When to inquire
Looking online, there are a lot of options for wedding invitations. But for a lot of couples, there isn’t one already designed that perfectly matches their vision or tells their love story. It’s the personalized details that make your invitations truly one of a kind. This is where a custom wedding invitation designer comes in! If you’re looking for invitations that are truly unique and set the tone for your wedding, you’re in the right place!
When you work with me, everything is created for YOU from scratch in a process that takes an average of 3 months from initial sketch to final delivery. I put a lot of time into each invitation suite and therefore accept a limited number of wedding invitation clients per year in order to provide the best possible custom artwork and experience. Some planning ahead is definitely advised if you’d like to work together! I would recommend inquiring about wedding invitations at least 6-8 months before your wedding, but the sooner, the better. By booking early, you will guarantee your spot in my schedule and lock in the current pricing for your wedding invitations.
Invitations are typically mailed out 6-8 weeks prior to your wedding in order to give guests time to RSVP and you to give your final guest count and meal selections to your wedding vendors. I’m definitely one to consider traditions, but I also recognize that it’s your wedding! When we work together, we’ll create a timeline that works perfectly for you!
For save the dates, inquiring at least 8-12 months prior to your wedding is suggested. If you’re thinking of including a photo on your cards, a lot of couples will reach out after they receive their engagement photos. Save the Dates are typically sent 6-8 months before your wedding, but this timeline can vary based on a number of factors. I’ll work with you to come up with the perfect timing for your circumstances!
When you inquire with me, you’ll receive a link to my schedule to book a call to chat about your custom designs. I’ll learn all about your love story and vision for your wedding, we’ll brainstorm together, and I’ll answer any burning questions you have before deciding to move forward.
Featured Wedding
Let’s talk about a real life example of a custom timeline as I walk you through the timing and process of designing this couple’s dream wedding invitations! They had a few unique situations that came up along the way that we were able to create solutions for together (more on this later!). Hélène and Mike inquired about invitation designs shortly after their engagement. With their wedding originally scheduled for August of 2020, we started working on designs for their Save the Dates in September of 2019 and Invitations in February of 2020. This gave us plenty of time to brainstorm, for me to create artwork and print the invitations, and then ship everything overseas in order to be mailed to their guests in time. I’m always sure to account for shipping times when creating timelines. This couple was so much fun to work with! They had a unique story and were looking for custom invitations to tell it. With the bride from France and the groom from the Netherlands, this couple wanted to highlight their unique backgrounds as well as their stunning wedding venue (a castle!!!).
The idea behind the designs
One of the benefits of hiring an invitation designer who is also an artist, is that we can create artwork that perfectly matches your vision! This all starts with learning all about your special day and unique love story. I’ll create sketches and get to know your preferences for wording, design and imagery that you’d like to include. During the initial sketching phase of the designs, this couple hand picked buildings that were meaningful to them and we created a layout with with one side representing France and the other side representing the Netherlands with the castle venue in the middle, representing where their lives were officially joined.
From there, we finalized the wording and I created final illustrations of each building and element. Keeping in mind their wedding colors, we found the perfect light pink paper and matching maroon envelopes. They loved a simple line work illustration style along with letterpress printing, which pair together perfectly! Letterpress printing allows line drawings to shine, adding a slight impression and luxury feel to the paper.
Unique & Unexpected Situations
Both unique and unexpected situations can benefit from having a custom invitation designer. Let’s start with the unique - I’m all for it!!! These may be situations you don’t even consider until you start looking for wedding invitations and you can’t quite find something that fits. Or you need advice on how to handle a specific circumstance - when you hire me for custom wedding invitation designs, we’ll figure it out together! A great example of this is creating bilingual wedding invitations. These invites had both English and French on each piece so all guests could easily read and RSVP!
Now for the unexpected… sometimes, you plan and plan - every detail is perfect and every guest accounted for. And yet, something unexpected happens. This couple was one of my 2020 couples. They ended up rescheduling their wedding twice and we got a little creative in keeping their guests up to date. Together, we created a digital change the date card. Not only did it match their original wedding invitations, but with a same-day turnaround, this digital graphic allowed them to quickly and easily communicate via text and on their wedding website.
When you hire me for custom wedding invitations, I’m always sure to leave a little extra time in my schedule in case anything comes up last minute. Most of the time, it doesn’t. But in the off chance that you have a last minute change, you can rest easy knowing that you have a designer on your side who will help you come up with the best possible solution for your unique situation.
I always recommend focusing on love and on what brings you joy throughout the wedding planning process and hiring vendors that you trust to assist. This couple stayed flexible, focusing on the health of their friends and family and had the most beautiful wedding day.
How will you tell your love story?
Do you have a unique idea for your wedding invitations? Is there something you’ve always wanted to include or that would be special to you as a couple? I can’t wait to hear all about it!
Join the waitlist today and I’ll be in touch!
