a tuxedo, and hot glued them to the harness.  I also added white fabric.  You could just leave this ring bearer with the collar, but I like the whole look of the outfit – and a harness is safer for the pup!

Alice is our adorable flower girl I started with this sturdy harness, and of course went for pink. You can use any pink harness – you can see that this one has a slight design on it, but it doesn’t matter because we will be covering it up with our little flowers.  I made these flowers by cutting various layers of fabric in a flower shape and putting them together.  You can buy pre-made flowers…just make sure they are not a choking hazard.  Glue these all over the harness, leaving the metal ring for the leash exposed.  Now, because a basket would be a tripping hazard, I got these fake rose petals that we can set in among the flowers.  They will slowly fall off and the flower girl pup makes her way down the aisle.  And even if she shakes or funs and all the petals fall off, she will still have an entire harness full of flower petals! If you want her to be even more fancy, you can add a collar with roses on it.

These pups are just so cute they might just steal the show … Brides beware! To make your own pooches these adorable outfits here is how to get started.

You Will Need:

• Black Collar
• Black Harness
• Black Leash
• Black fabric
• White fabric
• Black (fake) bowtie
• Fabric scissors
• Hot glue/glue gun
• Lobster clasp

• Silk rose petals in pink and red
• Pink harness
• Pink leash
• Fabric to cut into flowers (chiffon and satin)
• Hot glue/glue gun

How-To:

Directions for Ring Bearer

1. Start with a black harness and black collar.
2. Take a men’s shirt and a bow tie and hot glue them onto the existing collar, making sure to leave the metal part of the collar exposed.
3. Attached a lobster-claw clasp on the metal part of the collar
4. Add black fabric to look like the “tails” of a tuxedo, and hot glue them to the harness

Directions for Flower Girl

1. Start with a sturdy harness.
2. Add flowers by using wax paper or parchment paper to build the flowers with hot glue. Then you just build little flowers pods that can dry until you are ready to use them.
3. You can buy pre-made flowers…just make sure they are not a choking hazard.
4. Glue these all over the harness, leaving the metal ring for the leash exposed.
5. Set fake rose petals in among the flowers. They will slowly fall off as the flower girl pup makes her way down the aisle.
6. If you want her to be even more fancy, you can add a collar with roses on it.

Share with us all of your Wedding DIYs and inspiration on Instagram and Twitter @paigehemmis