DENISE McGRATH

Age • 57

Home • Manchester

Family • Married to Dan with four grown kids

What she makes • Denise makes hand-painted "wedding trees." You can purchase them at yourweddingtree.com. To contact Denise, email her at yourweddingtree11@yahoo.com.• What are wedding trees? Wedding trees are hand-painted, customized, stretched canvas thumbprint trees for the bride and groom's special occasion. It's a fun, interactive alternative to a traditional, boring guest book. Instead of signing the registration book, guests use ink stamp pads to add their "leaf," or thumbprint, to the tree, as well as sign their name. At the end of the affair, the wedding couple has a colorful, fully bloomed tree as a display-worthy keepsake.

• How long have you been making them? I started the business in early 2011 after producing one at the request of my nephew and his then-fiancée.

• Explain the process of making a wedding tree. One feature that distinguishes my product is that I begin with a sturdy, primed and framed canvas, not simply a sheet of paper. Working with the customer, we determine the appropriate size, which usually depends on how many guests they've invited. Each tree is hand-painted in watercolor and can be customized to include "carved" initials in the tree trunk, plus the bride and groom's names and the date of the event on the bottom. I can even re-create a specific typeface that the couple may be using in their invitations, etc. Additional items can be added onto the branches, such as the two cardinals shown here, which were created from my niece and nephew's thumbprints. I use a sturdy, well-lighted easel to display the canvas at the wedding reception. Multiple colors of ink stamp pads, displayed on an adjacent table, will give signees an option on how to leave their mark, while creating a mottled effect with the leaves. I also recommend having a tub of moist towelettes on the table so signees can clean their thumbs after leaving their imprint. Having the immediate wedding party 'sign in" first is a good way to get the process started.

• Do you make trees for other events? Yes. Family reunions, birthdays, retirement and anniversary parties.

• How many wedding trees do you make a year? I'll produce about one wedding tree a month — more during the busy, traditional wedding season. Normal turnaround time is two weeks.

• Is this a popular trend among new brides? Yes, it's become very popular mainly because of how much fun it is for guests to participate, and that it makes a very unique and personal keepsake.

• What are your prices? The largest tree I offer, painted on a 22-inch-by-28-inch canvas, is $175.