Elegant Wedding Stationery for a SoCal Wedding | Carolyn & Austin
Carolyn and Austin’s elegant wedding stationery combined letterpress printing, southern touches, and minimal stationery design to make the perfect invitation suite and day-of stationery for their April wedding! Working together from inquiry to wedding day, I loved being a part of bringing their vision to life.
Carolyn and Austin found me through a blog post on Over The Moon and reached out to me about creating classic and elegant wedding stationery that was still fun. Carolyn also wanted to incorporate some southern style into their suite, which I’m all about. I was excited to get started!
Wedding stationery process
After the initial inquiry and all the business stuff (contract, retainer, etc.), I sent C+A a timeline for what to expect with this process and a questionnaire to fill out. The questionnaire helps me get to know them as a couple, what’s important to them in their stationery and on their wedding day, and helps me come up with ideas for their suite that they might not have thought about otherwise. Once that’s completed, we can hit the ground running with a full look book, including a mood board and color palette.
The next steps are when we start getting into actual designs. I come up with 3-4 sketches of options that the couple can work with. We can go with them as-is, mix and match, make changes, or come up with something completely different. The process is completely collaborative to make sure the couple is getting exactly what they want! Once approved, I move forward with artwork and layouts, and we go through as many rounds of proofing necessary to get everything perfect.
Then things start really happening – printing and mailing! When I receive everything from the printer, I assemble everything, setting aside the photographer’s packet, keepsakes, and extras. I take the fully assembled suites to the post office on mailing day and the couple never even has to lift a finger! They get an invitation and save the date in the mail so that A) they can judge when people are starting to receive them, and B) as a fun surprise!
After everything is complete (save the dates, invitation suites, day-of stationery, etc.), I mail all of the extras and day-of stationery to the couple. If they are local, I can have them pick everything up from me, or we can discuss wedding day drop off.
C+A’s elegant wedding stationery design
Carolyn knew exactly what she wanted when it came to her wedding stationery and decor. First and foremost, she wanted it to feel “fresh, classic, and fun without being over the top.” It was important that there were southern touches, a venue illustration somewhere, and that they were easy to read (nothing too swirly!). With her color palette of ivory, gold, blush, and other spring colors, it made it easy to incorporate her wedding flower peonies in the flower motif on the invitation suite.
There were quite a few elements to this elegant wedding stationery that I loved. This suite used 2-color letterpress printing which is something I don’t get to do nearly enough. I love how it turned out and now I’m just looking for an excuse to use it again! We also went with blind pressed details on the RSVP envelope which acted as a frame for the postage. Before this suite, I had only ever digitally printed artwork on an envelope, so it was really fun to add the texture of letterpress printing as an added detail.
Another beautiful touch I loved was carrying over the gold foil monogram and gold calligraphy from the Save the Date to the invitation suite. It helped everything feel connected and I loved how that became one of the southern touches in the suite. (Can’t have southern touches without a monogram!)
Their Save the Date is still one of my all time favorites to this day. The letterpress printed illustration of their venue is super detailed and turned out beautifully. I also love that it’s square!
Carolyn and Austin’s big day
Their first dance to Signed, Sealed, Delivered (I’m Yours) by Stevie Wonder couldn’t have been more fitting as the day-of stationery felt like a love letter, signed, sealed, and beautifully delivered throughout their wedding day. The blush paper menus doubled as place cards with guests’ names at the top, and gold leaf escort cards were hand-calligraphed with guest names in black ink. We kept the design clean with self-standing table numbers, bar signage, and a bold 40×40 monogram displayed on the bar. Programs welcomed guests to the ceremony and tied everything together.
A fun surprise? Austin found a $20 bill when the newlyweds were leaving their ceremony, a sure sign of a rich relationship and life ahead! Cheers to you two, Carolyn and Austin! Thank you for letting me be a part of your special day.
Want your own custom wedding stationery? Reach out!
