We love sharing photos of the real weddings and letterpress invitations that our fabulous Bella brides send us, but we especially love when we get to feature the wedding of someone we know personally! For today’s real wedding, we worked with Lin Logan of The Stationery Company in Denver and her daughter Jennifer for Jennifer’s letterpress wedding invitations, and we are so thrilled to share details from the big day! Jennifer chose our elegant Jolie design for her October celebration, and we letterpress printed her wedding invitations in pewter and champagne inks. Spencerian hand calligraphy accents by Debi Zeinert added a gorgeous touch of elegance to the sophisticated set, which included a festive reception card and a handy info card that let guests know about accommodations, transportation, and the couple’s wedding website. We are completely smitten with this gorgeous fall wedding — read on to learn about the inspiration behind this fabulous event!

Can you share with us a bit about your wedding and your inspiration for the event?

Our absolute favorite time of year is the fall, so John and I decided that we definitely wanted a fall wedding. With so many of our friends’ weddings taking place in the summer months, we felt like having it at this time of year would allow us to really be creative and different and also give our guests an evening they would never forget during a time when life seems to move at a bit slower pace.  That really served as our inspiration for the entire event. We wanted to find a venue that truly showcased the beautiful fall colors of Colorado while also conveying a sense of casual-elegance that would make everyone feel right at home. When we came across Crooked Willow Farm, we felt no other venue could have captured all of these things more perfectly…so with that decision crossed off the list, we then began planning the wedding of our dreams in a Big Red Barn in beautiful Larkspur, Colorado. What could be more “Fall” than that?

How did you choose your invitation design & ink colors?

I think that when most of us think of fall, we think of the traditional fall color palette of reds, oranges and yellows. Once again, trying to think a bit more out of the box, we came up with the color palette of charcoal gray and butter yellow.  We felt the palette was warm and inviting and best of all, DIFFERENT! Choosing letterpress on luxurious cotton paper by Bella Figura only enhanced our vision, and they worked with us on such a personal yet effortless level that I felt no stress with regard to the invitations.  Our initial vision for the invitation was achieved.  When dreaming about how this palette would be reflected in all aspects of our wedding…from the bridesmaid dresses, the flowers and of course, the invitations, we were sold on it immediately. From there we watched all the details unfold so beautifully in sticking with this color theme. We wouldn’t have changed a thing.

What surprised you most about your wedding?

What surprised us most was how quickly the day went. We wanted to hang on every moment of the day as long as we could but all in all, each moment passed along to the next so much faster than we anticipated. What also surprised me was how nervous I felt moments before I walked down the isle. And furthermore, I was also surprised by the immediate calm I felt just moments later as I saw John for the first time and was walking down the isle with our eyes locked on one another.

What advice do you have for couples currently planning a wedding?

I would say don’t get too bogged down in all of the little details (because most people won’t remember them anyway). What they do remember is the overall feeling of the day and the aura of love and emotion that is in the air. When you are marrying the person of your dreams, the little details of the day become secondary to reciting your vows and creating a bond that will last from that moment forward.

Favorite design element of your big day?

I think our favorite design element was actually how we decided to set up the reception hall where dinner was served. Rather than the traditional round tables that you so often see, we decided to play off the feeling of fall, and the togetherness of family and friends and use 3 very long farmers tables filled with flowers and hundreds of candles. The feeling of community this created was beyond what we even expected and people are still talking about the sense of drama that was felt when you walked in and saw the three dramatically long tables set for a feast no one will ever forget.

Favorite moments:

Bride: I have two favorite moments. The first was when I first entered the room and began the walk down the aisle. As mentioned earlier, the immediate calm that I felt when I saw my soul mate standing at the end of the isle was unlike anything I had ever felt before and more powerful than I would have ever expected. My second favorite moment was listening to my parents toasts. They had the entire reception howling with laughter at times and filled with tears of sweet emotion at others. It was priceless!

Groom: John’s favorite moment of the night was during the dance reception where the entire room was dancing to the sounds of Homeslice (our band).  There was a moment when one of our favorite songs came on and one of the groomsmen lifted me (the bride) up onto a large ottoman in the center of the room. All of a sudden it was like I was on stage surrounded by my favorite people in the whole world. For those who know me…I was clearly in my ultimate “element” as I danced “on stage” with my big feather boa while everyone danced and celebrated below! John claims that he just stood back in awe and will always remember that moment as one of his top highlights of the day.

Jennifer, thanks so much for choosing Bella Figura for your wedding invitations and for sharing your gorgeous wedding with us!

Vendors

Venue: Crooked Willow Farms, Larkspur, Colorado

Stationer: The Stationery Company

Florist: Flower Power

Photographer: Jared Wilson

Caterer: Gourmet Fine Catering

Band: Homeslice Band

We’re bundling up for the cold winter weather that’s starting to make its way to Central New York, but this wedding has us dreaming of warm summer days and fun celebrations. Candice & Sean included tons of festive design elements for their summertime wedding that made for amazing, cheerful photos filled with love and warmth. Candice gave us the scoop on what went into planning this colorful backyard bash (complete with intricate Papel Picado for decor!) and we’re in love with every last detail.

Can you share with us a bit about your wedding and your inspiration for the event?
We chose a church wedding in acknowledgement of our Catholic and Episcopal traditions and in accordance with our personal faith. We asked guests to come and celebrate our lives, our commitments, and our love. Our invitations requested that guests arrive in colorful attire, and all of the women were invited to walk Candice to the church. We had many people do small readings, and since everyone present was an old best friend or family member, we did not have attendants. Instead, all of the women who walked Candice to the church carried small roses. Our bible verse for the day, “This is my beloved and this is my friend” was a verse that framed all of our celebrations and much of our wedding planning.

Guests returned from the church to the sounds of a steel drum band and bright Papel Picado hung from the fence. Tables were decorated with water-colored signs, each named for one of the fruits of the spirit — patience, love, joy, faithfulness, gentleness, kindness, goodness, and peace. As the sun went down, Sean’s nephew Keanu handed out lightup bracelets and led the way on breaking open the homemade and colorful pinata crafted by Candice’s teacher friend, Laura.

How did you choose your invitation design & ink colors?
I love red, orange, and yellow, and so most decisions stemmed from that. Bright warm colors filled the day. Also, the particular invitation we decided on (our Nouveau design by Amy Graham Stigler, pictured below) resembled the paper cut out Papel Picado.

What advice do you have for couples currently planning a wedding?
I advise couples to remember to include the personal touches. We had pictures of us from throughout our relationship on a table at the reception and we had the food set up in our backyard near the garden we built. Also, remember that you may need help and that DIY will require some time. I water-colored the numbers for the tables and made various decorations. Make sure you do as many of the incidentals a couple weeks or more beforehand. And use spreadsheets!

What surprised you most about your wedding?
I was surprised to see how much people love to help out. Setting out flowers and putting together the tables required a lot of help, but our friends said that being able to do the labor and build the event led them to really feel apart of things. Some even stayed to break down afterwards. It was in those quiet moments that we felt loved and others truly felt like they were part of our day.

Candice & Sean, thank you for sharing your day with us! From everyone at Bella Figura, congratulations & best wishes for a lifetime of happiness to you both!

Vendors:
Photography: Bella Pictures
Food: Sweet Baby Rays Barbecue
Flowers: Whole foods and Eliza Dangler
Music: Steelin Jazz

We absolutely love seeing the fabulous celebrations that go hand-in-hand with the invitations we get to print everyday, and we’re always especially excited to see Bella Figura weddings on Style Me Pretty!  Anne & Tommy’s Redondo Beach wedding was absolutely gorgeous, so today we’re sharing some of our favorite photos from their big day. The couple chose our elegant Irving invitation to set the tone for their wedding. The design was printed in pale gray and amethyst inks on our white paper for a chic look that coordinated perfectly with the rest of their wedding day elements.

Congratulations to Anne & Tommy!

Vendors:

Photography: Kaysha Weiner Photographer
Flowers: Rebecca’s Bloomers Floral Design and Decor
Event Planning: Tiffany Weddings
Ceremony & Reception Location: Portofino Hotel & Yacht Club
Dress: Adele Wechsler
Make-Up & Hair: Serene Bridal Beauty
Favors: Isabella’s Cookie Company

We are absolutely delighted to share this next real wedding. We printed invitations and programs in our String Calligraphy design to set the tone for Sionne & Nick’s elegant summer wedding, and we were so thrilled when Sionne sent us photos from the big day. She was kind enough to share some of the details of what went into planning this stunning celebration.

What was your favorite part of the day?

We loved the entire weekend that we celebrated with our family and friends – it was so special to get to share one of our favorite places with everyone!  Our favorite memory of the day, however, is our actual wedding ceremony.  One of our best friends, Charles Collins-Chase, officiated our wedding and did the most incredible job.  He centered our ceremony on narratives that he requested that we both write – and not discuss with each other – to explain why we wanted to get married and what getting married meant to each of us.  Hearing each other’s sentiments for the first time in front of our guests made the ceremony really feel like our relationship was culminating in a union that everyone was witnessing.  People kept commenting that it was the most emotional ceremony that they had ever attended and it really brought the focus of the day back on our marriage, rather than just the celebration around it (which was, of course, a favorite memory as well!).

What was the theme or style you were going for?

Nick and I met seven years ago while studying abroad at Oxford, in Great Britain, and we wanted to capture the feel of an English garden party with our wedding.  Without veering too deeply into the theme, we focused on creating a casual elegance with our overarching ambiance and then used some of the details to add thematic nods.  For example, our caterer customized a variation of a Pimms’ Cup for a specialty cocktail and we used antique-y books as decor throughout the reception.  We got married in an adorable beach town, but on the canal rather than the beach, and the entire scene captured the feeling that we sought.  Adding to that the hilarious and touching toasts, the wonderful friends, and the great dancing, it was a wonderful day!

What was the best part of the planning?

The people who helped us with our wedding made the planning so much fun and so easy.  From the tremendous ideas of our wedding planners, to the goals of our parents to give us the wedding that we would be able to look back on and say was just as we wanted it, to our friends who helped us execute our vision, to our vendors who were so accommodating and caring, the people who assisted us made the planning so smooth and the results so memorable for us!

Sionne and Nick, thank you for sharing your beautiful wedding day with us! We wish you nothing but a lifetime of happiness together!!

Vendors:

Dress – Vera Wang
Bridesmaids dresses – Vera Wang
Flowers – Bayberry Flowers
Reception – Inn at Canal Square
wedding planning – Cait&Jules and Make My Day Events
Stationery – Bella Figura
String quartet – Del Segno
Reception music – Anthony Simpson of MyDeejay
Catering and cake – Nage
Photography – Keith Mosher of KAM Photography

We were absolutely thrilled to see this real wedding on Style Me Pretty recently – a stunning white affair that took place in beautiful Santa Barbara. The couple’s Majorca wedding invitations set the tone for their intimate celebration, and romantic hints of blush were found throughout the decor. The bridesmaids wore stunning, custom-made dresses by Lauren Bradley, and the bride wore an incredible pair of bright blue Christian Loubouton peep toe shoes, a gift given to her by the groom while they were dating.  We love their coordinating day-of pieces, too – gorgeous table cards and menus are the perfect way to tie everything together.

See even more photos and details of this stunning wedding over on Style Me Pretty!

Vendors:

Photography: The Youngrens / Flowers: Jackie Combs Floral Design / Event Design: Jackie Combs Floral Design / Ceremony Location: The Canary Hotel / Reception Location: The Canary Hotel / Shoes: Christian Louboutin / Cake: Montecito Confections / DJ: AMS Entertainment / Hair & Makeup: TEAM Hair and Makeup / Rentals & Lounge Furniture: Classic Party Rentals / Linens: Wildflower Linens / Lighting: LBPS Events / Invitations: Bella Figura / Bridesmaid Dresses: Lauren Bradley

{Photos by The Youngrens }

Last fall, we had the pleasure of designing and printing these gorgeous invitations for Vanessa & David’s November wedding at the iconic Sydney Opera House. The invitations were a custom design, featuring elements from our ever-popular Deveril design and an intricate custom pattern. The pattern was printed in black on extra-wide belly bands that we created to keep everything packaged neatly together, and was also printed in blind deboss on the back of each card to create an ultra-chic look. We loved seeing all of the amazing photographs of the big day on Style Me Pretty – dreamy white peonies, a stunning 5-tier cake, and soft, romantic candlelight added so much elegance to this black tie affair. An indulgent dinner reception at Guillaume at Bennelong was followed by homemade limoncello (created by the bride’s father) – a delicious treat and a nod to the bride’s Italian heritage.

{Photos by Bella Figura}

See even more photos from Vanessa & David’s wedding day over at Style Me Pretty!

Ceremony Location: St. Mark’s Darling Point / Reception Location: Guillaume at Bennelong / Wedding Photography: Blumenthal Photography / Floral Design: Flowers on Norton Street / Bride’s Dress + Flower Girls’ Dresses: Pallas / Bride’s Shoes: Christian Louboutin / Bridesmaid Dresses: Liso Ho / Groom’s Tuxedo: Valentino / Groomsmen Suits: Peppers Formal Wear / Wedding Invitations: Bella Figura / Stationery: Fine Invitations / Reception Music: Piano Man / Ceremony Music: Paul Goodchild at Sydney Brass / Wedding Cake: Faye Cahill / Bonbonniere: Mor Cosmetics / Transportation: Wedding Cars of Distinction / Lighting, Dance Floor + Sound: Creative Lighting / Bride’s Make-up: Julie Elton / Bride’s Hair: Lores Giglio / Grand Piano: Hutchings Pianos / Ring Bowl: Paloma’s Nest / Wedding Rings: Canturi and Cerrone

We absolutely love it when a Bella Figura couple sends us their wedding pictures featuring their letterpress wedding invitations. Today we have the privilege to show you a Real (local) Wedding from Syracuse! Christian and Giovanna chose our sophisticated Pavilion (by Amy Graham Stigler) design in Espresso and Dusty Pink inks on our 1-ply ivory paper. They carried the floral theme all the way through with delicate hand painted porcelain vessels wedding favors.

Hendricks Chapel was the perfect location to exchange rings and vows. Giovanna’s family traveled from Italy to witness their love.

These striking photos were taken at Syracuse University – one of the many gorgeous locations in our lovely city.

The party continued at the the famous Sheraton Syracuse. We are in love with the Paloma Blanca dress and Alice G. Patterson’s flawless photography!

To see more smashing photos.

Vendors

Wedding Dress:  Paloma Blanca

Shoes:  Benjamin Adams

Church:  Hendricks Chapel

Reception Venue:  Sheraton Syracuse

Music:  Maria DeSantis

Cake:  Connie Decker

Hair and Make up:  Erin from Miracles

Flowers:  Wegmans

Invitations:  Bella Figura

Photography: Alice G. Patterson

Last year we had the pleasure of printing lovely letterpress wedding invitations, escort cards, table numbers and thank you notes for Lisa and her handsome groom Stephen for their Malibu wedding. Today their amazing wedding, held at the Malibu Nature Preserve, is featured one our of absolute favorite wedding blogs, Style Me Pretty. (You can see Abby’s posts here and here.) We are so in love with this beautiful wedding, we just had to share more of the amazing photos from the incredible team at docuvitae and a bit more insight into what made the day so special from the bride herself.

Inspired by the beautiful flowers that grow wild in the California hills in late summer, Lisa dreamed of a lush, magical wedding that celebrated all the beauty of nature and evoked feelings of being lost in a fairy forest. The answer? Many little flower girls dressed in fairy wings, a ceremony in a sycamore grove and silk butterflies on strings. Oh. And a really fabulous dress from Claire Pettibone that was soft, shimmery and ethereal.

The beautiful flowers, created by Flowerwild in Los Angeles, were inspired by the very same flowers that dotted the landscape at the Malibu Nature Preserve. Romantic shades of sage green and lavender were carried through the day from the flowers to the custom linens to the beautiful emerald green dress worn by the only adult attendant, Lisa’s maid of honor.

Lisa and Stephen also worked to weave many eco-friendly elements into their event, without sacrificing a bit of charm or elegance. Along with working with Bella Figura for many of their stationery pieces, they also opted to work with a local organic caterer and provided transportation for guests so they could encourage carpooling. They limited excessive artificial decor elements and instead allowed the natural beauty of the setting, known for being eco-friendly, to shine.

Keeping their wedding truly personal and unique, Lisa and Stephen made sure to throw a party with great music because Lisa loves to dance. The newlyweds and their guests danced well into the evening. After dinner, in lieu of traditional coffee service, a coffee truck (Java the Truck) pulled up and served lattes and hot cocoas to excited guests.

Lisa’s best advice to couples still planning their wedding? “Go with what you like and what is representative of you as a couple or individually, not with what someone else tells you is in fashion or is “done.” We chose food and music that we liked, we carefully chose our wedding cocktail etc. and people really said it felt individual.”

Thank you, Lisa and Stephen, for allowing us to share your incredible wedding! And congratulations on your upcoming first anniversary later this week!

[All photos credited to docuvitae]

Vendors

Coffee truck: Java the Truck

Dress: Claire Pettibone

Cake: Sweet Lady Jane

Flowers: Flowerwild

Venue: Malibu Nature Preserve

Photography: docuvitae

Month-Of Coordination: Celebrations of Joy