Our vintage chic Cartoccio (by Ian Koenig) letterpress wedding invitations are modernized in this customization that screams with 2011′s popular colors. Letterpress printed in watermelon and pewter inks on 1-ply white paper, our free eco specs message is also featured in watermelon on the back of the invitation. A #17 (typically our place card or website card size) reception card to match is also an unexpected element of detail. We adore the wording featured at the top of the invitation which adds such a personal touch- how romantic! Our modern floral envelope liner in pewter adds character to this whimsical set. Nothing is sweeter than a Italian summer wedding!

Claire and Brad’s gorgeous New Zealand wedding is one of those celebrations that is just beyond dreamy. Inspired by lace, elegance, English tea parties and summer, Claire planned a stunning vintage chic wedding with whimsical touches in a sophisticated color palette of white, cream and ivory with hints of soft powder blue. They chose our Cartoccio letterpress wedding invitations, printed in xanadu ink on our ivory cotton paper, to tie in with their chic and elegant affair. Claire wore a 1920s inspired dress from Phillipa Lepley Couture and the bridesmaids wore vintage style dresses from Whistles. The guys donned slim line powder blue suits that felt incredibly fashionable and only slightly like Las Vegas (in a good way). Claire and Brad met while attending university and Brad’s father officiated at their ceremony. A sweet love story paired with a neutral color palette and pretty vintage touches make this wedding an affair to remember.

We had a few questions for Claire after planning and designing such a beautiful wedding…

What advice do you have for brides still planning their weddings?
Let things go when you need to, don’t over research, trust your gut instincts with decision making and try to agree on things together where you can – we got quite creative in the end. A mood board is your friend, try to keep true to the original vision – it’s all too tempting to go in different directions. Sometimes less is more. Don’t scrimp on the things that are really important to you, prioritize your top five and save on the rest. Make sure you feel entirely comfortable with every aspect of your dress so you don’t fiddle on the day. Savor every part of the process and the buzz, it goes so quickly towards the end…keep taking 5…stepping back to soak it all in.

What surprised you most about your wedding?
Brad singing ‘It Had to be You’ as the intro to his speech…first time I’ve seen/heard him sing in public…he would have been so far out of his comfort zone. That meant a lot.

What’s your favorite memory from your day?
There was no one point in particular, the whole day was magic. The speeches have stayed with me. Everyone who spoke trumped each other, I was blown away with the thought and story behind each

Thank you so much for sharing, Claire, and a huge congratulations from all of us here at Bella Figura! We wish you all the best and a lifetime of happiness in the years ahead.

Vendors -
Dress: Phillipa Lepley Couture, style Summertime (A stunning backless silk slipper gown lined in silk slipper satin with feather Chantilly lace overlay. Silk satin ties and tail to the shoulder. Satin sash low slung on waist.)
Accessories: House of Waris earrings
Shoes: Jimmy Choo
Hair/makeup: Maza White (makeup), Natasha Radonich (hair)
Bridesmaid dresses: Whistles
Photography: Kate MacPherson
Flowers: Flowers on Franklin
Cake: City Cake Company
Catering: Mantells
Entertainment: Blackbird Strings

{Photos by Kate MacPherson.}

Recently we’ve been a printing a lot of fabulous letterpress ceremony programs and program covers and wanted to share a handful of our favorites. From flat panel tea-length letterpress programs featuring full ceremony details to pretty program covers, we love every opportunity we get to print a great letterpress program. Program covers allow you to print your own insert pages and then tie everything together with a pretty ribbon or colorful twine and lend an extra special touch to a wedding ceremony.

{Birch flat panel letterpress wedding program.}

{Letterpress program cover in Cartoccio.}

{Tuileries letterpress program cover.}

{Tea-length flat panel ceremony program in our Keswick design.}

{Weber letterpress ceremony program cover.}

{Letterpress ceremony program cover in Wisteria.}

A recent Bella Figura bride sent us photos of her beautiful letterpress wedding programs in action and we couldn’t resist sharing them. Ally and Chris used our Cartoccio design printed in espresso ink on our ivory cotton paper for their wedding invitations and their beautiful ceremony programs. We hole drilled the programs, which they later tied with pretty purple ribbon. We love how they turned out and it’s a joy for us to see photos of them from Ally and Chris’s big day. A big thank you to them for sharing and to their wedding photographer Jennifer Chase for the beautiful photos!

{Photos by Jennifer Chase.}

It’s always really fun for us to customize one of our designs for any occasion a client might be celebrating. Take, for instance, this really pretty petite letterpress baby announcement using our Cartoccio letterpress wedding invitation design. The same size as one of our letterpress reply cards, this sweet little announcement was printed in aubergine ink on our ivory paper. Although we printed this one a while ago it has remained a real favorite of ours – it’s a completely adorable and really special way to welcome a happy new addition to the family!

Our Cartoccio letterpress wedding invitation design has become a fast favorite and it’s easy for us to see why – it is so incredibly chic! This customization is one of our favorites that we’ve recently printed, because it’s so lovely and so luxurious. Printed on our 2-ply ivory paper in 2-color letterpress, this invitation set is an absolute showstopper. Featuring garden and antique gold inks, it’s a look that is modern, but with the all of the subtle formality of a more traditional letterpress invitation design. Paired with fabulous letterpress printed envelopes with beautiful metallic gold liners, this invitation is rich in detail and personality. Even the reply cards are printed on our luxurious 2-ply paper for a finished look that is completely polished. We can’t get enough!

Deciding which pieces to include when deciding on your letterpress wedding invitations can be a bit confusing if you’re just starting to research so we thought it would be helpful to share some of the pieces we print most often and how you might use them. The great thing about all of these pieces is that you can pick and choose just those elements that are relevant to your event and fit comfortably within your budget, lending a lot of flexibility as you decide on your invitation suite.

{Save the Dates}
While not especially traditional, Save the Dates are becomingly increasing popular. Initially, Save the Dates {Cartoccio design featured above} were used almost exclusively for destination weddings, but we’re seeing a growing number of couples opting to send letterpress Save the Dates in advance of the wedding invitation to give guests a heads up on the upcoming event. Some simply list a date and location, while others might note a wedding website or specific venue. Usually couples send Save the Dates anywhere from six months to a year in advance, depending on the length of their engagement. Save the Dates are especially helpful when you are expecting a lot of out of town guests, but are by no means a requirement.

{Invitations}
Your invitation card {Mimosa is shown above} is arguably the most important element among all others and even despite the dawn of the e-card age, most couples still have a preference for traditional invitations, letterpress invitations being among the favorites. A general rule of thumb is that invitations include the date, time and location of the festivities and are sent to guests six to eight weeks in advance. Etiquette has long dictated the wording of invitations, although these days there is an increasing flexibility in how you word your invitation to guests. While we love printing traditional invitations, we also love to see how our brides and grooms get creative with language as they welcome guests to celebrate their union. With our wide range of letterpress invitation designs, there is truly something for every couple.

{Reception Cards}
Traditionally, reception cards {Deveril reception card above} were enclosed along with the main invitation and listed the time and place of the wedding reception only, while the invitation card itself was reserved exclusively for ceremony details. Reception information can easily be included on the bottom of the invitation, though some couples prefer to have a separate letterpress reception card if their reception is being held at a different location later in the evening, or if there are separate guest lists for each events. One great way to save money is to forgo the reception card, which is not only budget friendly, but also eco friendly too as it saves on paper. What’s not to love?

{Reply Cards/Postcards}
Reply cards {Lovebirds letterpress design above} as we know them are actually a modern custom, as traditionally invitations did not include RSVP information. Rather, it was customary for guests to reply with a hand written note on their own stationery. How sweet is that? While this particular practice is largely a thing of the past, we do see a number of couples printing requests for replies directly on the invitation and forgoing a reply card altogether, sometimes directing guests to a website or email address. Another common option is the choice of a letterpress reply postcard in lieu of a reply card with envelope. Again there are is a lot of flexibility with what information is included on a reply card and these days it might include not only the names and number of guests, but also meal selections and where the guests might be lodging for the weekend.

{Website Cards}
Website cards are another modern evolution in wedding stationery and are often just small cards printed with a website address providing information on events, accommodations, directions, local attractions, and miscellaneous information that might be useful to guests. While not a traditional element, letterpress website cards are very useful for spreading the word that you have a wedding website and that you’d like guests to visit. Some couples even opt to print extras so they can keep them on hand to give out when friends and family ask wedding-related questions. What a great idea!

{Directions/Accommodation Cards}
An increasing number of couples are opting to include direction and/or accommodations cards these days, especially as more couples plan destination or weekend-long events. We’re printing a growing number of directions cards and accommodations cards, sometimes one and the same, providing an abundance of really useful information for guests looking to make travel arrangements. It’s an extra element of hospitality that never goes overlooked by guests as anyone can appreciate not having to take extra time to research the best places to stay or how to get to the ceremony. It’s also possible to print directions on one side of a card and accommodation information on the other, even with letterpress, which is another great way to save money and save paper while still providing guests with great information.

{Tips for Deciding Which Pieces to Include}

- Determine the information that would be most useful to your guests given the details of your particular event and make that your focus

- Combine pieces where possible to help accommodate your budget

- Get creative! Don’t be afraid to include something totally unique or nontraditional, especially if you think it might be helpful for your guests

- Make it your own – letting your personalities shine through will always guarantee a beautiful letterpress invitation suite

We are always willing to answer questions and help you decide what invitation elements are perfect for you and your event. If you’re considering letterpress wedding invitations and wondering what pieces to include, let us know and we’re happy to help with ideas!

We’ve been designing and printing a whole lot of lovely letterpress save the dates lately — here are a few of our favorites! We’ll start with Cartoccio, one of our new wedding invitation designs — it’s timeless, classic, and really cool in the vibrant garden green ink.

Birds is another 2009 design that looks lovely in hot colors (though we think it would be awesome in black as well!).

We loved the elegant Bordure save the date with these ultra elegant serif fonts!