wedding invitations

An Ode to Calligraphy

0 · Jan 25, 2017 ·

I’ve had dreams of many creative ventures. Some of them are fleeting, romantic notions and others have lead me to where I am today. Often I like to bite off more than I can chew, telling myself that I am more creatively adept than my natural abilities truly reflect.

It came to my attention that earlier this week we recognized national handwriting day. My first thought, “What a silly thing to celebrate”. But then I realized that this was a really beautiful thing to pay tribute to. This in my book, is a slightly more important than national donut day (which I can also easily get onboard with) or even some of the “Hallmark holidays”. This is history, art and the written language. This should be held in high regards.

Cursive writing has always fascinated me. Growing up, we had a close family friend who had the most stunning penmanship. Just to see her writing my name got me ridiculously excited. And she wrote this way every single day. It was so natural for her. I think this was probably the starting block for my love of beautiful writing.

For years I tried to emulate her talents. I’ve doodle and played with different forms of the same letter for much of my life. I used to write my name over and over and over again just to see how I could make it more striking.

Since I entered the wedding industry, my awareness of calligraphy and its beautiful form of art have been at the forefront of my mind. It makes me incredibly happy when a bride seeks out a gorgeous calligrapher for her invitations and designs. There’s a level of elegance and a timeless air that greets each guest. And romance soars.

So back to me dreaming of many creative ventures, one talent that I was convinced for a while I could someday possess is calligraphy. I have fairly decent handwriting, I love flourishes and modern scripts and somehow I convinced myself that calligraphy couldn’t really be that hard. After countless Youtube lessons, a mini session with the fabulous Molly Jacques (through Bloom the Workshop) and lots of smeared ink, I have finally concluded that I’ll leave this to the experts.

Photography: A shley Slater Photography | Invitations Suite & Calligraphy: Graceline Calligraphy | Styling: The Day’s Design

But doesn’t necessarily mean you need to do the same, I am forever going to be an advocate of handwritten addresses, even if so many invitation companies are now offering printing services free of charge. There’s something soothing about tracing a pencil across a crisp piece of white paper that typing cannot begin to compare. Curate your own pen and even if only for the sake of proper communication, learn how to write legibly. Sometimes it’s the smallest touches that add the most pleasure and let others know that you truly care. I think my friend Ciarra at Silver Fox Calligraphy says it best,

“To me, calligraphy should not be about what etiquette dictates, or what will make your stationary seem luxurious. It is about adding a beautiful thoughtful touch, to add soul to your stationary”.

The above invitation was from Jarvie & Hank’s Lake Leelanau wedding, you can see the entire celebration here.

Invitation Etiquette

0 · May 14, 2013 ·

I wrote a post a couple weeks ago about when to send your wedding invitations, but let’s talk today a little bit about what should go on your invites, and overall invitation etiquette.

So first off, just to recap, plan on sending your invites out about 6-8 weeks before your wedding and save-the-dates are optional. Click here to read a little more.

Wording on the invitation can vary greatly. Either set of parents may be mentioned, or possibly just the couple themselves. Consider who is actually “hosting” the party or who is footing the bill? Are they going to be insulted if they are not mentioned on the invite?

Some examples:

“Mr. and Mrs. John and Jane Smith invite you to share in celebration of the marriage of their daughter {bride} to {groom} the son of Mr. and Mrs. Jacob and Judy Jones.”

“Mr. and Mrs. John and Jane Smith with Mr. and Mrs. Jacob and Judy Jones invite you to share in the celebration of the marriage of {bride} to {groom}.”

“{Bride} and {Groom} together with their parents, invite you to share in the celebration of their marriage”

The latter is a great option if you come from families with multiple branches ensuring no one will feel left out or less significant.

Whichever wording you may choose, make sure to include the date and time along with the location of the ceremony and reception. Tradition dictates that all words be spelled in full on the invitation, including the time and street names.

Wedding registry information, however, should not be included on the invitation, as this implies that you are asking for gifts (which believe it or not, guests are not required to give you!) You may include this information on your wedding website. And yes, I understand that Grandma may not be very technology savvy (my grandpa doesn’t even know how to turn the computer on, much less what a website is!), but she might not look at a wedding registry though either!

Your wedding website is a great place to include any information that guests do not receive in the invitation itself. Usually the website address is included on the save-the-dates, but if you opted not to send them, simply including a small insert card with the invitation should do the trick.

The invitation itself should clue the guests in on the formality level of your wedding. A very elegant, gold rimmed invitation with letterpress and foil is going to lend to a more upscale or black-tie affair, whereas an invite tied with burlap or raffia will hint at a more casual occasion. Consider the message you are trying to send with your invites.

And on the envelope…

Regardless of the formality of your day, envelopes should be addressed without abbreviations
Address your guests with proper titles using their full names
Be specific as to who is invited, if children as also invited it is a much safer idea to include their exact names rather than “and family”
Envelopes should be handwritten, with the exception of the return address (which is typically located on the back flap). This doesn’t mean you’re required to hire a calligrapher, while this is a great touch, simply written names with a nice pen can be just as lovely
And to increase the likeliness of receiving a response, include a pre-addressed, pre-stamped envelope for the RSVP cards

And the big question that seems to be asked, do we send invitations out to our immediate family and bridal party? YES!!! They may know the date, and they’re definitely planning on being there, but beyond that, they really haven’t paid attention to all the “wedding talk” that has been floating around. This simply ensures that they receive the same information as everyone else, including the address to the venues, event times and any hotel or travel information you may have provided for other guests. Plus, it gives them a really nice keepsake.

So sorry if this information is a little late for you summer brides, but fall brides – you are now prepared!

The image above is courtesy of Hetler Photography, from a styled shoot with Something Borrowed Vintage Staging and Rentals. Invitation created by Emily Ross Creative {so excited to see what she creates for my project later this month!}. See the full shoot here!

FAQs: When to Send Wedding Invitations

0 · Apr 30, 2013 ·

Wedding season is just around the corner (and has actually already started for some!) What does that mean for you?

For some, that means digging through wedding registries and attending celebration after celebration this summer. It might mean work is going to get super busy and spending time at the beach will be a distant dream. Or maybe it means you’ve got to kick your tail into gear, you’re getting married this summer!

For me, it means I have a stack of save-the-dates and wedding invites clipped to my refrigerator. I started receiving these “notices” in January, some in February and then a save-the-date and actual invitations in March.

So when should you send these invites out? How much of a notice do you need to provide for your guests? While there are hundreds of opinions posted all over the internet – every major wedding blog, The Knot, etc, this is still probably one of the most common questions I get asked.

Let’s just clear this up, there are no hard rules of when to send out invitations or save-the-dates. But here are some guidelines and points to consider.

Save-the-Dates:

There’s no rule stating you MUST send them out. If you’re having an out of town celebration, or your wedding is during a holiday, then I would suggest giving your guests this optional notice. This allows your guests to plan ahead, requesting time off work or saving for extra travel expenses. Plan on sending these out at least 6 months prior to your wedding date, if not sooner.

Invitations:

General rule of thumb states that wedding invites should be sent out somewhere around 6 weeks to 2 months prior to the wedding. However, if you did not send save-the-dates, consider sending them out a touch sooner. Also bear in mind when your vendors need their final head counts and when you need those RSVPs by. Be considerate of your guests and how many are coming from out of town and what travel arrangements they might have to make upon receiving that invite.

A couple other thoughts:

Try not to send out the invite too early, people tend to misplace them and put off RSVPing. If it is misplaced, that means that they have lost important information, such as locations and times… having a wedding website might come in handy at this point!
If you’re using a calligrapher, give them plenty of time to address the invites so they’re not scrambling to have them ready to be sent out on time.
Cutting it close on time? The invites still need to be mailed; please do not resort of faxing, emailing or calling your guests to invite them. By mailing all invites, you ensure that all guests receive the same information and no details are forgotten. Plus, isn’t it great to get something pretty in the mail, an envelope that you actually want to open!

The above photo is from my vintage tea party shoot last fall with Bradley James Photography. Invitation by Creative Montage.

wedding invitations

“To me, calligraphy should not be about what etiquette dictates, or what will make your stationary seem luxurious. It is about adding a beautiful thoughtful touch, to add soul to your stationary”.

Footer

Instagram