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Every birthday party, housewarming, and holiday shindig invitation was practice for the most exciting one of them all: Your wedding invite! It can be simple or elaborate or scented or themed—but it will be 100% you and your partner’s. The best invitations incorporate the aesthetic of the Big Day itself. Tease the color scheme or hint at the ambiance. You can go heavy on the imagery of the location or make fonts and colors do the work. When it comes to options for wedding invitations, there’s an embarrassment of riches so we’re here to help you sift through the noise. We’ll walk you through some invite ideas that will wow your guests and leave a lasting impression.
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Calligraphied Classics
There’s something timeless about calligraphy for a wedding invitation. It can never be played out or trite because it’s an untouchable classic. Each invitation is a work of art that your friends and family will admire while it’s pinned to their fridge. Plume calligraphy (price available once you submit a proposal) offers six suites of stationery that you can customize with the calligraphy style of your choice. The Fleur Suite allows the handwritten calligraphy to shine spectacularly. You’ll choose from three styles of calligraphy (Flourished & Elegant, Simple & Casual, or Modern & Romantic) and two printing methods (letterpress or foil). Karla Lim of Written Word Calligraphy offers beautiful minimalist invitations with very straightforward pricing. Take the Shibui 4-Piece Suite (from $750 for 25), which can be printed in digital, foil, or letterpress. The price includes one minor revision that allows you to rethink color, text, and calligraphy style if the proof isn’t to your liking. For a more budget-friendly option, Christine Choe Yi’s Ethereal Elegance design from Minted ($450 for 60) speaks to a modernized version of calligraphy and includes a personalized wedding website, guest address printing, and a consultation with a stationery expert.
Another beautiful way to incorporate calligraphy into your invitations is to have the envelopes hand-addressed. Written Word Calligraphy offers this service ($162.50 for 25). Plume & Flourish charges per envelope ($7/piece and $4 additional for a two-line return address). Karissa O'Keefe of Pretty Written Things offers an incredible array of calligraphy styles that will appeal to both traditionalists and also those looking for something a bit cheekier.
Finally, here’s a crazy idea: If you have a long lead time (or need a new hobby), pick up a calligraphy kit ($105) and learn the art of handlettering yourself.
Personalized Illustrations
If Big White Wedding isn’t really your speed and traditional wedding imagery strikes you as old-fashioned, you should look into working with an artist to create personalized invitations from scratch. You can highlight a hobby that both of you love, a pet, your wedding menu, or your venue with beautiful, hand-drawn illustrations. Customized invitations immediately inhabit a more personalized vibe: instead of elegant-formal, you can share your whimsical or romantic or quirky side. Imagine a tiny illustration of you and your partner dancing or cheers-ing on your RSVP card — could anything be more adorable?
One of my favorite wedding artists is Ofelia Botella whose work I fell in love with after seeing this beautiful vintage-cars-meets-florals suite. Botella offers Designed in a Day (starts at $2,300) packages and is so approachable and friendly. She says this package is perfect for couples who “are in a hurry and can’t wait for months for their stationery but still want something fully personalised!” This package makes it a breeze to “[cross] something off your wedding to-do list” and make sure it’s one-of-kind. Botella uploads the designs (with editable text, in case your details are still up in the air) and you are responsible for printing.
Customized & Modern
It will surprise no one that once you follow one wedding artist on Instagram, you will be served many, many more — and this is a great way to shop around. I recently discovered Danielle Rae Snow of Maple & Rae and was immediately drawn to the anti-wedding feel of her designs. They’re the cool girl of wedding invitations (think The Anti-Bride vibes) — they don’t take themselves seriously, and feel a little bit casual but still put together. Her not-so-on-the-nose aesthetic makes the invitations feel very distinct and personal, but without ever entering twee territory. Pricing for Maple & Rae (per unit, which includes design) is available here.
Themed Invitations
For some people, WEDDING is enough of a theme — but weddings are a perfect opportunity for maximalists to run wild with an idea: Palm Springs in the 60s, Little White Chapel + Elvis, NYC, summer camp, disco, Woodstock. A theme is great for defining a color palette and establishing a set of unifying visuals for your invitation.
For couples working with a strict budget, starting with a template is a great way to reduce costs. You can tinker with the design until it’s exactly what you like and take care of printing yourself. This oyster-themed template is a great design to preview the raw bar and this laid-back cake-centric template feels fun and relaxed. For something that speaks to Palm Beach country club, check out this striped yellow and green template.
A favorite artist is a great theme to bring to an invitation designer. These Matisse-themed invitations by Iris and Marie are so special and unique that they’ll make you want something just as tailor-made for your special day. The same studio designed these toile invitations with nods to Chinoiserie with the most incredible embossing.
Open to Everything?
There are so many beautiful design options that it’s hard to narrow down whether you want something colorful or monochrome, modern or classic. If the tyranny of choice is afflicting you, consider working with a studio that can do it all like Fourteen / Forty. Owner Tricia Kim, a letterpress printer and former magazine art director, can bring any design to life. Her studio offers a remarkable range of illustration options (watch the Illustration highlight) that will boggle your imagination. The pen and ink designs are remarkable, and details like wax seals and hand-torn edges will make your heart skip a beat.
Finally, a few other styles and artists that make me wish I could have ten weddings: for intricate florals try Linden Illustration, for trendy designs try Coral Pheasant, for minimalist check out Seulghi.
Edible Invitations
Edible Arrangements get a bad rap because they’re cheesy and always arrive a little worse for wear. But the idea is solid and we’re going to riff on it for a beautiful and yummy wedding invite. Your entire invitation doesn’t need to be edible (although cookie invitations do exist), just one element. I recommend working with a cookie artist to create a design that captures the essence of your celebration — and instead of saving these beauts for party favors, mail them out with your Save the Date! Abby Jane of @angelbakednyc dreams up astounding wedding-themed cookies (maybe your dress is the inspo?) and pretty much anything else you can imagine (prices range from $150-$250 per dozen).
For a less pricey edible token of your love, you could go with these heart-shaped tins of wedding-themed M&Ms (starts at $4/each for a minimum of 24 tins). Customize your chocolate with up to two lines of text (9 characters each) and mix up to three colors. Ruze Cake House designs beautiful custom macarons — but those need to be eaten same day, so sadly they're not ideal for a mailed invitation. But their pink chocolate-covered oreos (price upon request) look festive, delicious, and postal-service-friendly.
“We Have Technology”
In keeping with the touch of edibility, why not consider a touch of technology to give your invitation a little something extra? The post-wedding video is a thing already, but the pre-wedding trailer is less common. If you’re more of a low-key bride, put together a homemade video collage and send it out with your digital Save the Dates. If you prefer something a bit more polished, hire a videographer for an engagement shoot and upload the video to your wedding website so your guests can watch a mini movie when they RSVP. If you have a proclivity for DIY, create your entire digital invitation using a template and customize every single element.
Your invitation is the first hint of the incredible celebration to come. There are no rules or requirements, you should feel free to go as off-script as you want and make it truly your own. When the event is over, you can frame it as a beautiful keepsake and hang it to remember the beginning of your marriage.
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