Lisa and Lenny's Mediterranean Themed Wedding

Farm tables, textured linens, twine and a touch of bay leaf tucked into the napkin. 

Alas! This gorgeous mediterranean themed wedding has occurred and I can now share all the details that made it so stunningly beautiful. Lucky for me, the bride and the wedding planner, Lindsey from The Lindsey Baer Company, love branding and so all aspects of the wedding were thoughtfully and carefully considered. We started with a sketchy, hand drawn save the date that included the town where Lisa and Lenny got engaged. The invitation suite featured beautiful watercolor illustrations by Robin Ewers Carnes, which I arranged and re-arranged throughout the invitation, RSVP, the envelope liners, and the inserts. The overall feel was elegant but the kraft envelope kept things feeling too stuffy or formal. Here is a good look at all the pieces together.

The reception decor was so spectacular! The club was truly transformed into an elegant mediterranean garden. Those amazing flowers were Kristen from Yellow Canary's genius. The guest favors of Jordan almonds and tiny bottles of Limoncello doubled as escort cards since the guest's name and table assignment were on the tag. Each place setting included a hand-drawn menu that also served as a place card since we customized it with each guest's name. Love. Love. Love!

Here are some more photos of the wedding...

Table numbers in real wood holders.

Talk about a glowing bride! Photo by David Stephen Photography

Lemon trees and a touch of amber glassware add color. Photo by David Steven Photography

Customized menus and host tags.

Want to see more?
I've got additional mediterranean-themed event inspiration on my Pinterest board here. You can purchase invitations similar to the ones I designed for Lisa from my Etsy shop listing here.

Wedding planner - The Lindsey Baer Company
Photographer - David Stephen Photography
Hair - Sally Burch
Makeup - Brideface
Florist - Yellow Canary
Cake - Happy Chicks Bakery
Dress - custom made by Calle Evans

Annabelle's Favorite Things Birthday Party

Like many bright 4 year old girls, sweet little Annabelle has so many passions, it was difficult to decide which one would inspire the theme of her 4th birthday party: Frozen, The Sound of Music, Willy Wonka, Annie, dogs & cats, etc. Clever mom, Lindsey (of Lindsey Baer Company) decided not to make her choose one, but instead created a "Favorite Things" birthday theme.

I created a colorful and hand-drawn swiss-inspired folk invitation using Lindsey's revised lyrics to the tune "Favorite Things". The back had the invitation details and a sweet monogram, which was used throughout the party ephemera. Lindsey set up craft stations and interactive games throughout the party area, and even had "Maria" visit to sing some songs from the musical. The video L sent me was so adorable, Annabelle sang every word!

A modified version of the invitation is on my Etsy store if you've got a party for your favorite girl coming up soon.

Here are some photos from the event to inspire you!

Creative Bar Mitzvah Invitation with Engraved Plexiglass

Oooh! This was a fun invitaiton to design and produce. My client wanted a creative and upscale Bar Mitzvah invitation for her son. His theme was basketball and shades of blue but she didn't want the invitation to be overly thematic.

I created a stacked invitation that looked modern and fresh. The engraved plexiglass topped a stack of cards, each for the ceremony, the party and the RSVP postcard. The cards went from navy blue to white and were printed on a pearlescent card stock that add elegance and a little festive sparkle.

This is an invitation that is in the luxury price range. If you would like a quote, please email me.

Gold Foil printing or Flat Gold Printing?

Gold foil invitations are on trend right now and I've got several listed in my Etsy shop here. I get lots of questions from brides about gold foil so today I took this quick video showing the same invitation printed two ways: one with flat gold colored ink (on the left) and one with gold foil (on the right).

Why is gold foil so expensive?
I get this question all the time. The simple answer is that foil (like letterpress and engraving) can only be printed with an old-fashioned printing press, which is quite an ordeal. First a die is cast in metal for the gold foil section, then it has to be put on the press, then the printer has to align it correctly to the placement on the card and print a bunch of samples in the process before it's finally ready for production. Once the press is ready for the foil, the printer feeds in cards one at a time. Because of the laborious set-up press time, quantities under 100 are not economical.

What is the flat gold colored ink?
Any matte, non-metalic ink can be printed beautifully from a digital press. A digital press is basically a huge, really awesome printing machine that can print multiple colors and on various card stocks. Think of it as your desktop printer on steroids. The set-up costs are minimal compared to the foil press, so it's possible to have as few as 10 prints and as many as 1000 or more!

Watch the difference in this video:

It's definitely worth the extra cost for the foil process, but it doesn't fit in all budgets. If you would like a touch of metallic gold (or any metallic color) but it's not in your budget, don't give up hope! A more economical way to bring gold into your invitation is with a ribbon, or a metallic gold paper envelope liner.

Julie's Outdoor Wedding Invitations

I thought I'd share some recent invitations I created for sweet Julie and her new husband Hal. Julie and Hal got married at a small event with very close family and friends, then invited their larger group of friends and family to celebrate with desserts and dancing afterwards.

This required several invitations that all coordinated together. Here are some beautiful photographs of the wedding invitation and the programs taken by Amanda Donaho Photography. These are available for purchase on my Etsy shop. You can find more outdoor wedding decor ideas on this Pinterest board.

Star Wars Themed Bar Mitzvah

The Star Wars fun was galactic at Emmett's bar mitzvah! It started with a really fun invitation that was both elegant and full of Star Wars movie references. I consulted with my Star Wars geek (I say that with admiration and affection) word-smith Jeb Brack, who helped bring the fun into the invitation text. My favorite part is the custom logo that looks like the movie titles and the classic "moving through space" format of the wording.

But I'm going to brag on Emmett's mom and dad here, because they did a ton of work finding the right thematic elements to add fun to the party without going overboard. I did a little consulting, but honestly it was just some hand-holding to let them know that they already had some great stuff going on. They encouraged guests to dress in thematic costumes, brought in the Storm Troopers as live photo booth props and kept the dancing going all night with a fantastic DJ.

Here are a few photos I took from the party with links listed at the end of this post. I've got a Star Wars Pinterest board with more vendors and Star Wars theme decor ideas to inspire you. Purchase or request invitation quotes via my Etsy listing here.

Host cards in black envelopes led guests to their seats, labeled as Star Wars planets instead of numbers.

Light sabers, tea lights and a scattering of star glitter created a galactic view that was simple to assemble.

Table numbers were Star Wars planet travel posters.

A close-up of the "no flowers" table decor.

Emmett's sister Grace was dressed to impress.

Yes, that's an R2D2 skirt!

Another Padawan in attendance.

The DJ had a stellar light show to go with his own Star Wars costume.

Nothing gets people dancing like a disco Storm Trooper...

Storm Trooper photo op!

These cookies looked and tasted amazing. Seriously, the talent!!

Vendor list: R2D2-inspired skirt from Rooby Lane, DJ Toad, similar Star Wars Planet Posters from Harknett Photography, similar glitter for the tables. The cookies were made as a favor for this party only. I believe the Storm Troopers were from Ohio Garrison. Photo booth TBD.

Gold Foil Wedding Invitations!

Loving the touch of sparkle that gold brings to your wedding decor? Me too! I've got several invitations available that use the gold foil with my hand drawn calligraphy style for your names.

Here is the latest design I've uploaded to my Etsy shop. This bride used hot pink and medium pinks as accent colors. Do you love?