Stationery Etiquette!

Over the years I have had many brides ask me specific questions about Wedding Stationary Etiquette. So today is all about etiquette, keep in mind some of the information below, is how I do things here at The 2u Collection and Paper Couture Stationery, some of these "rules" have been modified to what I've found works best over the years, so in researching etiquette rules you may find different rules. What I've found over the years, is it is mostly personal preference how you handle some of these things. And I could write on etiquette for pages and pages, so with that in mind I just tried to create a brief overview of the main items and the questions I get asked the most.


With the current days of online invitations, eblasts, wedding websites, etc. it is easy to understand why there would be so many questions. Well instead of having to thumb through Emily Post’s Etiquette, I would like to help clear up some of the do’s and don’t’s of the world of wedding invitations.

WEDDING INVITATIONS

The main goal of the wedding invitation is to let your guests know the who, what, when, and where of the event. It will also serve to express the formality and tone of the event through the complexity, color, fonts, and design of the invitation. Once the invitation has successfully accomplished the 4 W’s the last step is to ensure that they are addressed and delivered with the proper courtesy! Keep in mind the Save the Date or Invitation is the first introduction your guests have to your spectacular event. It's a window into the Tone and Design of the event, and a great opportunity to start a BUZZ about your wedding. So, it's always best to WOW them, so they are excited and looking forward to the unveiling to come.

When to send the invitation:

Typically 2 months before your wedding date. The standard is 6 weeks before, but depending on travel, location of wedding and whether or not Save the Dates were sent is what will determine just how many weeks before your event you send your invitations.

What are the proper Formal Social Titles?

Mr. - Formal Male Title

Ms. - Formal Female Title, for divorcée or over 40 single woman

Mrs. - Formal Title for Married Females

Miss - Formal Title for Unmarried Females under 40 years old

How to address your invitations:

Couples-

Standard - Mr. And Mrs. John Smith

One has a Professional Title - Doctor Jane Smith and Mr. John Smith

Both have a Professional Title - Doctor Jane Smith and Doctor John Smith or The Drs. John and Jane Smith

Unmarried Couples - Miss Jane Smith

                             Mr. John Adams

Single Guests- 

Unmarried Female - Miss Jane Smith or Ms. Jane Smith

Divorced Female - Ms. Jane Jones

Widowed Female - Mrs. Jane Smith or Mrs. John Smith

Children - 

Under 16 - Only list parents name on the outer envelope and list the children's name on the inner envelope. For example: Jason and Brittany.

Over 16 - Get their own invitation! Addressed: Miss Brittany Smith or Mr. Jason Smith

When to use an Inner and Outer Envelope?:

Typically, we usually only use an outer mailing envelope, but if you are having a very formal or traditional event, then you will want to have both an inner and outer envelope, it gives an heir of sophistication and implies formality.

How to word the invitation depending on who is paying for the wedding:

Example when Brides Parents are paying:

Mr. and Mrs. John Smith request the honor of your presence at the marriage of 

their daughter Jennifer Michelle to Mr. James Joseph Clark on Saturday, the sixth of 

November Two Thousand Eleven at two o’clock in the afternoon at Little Chapel 

Winter Park, Florida.

Example when Groom’s Parents are paying:

Mr. and Mrs. Thomas Clark request the honor of your presence at the marriage of Miss Jennifer Michelle Smith to their son Mr. James Joseph Smith

When both are paying:

Mr. and Mrs. John Smith request the honor of your presence at the marriage of 

their daughter Jennifer Michelle to Mr. James Clark son of Mr. and Mrs. Thomas Clark

When the Bride and Groom are paying:

The honor of your presence is requested at the marriage of Miss Jennifer Michelle Smith and Mr. James Joseph Clark

OR

Miss Jennifer Michelle and Mr. James Joseph Clark together with their parents request the honor of your presence

Do you need a wedding website?

 It isn't' 100% necessary, However the majority of brides choose to have one these days. It is beneficial for several reasons, and you can get them free at most wedding websites these days (weddingwire.com, theknot.com, marthastewartweddings.com, etc) And if you are splurging on Custom Invitations, a website can be created that matches the design and feel of your invitations.

How to use your Wedding Website:

Now a days couples are using a website (otherwise called a wedsite) tailored specifically to their wedding to help spread the word about issues that are not considered polite to express on the actual invitation, such as posting where you are registered, addressing a “No Children” policy, when giving complicated or detailed directions, informing your guests of hotel special room rates, and providing links to area activities for out of towners. 

SAVE THE DATES

The Save the Date is used to informally invite your wedding guests in further advance than the invitation, to help prevent them from planning events on your wedding date. They are good for anyone inviting friends/family that will need to travel  to the wedding so that travel arrangements can be made. The Save the Date is also a great place to inform your guests of your wedding website!

When to send your Save the Dates:

Typically 4 to 6 months before your wedding date. If planning a destination wedding they can be sent up to 12 months before your wedding date!

I hope this blog helps, any of you with questions, if you have a specific question I haven't addressed you can always email me at amy@2ucollection.com. And keep in mind, don't get caught up in following everything to a T, as time moves forwards and traditions and standards change, these rules can be flexible and it's really about your personal preference.

New Website for The 2u Collection!

Every few years we try to push ourselves here to keep our brides and clients belief in us alive! It was time for an updated website, that isn't just pretty, but more functional.  I am happy to share this with you, it was a labor of love and I want to say thanks to Stephanie for really being the key person in this project.  Great Job.


I won't go on any longer! Please go visit, and comment below to tell us what you think. We've added new images of some of our favorite projects from last year!


So excited OUR NEW WEBSITE just launched!! Check it out.http://2ucollection.com/

Exciting New Images for Paper Couture Stationery!

I know I've been away for a bit.. But I have a great reason. Abby Liga and I have been busy reshooting the Paper Couture Stationery Website. As many of you know Liga Photography is a partner in our Ready Made Limited Edition Line of Stationery.


This has been our brain child for a while, but as you know in Wedding Season it's hard sometimes to find the time.  We finally just decided to carve out a day and do it.  The goal here was to present our fine stationery in a romantic and functional way.Many of our brides tell us, they have trouble visualizing what their stationery will look like at their wedding, so we decided to shoot everything in a Anthropology, Table setting environment. Hopefully this will help all of you visualize how amazing your stationery will look in the reception environment.


Stay Tuned, we should have all the new images up in the next month, so be sure to check back now and then to see our new designs and new photography!
2ucouture.com

Beachy, Contemporary, & Nautical!

I've been excited to blog this invitation, for a few reasons. It's an interesting twist on a beachy nautical wedding, and this is the wedding of my fabulous hair stylist, Kim Min! You have probably seen me blog about her in the past, as I also create her marketing & branding!

What I love about Kim is she is super simple in her style. But do not under estimate simple. I don't think I've ever seen Kim where I haven't thought. "Geez, she is always so CUTE!"  

And not to disappoint, Kim carried this simple style to her wedding as well. She had an intimate outdoor ceremony at the water with friends and family and then a fun gathering at her favorite restaurant. This restaurant has a contemporary, sea theme, which Kim and her husband LOVE. So the idea was to draw from the restaurant's decor to create her wedding package. So what we developed it above. A great set which included the invitation, placecards, favors and Thank Yous.

We used Pale Blue Metallic duplexed with Sandy Brown Metallic Interior, with Aqua colored Crystals as a small detail. The invitation came in a Duo Box, see above a blue base and a brown top, which really excited the guests. To make it more exciting, the box was filled with chocolate brown sand under acrylic. And for a personal touch, Kim and Rod had me add seashells in the sand, that they actually picked up from the beach where they were engaged. 

The Thank You was a vertical fold, with a short cut cover- giving the inside white textured paper a nice Peek-A-Boo! 

Invitation above turned out great! We did a die cut on the cover reminiscence of a wave.  The bride loved it, and it really made for a unique twist. 

We found these great Sailboat placecard holders, which really added to the decor of the table.

And these great Silver Starfish Bottle Openers, for the guests to take-a-way piece.

A Brunch of Brides Showcase at The Newly Renovated Citrus Club

Yesterday I was lucky enough to meet some wonderful brides at the newly renovated Citrus Club.  An Affair to Remember put together a wonderful intimate showcase for 75 brides, some of the orlando best and brightest vendors participated. I am extremely happy and proud to be among them.  

The event took place at the newly renovated Citrus Club, and as you can see by the images below, the facelift was amazing! The club is gorgeous, and the views from the 18th Floor are amazing.

I was so glad when I was asked to design the invitation for this event, I jumped on it! Paper Couture Stationery provided the invitations for the event. And, At the event we showcased our Ready-Made. Limited Edition. Line, as well as The 2u Collection, our custom design division.

I am so lucky to have a great friend in Lee Forrest of Lee Forrest Design. He created a beautiful flower arrangement for my table, and the brides just LOVED it. Below is an image of it, and also the beautiful table he arranged to showcase his work!

Abby Liga of Liga Photography and Ben Lawson of Kaleidoscope pre-event, networking and preparing for the brides to arrive!

And the day wouldn't have been complete of course without the Amazing team at An Affair to Remember ! Props Ladies, you did very well, and you can count me in for anything you do!!

It's all in the Details!

(ALL STUDIO PHOTOGRAPHY BY LIGA PHOTOGRAPHY)

I often have brides ask me how do I create a full wedding package with each piece unique, yet they all tie together.  Well, I'm going to share with you a little secret. It's all about the details. And this doesn't just go for your stationery, incorporating similar details throughout your weddings, in the flowers, in the stationery, in the cake, and in the dress. (Of course I know there is more to a wedding then these things, I'm just using these things as examples)

As we all know, every bride wants to have an AMAZING event that could grace the pages of a magazine. My first suggestion would be to get a planner.  There are several reasons for this. Planners have experience with tons of different vendors with different styles. And they can help you put together a team of creatives with styles that will compliment each other and give you the dream you are imagining. Plus, any good planner will help you design your wedding from the furniture at the reception to the church or venue you get married in. As well as take the stress, that comes with getting married, off of you so you can truly relax and enjoy every minute of your engagement and wedding experience.  

Okay, now that I have gotten that out. It's time to discuss the details, since my expertise is everything paper and stationery, I will use one of my favorite stationery designs to illustrate what I'm trying to say.  

The bride loved the feather element we incorporated in the wedding invitation (see wooden box above) but we didn't want feathers to overpower the reception or the stationery, so they were incorporated into the cake and the coloring book above we illustrated for the children at the wedding.  

PS. another nice PERSONAL touch was the illustration of the coloring book was the love story 

of the bride and groom. Personal Touches can really help the overall tone of your wedding and make the stationery of your event really move your guests.

You can easily create an amazing wedding experience, you just need to keep in mind you need to sprinkle similar design elements throughout. For example As you can see in the Main image at the top, the bride really liked the design elements of pearls, lace and feathers. Now, something to keep in mind is A LITTLE GOES A LONG WAY.  Mistakes a lot of brides make is they take their favorite design element and then WAAAAAAYYYYY overdue it.. 

My advice is you pick at least 2, NO MORE Than 3 design elements and then sprinkle them throughout your wedding or your wedding stationery.  If your instinct tells you you're using something too much. Than you probably are and should dial it back.  My suggestion would be to decide what the feeling is you want to convey at your wedding, and focus on that feeling more than the parts and pieces of your wedding. For example, the images I'm using, this bride wanted a romantic, elegant feeling. Focusing on this, is what helps me in every design project I take on. 

The Iridescent Wooden Invitation Box inspired these table numbers, the guests only saw the wood texture in the invitation, so it was a nice detail in the reception table numbers to 

remind them of how they felt when they received that invitation.

PS. we filled the glass vases with pearls, as that was detail throughout the 

wedding the bride wanted to see.

As you can see, buy the above pictures, we loved the lace and pearl elements but didnt' want to go overboard with them so one pearl embleshined the passed appetizer trays, the reception menus, and the church programs, small lace borders we used just on the programs and the appetizer tray cards. 

When I feel that I'm struggling with a particular element of the stationery set as a whole, I step back take a minute and go back to the feeling we are trying to create. A perfect example of this is the escort cards from this wedding stationery. I wanted to do something that went with the other stationery pieces, but didn't look exactly like them. So I thought.. ROMANCE & ELEGANCE, what I came up with is below, they were a big hit and really added to the romance of the cocktail hour.

Glass votives with lit candles and translucent vellum created these unique escort cards, and although they didn't incorporate pearls, lace or feathers, but it really added to the romantic feel, 

along with matching the other stationery pieces.

What's New on the Advertising Side of things?

A NEW LOOK AT LIGA


As many of you know, I have been working on the Marketing and Brand of Liga Photography for the last 4 years.  Abby is not only a great friend of mine, I have huge respect for her as an artist as well.  It's been almost 3 years since we created her last brand, and it is a brand that has served her well.  But as you can imagine we are both ready to move forward with something BOLD and New. Like every artist with each shoot Abby's creative work grows and changes, so this year we are embarking on creating something new and Fresh with her new work and a further developed brand.  So I won't go on any more.. See below for the sneak peek of what is to come. This is a promo card, and soon the website will come, and a new presentation kit!