Photography courtesy Mimmo & Naz.

Does your destination wedding need to have a “destination” theme? Not necessarily. It is really up to you and your personal taste. Don’t feel that if you are having a beach wedding you need to have palm trees or flip flops on the invitations!

Remember your invitations give your guests a peek into what your wedding will be like so showing an element of the place is a great idea. Although I still think it is important that the design still matches your personalities.

Photography courtesy Mimmo & Naz.

Destination Theme
I’ve created invitations for a couple eloping in Africa with a setting sun and the silhouette of an acacia tree. Another couple were getting hitched in Vegas so we went with a glossy stock, fun wording and the look of the Vegas sign.

There is absolutely nothing wrong with a seashell or palm tree look for a tropical location—you just need to find the right style for you.

No Destination Theme
Last summer I had a couple getting married in a gorgeous old manor in the Lake District in England. (Not exactly your palm trees and sea shells destination.) They decided to go with a monogram and cream, brown and green as their colours. If you were to see the location you would understand how well these worked. They also fit the style of the bride and groom perfectly!

Photography courtesy Mimmo & Naz.

Photography courtesy Mimmo & Naz.

—

So this is my last post—for now anyway! Thank you all for reading over the past three months. It has been a pleasure. I’m happy to answer any unanswered questions you might have so feel free to send an email to laura@laurakdesign.com

All the best for a wonderful holiday season!

Laura

Your invitations don’t have to be dry and stuffy. Remember, they aren’t your mother’s wedding invitations. They can and should reflect the personalities of you and your fiancé and the type of event you want to have. Here are a few examples of my clients who have really added their personal stamp their invitations and their wedding.

One of the very first invitations I ever created for a couple incorporated herb leaves. The bride was a chef and the food aspect of the wedding was extremely important. They also were giving homemade pesto as their gift to the guests. It was very personal and truly reflected the bride and groom.

Another couple with Irish heritage had their reception at an Irish pub in downtown Toronto. They wanted their invitations to incorporate their heritage with their bold colour choice of deep pink and lime green. Needless to say these invitation made a statement. They also had matching menus and place cards for the reception and at the end of the night—the bride told me not one was left in the room. Their guests had taken them as souvenirs!

I just finished designing custom invitations for a couple getting married in Edinburgh, Scotland. The bride is American, the groom Scottish. The wedding will take place at a stately home (looks like a castle to me) and they needed an invitation that suited the venue. I incorporated colours from the grooms kilt and the national flower of Scotland, the Thistle, in the design. The couple loved the invitation and though it perfectly reflected them and the special day they are planning.

So all that being said, think about the kind of day you want, not your parents, or your sister, but you. Invitations with your personal stamp will excite your guests and leave them waiting in anticipation for your big day!

If you decide to have a program for your wedding—there are more options than just the usual booklet. In fact, I’ve never actually done one of those! I have three standard formats.

1.    Single card (single or double sided)
2.    Tri-fold (single or double sided)
3.    Multi page fan

The single card is best when you don’t have too much information to share. There is room to have the bridal party, parents’ names, the order of the service and possibly a special message.

The tri-fold is perfect for a religious or inter-faith marriage where you need to explain some of the traditions or show more details of the ceremony.

The multi page fan program is a beautiful new addition to my offerings. The one I am displaying is six pages with information on the ceremony, bridal party, the evening events and a special memorial for the decease mother of the bride and father of the groom. What was unusual about these programs is that they were all personalized for the guests. The second page of each one had the couples or families name on it, as well as information about a donation made to a charity in their names. This isn’t something that you need to do but it was a lovely detail.

Photography courtesy Mimmo & Naz.

I’ve had couples come to me with a last minute request for the wedding invitations for many different reasons; planning their wedding on a short timeline, a friend was supposed to do them, and they just plain forgot!

Whatever the reason you need to get these invitations out two months before the wedding and if that date has already passed, then as soon as possible will have to do!

I actually like working with people on a really short time line because it reduces the amount of back and forth and forces quick decisions to be made. I’m not saying you should compromise your vision, just that you need to make your choice and stick with it.

The two samples I’m showing were both created last minute for couples, for different reasons.

The brown and grey design was a reprint because the wedding venue was sold and the bride and groom were told they couldn’t have their wedding there anymore. Yikes! They scrambled to find a new venue for their date and we quickly reprinted the invitations with the new information.

The orange leaf design was an interesting story. A friend was going to create this couple’s invitations and for some reason it fell though—I didn’t ask why. They contacted me the day before I was leaving for a two-week holiday and their wedding was less than eight weeks away! They couldn’t wait for me to come back so we worked quickly that day and the following one to get the invitations, reply cards and maps designed and sent to print. I had to have them sent directly to them from my printer while I was on my holiday. Everything worked out perfectly and they were so grateful.

I don’t necessarily recommend rushing your invitations, but it can be done and I pride myself on being able to help couples in need. In my opinion, this is where local small businesses shine and show their true value.

Photography courtesy Mimmo & Naz.

Some couples have a specific theme for their wedding—a time period like Art Deco, a flower like the Cherry Blossom, or a season like fall. In this case the venue, invitations, decor, flowers and attire generally fit with the theme, however, a theme doesn’t have to be this specific. Many people come in for our first meeting saying they don’t have a theme and I tell them they do—they just don’t realize it yet. A theme can be anything you carry throughout the wedding and can be as simple as the colours or a pattern you use. If you have purple and gold stripes on your invitations then incorporate this into your cake, menus, table linens, bridesmaid dresses etc… I’m not saying you should have striped bridesmaid dresses, but a solid purple or gold would be perfect.

Photography courtesy Mimmo & Naz.

For my own wedding I didn’t have a specific theme but I used very bold colours (orange and fuschia) and those were carried throughout the day from the flowers to the cake, to programs and menus. Even my nail polish was fuschia! For our dinner we started with a salad and it has red and orange peppers in it and one of my guests asked me if I had planned that! I hadn’t but it just goes to show that colour can be a very strong theme.

So basically what I’m saying is that everyone needs a theme but it doesn’t have to be overly complicated—there just needs to be a cohesive look throughout the day.

Photography courtesy Mimmo Galati of Mimmo & Naz.

Everyone has different needs for their wedding day stationery but there are some items that are essential. Below I have listed the “must have items” and the “would be nice to have items.”

Essential Day of Stationery:
1. Large Seating Chart and/or Personalized place cards
2. Table Numbers/Names

Non-Essential Day of Stationery:
1. Programs
2. Menus
3. Gift Tags
4. Signage

The most important thing is to let your guests know where they will be seated. There are essentially three ways you can do this.

1. A large seating chart with table numbers on each table. (Place cards are optional)

Photography courtesy Mimmo Galati of Mimmo & Naz.

2. A table at the entrance with the place cards for each guest with their name and table number.

Photography courtesy Mimmo Galati of Mimmo & Naz.

3.    Provide a master list of the seating assignment to a couple of trustworthy people to advise guests of their table when they arrive.

Photography courtesy Mimmo Galati of Mimmo & Naz.

If your budget allows having menus on the tables is a nice touch. Gift tags on your bonbonniere, also adds a decorative touch to the table. I like to think of day of stationery as part of your wedding decor, along with the flowers and candles.

Many people are confused as to whether they have to include a map with their wedding invitations. The short answer is no —however, if you are inviting guests from out of town, the ceremony and reception are at two different locations or are hard to find —then a map would be a good idea. If you are inviting many out of town guests it is nice to include a couple of recommended hotels in different price ranges. These can often be included on the map card.

There is another card that I call the additional information card. This is a catch all phrase for any other information you want to share with your guests. Most of the time these are for travel information and other events that you might be having the weekend of your wedding. A BBQ, a brunch or even a golf game—whatever you are planning it is a good idea to let your guests know so you everyone can plan accordingly. The alternative to doing this card is to set up a wedding website and have that address printed on your map or even your invitation.

How do you figure out what your invitations will look like? The first questions I ask my clients are — Where is the wedding? and How formal will the wedding be?

Quite often the location alone will be a deciding factor for the look and feel of the invitations. If the wedding is at an art deco venue, then most likely the invitations should be in keeping with this style. At the same time if you are having a garden wedding the invitations should reflect this. You want to give your guests an insight into what they can expect and even how formal they should dress. Will a summer sundress be appropriate or is a cocktail dress more fitting?

You would be amazed at what the colours and fonts alone can say about your wedding. There are so many different fonts and it is just a matter of finding the right font to reflect your personalities and style. Colours can match the season, be influenced by your culture, or even something to match the venue.

The invitations I’m showing this week show how colour, fonts and design all indicate the tone of the wedding.

1.    Fall — With Orange and Green and a maple leaf in a modern design. This wedding was semi-formal.

2.    Vegas — The fonts, design, colour and wording on this invitation show it will be a fun, informal affair.

3.    Lobster — What is more fitting for an East Coast wedding than lobsters! The deep red on this invitation was used to match the red dirt of PEI.

4.    Art Deco — This silver invitation with art deco details and font, sets the tone perfectly for a formal and sophisticated wedding.

Think about the style of wedding you want to have and how formal it will be. This will help you decide how the invitations will look.