Wedding invitation lettering // Drew Melton

Drew Melton is something of a superstar when it comes to lettering. I was lucky enough to have him submit some amazing work for my book last year which was a great treat. When I spied this gorgeous invitation, I knew instantly that it was his lettering magicianship! The format of this little newspaper is just gorgeous too... makes me want to renew my vows just so I can design a new invite. Would that be excessive do you think?!



Such a sucker for process shots am I. Aren't these amazing?! I'm so in awe of people that have this skill!

Zed and Bee // The Collection

Last weekend, design super-sisters, Zed & Bee showcased their new collection of invitations at the Tate Gallery, Sydney. I posted about their bespoke designs back here so was very excited to hear of new things in the air. I couldn't make it to the event sadly (sniff sniff) but on seeing the pictures just sent over, I am smitten all the same.



The collection is designed for the more budget savvy folks who still seek the elegance and detail of a bespoke piece. Through clever little features like the adjusting of only one letterpress plate, Zed and Bee have created a whole array of gorgeous solutions. These below were my very favourites - shimmery and elegant to the core.... and isn't the photography styling divine too?! pat on the back ladies. Beautiful work!



The full collection will be available for perousing on their website from next week.

One year old!

Please excuse the broadcast of nostalgia but this past weekend marked a whole year since j + i were married! I still feel as insanely lucky a duck as I did on the day (though am not used to that wierd word 'wife' yet) Thinking of that snow covered, fire filled, english barn the weekend before christmas and of the turkey and mince pies we ate and the dancing we did. I couldn't dream up a better memory to seal the deal of forever love!



and such a fun dance to a most beautiful song...



I've been promising to post a picture of our lil old wedding invites & date savers for awhile now but have been reluctant due to my poor photography skills... but hopefully you'll forgive those too.

Paper planes invite // Zed & Bee

Just spotted this great Save the Date destination wedding invite by Zed & Bee (had to share it while still suffering from airmail fever)

Apparently they were based on the Martha Stewart paper plane templates, but were pretty tricky to actually reproduce... well worth the trouble though I say girlies!

Wedding Stationery Wonders // Erin Yang

The fourth installment of wedding stationery magnifique is the work of graphic designer and illustrator Erin Yang. Erin is based in the Big Apple and spends her days working at Martha Stewart Living Magazine (and the amazingly designed Esquire before that!)  She makes some oh so lovely wedding pieces with envelopes and letterpress and other fun additions. Here is a little collection of some greats...


Heart shaped invitations for a red and purple themed wedding


Invitations for a Central Park boathouse wedding


Vintage ephemera invitations and programs with envelope pockets printed by Studio on Fire


One of Erin's designs for Bella Figura


Wedding poster invitation that all the guests signed as a momento


Adorable bridal shower invitation


See more of Erin's work over on her blog

Wedding Stationery Wonders // Mitchell & Dent

The last couple of days I have been buried in work and have only just climbed out... so the third installment comes only today (sorry for this)... but it is well worth the wait because the wonderful work of Perth based, Mitchell & Dent is creative and fun and fresh and beautiful (phew!)... with such a tailor made feel making no two the same style.

The lovely Angela answered some of my questions... 

What do we like most about designing wedding stationery?

As graphic designers we recognised there was a gap in the market for really interesting, creative wedding stationery. We have noticed a shift in the way that couples are treating their nuptials. People are tending to abandon traditional formalities and are embracing more fun, informal weddings that are reflective of the couples personalities.



Creating wedding stationery where we can have fun and participate in some of the merry making is such a joy. There's nothing nicer than a couple saying that their wedding suite reflects them both to a 'T'.



What are the most challenging aspects?
The most challenging aspect would be scheduling the letterpress invitations as it's a very manual, hands on process. There are many different elements that can affect how a letterpress job will print such as humidity, ink consistency, registration etc. We're quite particular on the standard of work that leaves the studio so we need to make sure we keep on top of every little detail. The final results are always well worth the effort.



What is your design and printing process? 
We currently have 12 stationery suites that are available in both letterpress and printed options. We also offer custom designed invitations if someone has a particular theme in mind. Once we have all of the wedding details we will customise the chosen wedding suite and send through a PDF proof to check that it's all good to go. Once a design is approved we schedule the printers for the standard suites and if it's a letterpress suite we send the electronic files off to get the blocks made. We trim and score the paper stock and mix any ink colours if a custom colour is required. We make sure to schedule printing time when the studio is quiet as it requires a steady hand and lot of concentration, which is why we leave this in the capable hands of our printer Duncan.

In terms of timing we like to allow about 4-5 weeks for letterpress stationery and 2-3 weeks for printed stationery.

Thankyou ever so Angela...  

Check out their adorable shop of prints and delicious things also

Wedding Stationery Wonders // Zed and Bee

Today I am proud to showcase some talent from just down the road... the relatively new Sydney based duo Zed and Bee. I went to university with Billie and always knew she'd go on to make fantastic things. Kick-starting their lil company earlier this year, Billie and her sister Zoe, have already made a mountain of amazing invites for all kinds of events. Each and every one of them is so unique and they use such a variety of printing methods and materials that makes for much excitement each time they reveal a new one.

I sneakily distracted Zoe long enough to ask some questions about starting up the business and what they've come up against:


(Artists watercolour invitation)

Briefly, tell us how or why you started Zed and Bee?
When faced (happily) with my own marriage proposal and approaching wedding, although a designer, I felt I wanted to outsource my invitations due to timing. I was understandably inspired by the range of invitation design studios on offer overseas but couldn't find what I was after on home soil.
I ended up utilising a US based studio and collaborating with their designer on my joint project. I wondered why we weren't producing more inspiring bespoke invitations solutions here in Sydney and realised my dream of doing just that. My sister Billie, with over 10 years of experience in edgy design studios, was an obvious choice as my partner in crime. Her passion for all things paper and print related matched my own (as does our designer eye) and we have worked happily together ever since.


(Jewish papercut invitation in collaboration with madebyjulene)

What do you like most about designing wedding/special occasion stationery?
The variety of styles, stocks and print processes we get to incorporate by producing bespoke work for a rainbow of personalities. Zed & Bee also adore collaborating with local artists to create one of a kind pieces. We are currently doing just that with some beautiful invitations that will feature on our website in late November.


(Mary Antoinette themed French letterpress invitations)

What are the most challenging aspects? 
The time consuming task of costing bespoke jobs has proved to be challenging. This is part of the reason we will be releasing a 2011 Collection later this year of ten brand new invitation designs that can be costed and ordered online. This collection will be aimed at our more budget conscious brides. We will of course continue to produce bespoke jobs, it is our creative outlet and where we really let our imaginations run wild.


(Saul Bass inspired Engagement poster)

What has been the biggest thing you've learnt to date? 
To keep learning and evolving. The creation of each invitation teaches us something new. Whether it be a client/supplier relationship, new print process we wish to harness or embellishment we unearth there is something to take from the experience to aid us next time round. Recognising and acknowledging this is key.

Big thank you Zoe... Can't wait to see what comes next from Zed & Bee!
Check back in at the Zed & Bee blog to see more invites unfold over the next little while... and join the mailing list to hear about their 2011 stationery collection... tres exciting!


(Engagement poster)


(storyboard for a 'Modern Vintage' wedding)


(storyboard for a Bali wedding)

Wedding Stationery Wonders // Hammerpress

For the first of this weeks wedding stationers, I'm really excited to be showcasing some of Hammerpress' damn fine looking letterpress invitations all the way from Missouri, US.

One of my favorite stationers of all time, Hammerpress, has just revamped the wedding section to their website and the work is so original and so stunning! A very passionate Matt, was lovely enough to answer a few of my questions:

What do you enjoy most about designing wedding stationery?
Aside from getting to create new and beautiful things on a regular basis, our favorite thing about designing for couples is when we get to hear how well the invitations were received by their guests. The best is when nobody mails the rsvp card back, they just call to let the couple know they'll be attending and that they're keeping the card because they love it so much. That's the ultimate complement for us.



What are the most challenging aspects?
I think the most challenging part of what we do is working with limited budgets and tight schedules. We'd love to engage in the full depth of the design process with every couple and give them an absolutely unique work of art for their stationery as a result. But we wouldn't be able to do that for long and still feed our families (not to mention maintain some semblance of sanity).
Actually, its that very challenge that led us to create our Archive Collection. we feel really good now about being able to offer couples beautiful designs that have already been developed and are ready to be customized with their ink, paper and envelope preferences. its a perfect solution for people wanting creative letterpress wedding invitations but who are on a tighter budget and/or timeline.



Briefly, what is your design/printing process?
We specialize in letterpress printing which is basically a relief printmaking process where raised type and imagery is pressed into the paper. the result is a tactile printed object that people really seem to connect with and cherish. because of our extensive experience with letterpress, our creative process is tailor-made for it. We're able to avoid many of the common pitfalls that designers not familiar with the process fall into as well as exploit some of the inherent limitations of the process to come up with fresh and unexpected solutions....

When developing a custom design for a couple, we initially meet to discover their tastes and get a feel for their vision for the day. After we have a strong sense of what they're looking for, we get down to business sketching and usually end up presenting our 2 favorite directions for them to choose from. They choose and we revise based on their feedback. Its a good process and we've found regularly that our couples feedback during the revision part of the process makes the design even better and gives them real ownership of the end result.



Big thankyou Matt... see more gems on their website! 


[all images by Hammerpress]

A Wedding Stationery Week of Wonder

I am really excited this week to be showcasing some of the best wedding stationers there are about on each and every day. With real mail invitations being such a rarity in this day, wedding invites are one of the only real exciting paper joys that come in envelopes through the mailbox... and there are some mighty great ones. Please do check back later on today for the first of five shows of excellence!

{image of max & margeaux's wedding via Our Labor of Love}

The Paper Bride

Purgatory Pie Press have released this most lovely of books (I only wish I had found it 6 months ago before I got married!) Their previous book, 'How to make books' was a treat in every way and while this is more specific, its design and illustration looks equally great and could translate to be 'The paper party' too so anyone can warrant getting one. It goes through step by step instructions for making garlands, lining envelopes, pop-up maps, postcards and other decor... all the things needed to create a paper paradise! (You can buy the book here on etsy also)

I think if I had this book before my wedding I would have made it all it sounds so good! As it stands I did have alot of paper themed decorations (flags, menus, origami, lanterns etc.)... seeing this has prompted me to show abit on here later in the week... hold tight, you'll see!

Happy New Decade!!

Am so sorry lovely readers for disappearing for so long... The last few weeks have zoomed by with celebrations galore and can now officially report I am a Mrs! Oh my! Had the most amazing wedding and am still in honeymooney-head mode (I will post a few more little pictures and details when have sorted them all out)
Hope everyone had a great fiesta season too and so looking forward to discovering lots more creative wonders this year for you to see...

(these two lovely pics taken by my very talented friend katie)

Transparent invitations

Saw these brilliant wedding invitations on Oh so beautiful paper this morning and felt the need to share them. It is such a beautifully appropriate design for a union of lives without being cheesy and still really fun. When you over lay the two pieces together you get the full picture.. and the added bonus of some purple lines of text too.... clever huh?!

(art and photos by Breno Pineschi via Hardcuore)

Dolci Odille // wedding invitations

Dolci Odille's stationary is some of the most fun, adorable and creative I have seen yet. Their projects have popped up individually around the web and i've admired them many times before but didn't realise it was all the handiwork of just one husband and wife team! Then this morning Black Eiffel showcased some of their wedding decorations and I finally found their website... what a treat for a rainy thursday morning.

Their own wedding stationary
(& go have a look at the wonderful white paper pompoms)

Free wedding stationary

Dolci Odille's blog is full of fun too and see their work here
(all beautiful photography by Our Labour of Love)