the fairmount bride

RSVP

I have made an executive decision to hold on off on wedding posts, or at least posts about my wedding, until I am able to get my hands on our professional pictures.   I want to show you all so many things, but want to give it all the credit it deserves.  Until then, I will post as normal. 

Today, my good friend Beth's wedding invitation came in the mail.  I love how perfect they are for her and her fiance Greg, colors, texture, font, everything.  And what I especially love is the response card.  A blank card, asking for your response by December 5th, and nothing else on it.  I think these are such a neat idea!

 

I know there is a million ways to shape your response card, but I like that this gives your guests the opportunity to write a little message, expressing their excitement about attending your wedding.  How much more fun to open a hand written note, than a card with a box checked off!  Bravo!

(photo from Minted)

Thank You, Thank You

With the wedding being so close, just 10 days away, we have started to receive wedding presents.  Of course, with the presents, come the thank you notes.  I had originally thought that I would have cards printed that match our invitation suite.  However, I stumbled upon this idea from Martha Stewart, and really like it. 

 

Choose a picture from your wedding photos, or better yet, pose for one specifically and create note cards with the picture as the cover of the card.  It is definitely a fun way to get creative with your spouse and your photographer, and will give you fun and unique thank you cards!

(photos from Martha Stewart)

Sweet Paper.. Literally!

I am digging this find on Etsy, a very cool shop called Sweet Papery, that specializes in custom stamps and labels for any and all uses!  On the wedding front, I am particularly fond of the personalized monogrammed stickers, which can be used for dressing up any normal box, or bag, used to hold your favors.

    

 

I also love their wide array of individualized rubber stamps, which are a super cute alternative to your garden variety return address labels.  These will definitely come in handy for the extreme amount of thank you note writing that follows any wedding! 

 

Head on over to their shop and see all the options, I had a hard time just picking one to use in the post!

(photos from Sweet Papery)

Your Invited..

I can't believe that this is my 100th post, and I couldn't be more excited to have this post be the debut of our invitations!  They were finished, and mailed last week, thanks to my wonderful friend Meredith, of grafikmac designs, who was the brilliant designer behind both my invites, and save the dates.  So, without further ado..

We opted for invitations in chocolate brown envelopes to help keep all the information together in one place.  The stickers were purchased in white from Paper Source, and Meredith designed the logo and printed them. 

Our invite all put together.  We kept with the floral design that we had for the save the dates, however switching the font to brown and flower to a deep pink.

Our inserts with all the pertinent information for our travelers!  We used the deep pink font for the headers of each category, which included fun symbols to designate the category, and brown for the body of the text.

I always like the idea of not using the typical "Will attend," or "Will not attend."  So, instead, we used "Wouldn't miss it," or "Be there in spirit."

And last but not least, our map!  I was thrilled with how well my friend Jeannie created a map for our guests, similar to the one that was drawn for my parents wedding, almost 36 years ago.

As you may be able to tell, these are not professional pictures, so I apologize for the lack of quality!   However, if you are in the Philadelphia area, and looking for someone to design your invitations, you owe it to yourself to get in touch with grafikmac designs, and see the amazing portfolio in person.  Meredith is so talented, and will work with you to design exactly what you are looking for!   I can't say enough good things about my experience! 

Save the Date

I am loving the save the date's that the winners created for Minted's design challenge contest.  The idea was to have contestants design modern photo save-the-date cards to complement the sophisticated styles of three real life couples.  A few of my favorites...

Designed by Float Paperie

Designed by Alaina Cherup

Designed by Cococello

Design by Maria B. Nelson

And they are available for order via Minted's website! 

(photos from Minted)

Fan Appreciation

An element of the wedding that I have been struggling with is what to do about creating a program.  I wasn't sure whether I wanted to keep it traditional, or try and do something a little bit craftier.  Well, I am happy to say, that I am going to attempt to go craftier.

    

Fans!  I had seen this idea before, but these pictures from Grove Avenue Bride's blog, make me like it all the more.  I think it will be perfect, to design the program on the fan itself, especially given an outdoor wedding in Florida!  I have yet to figure out the design itself, but I do know that they will have dark pink bows, to tie into the other pink we are using throughout the wedding.  I am thrilled at the idea!   

(photos from Grove Avenue Bride)

Mind your Manners

Growing up in a household where thank you notes were a must for every present given, with each note being personalized to both the person, as well as the gift, I am fully prepared for the thank you note writing process that is about to ensue.  These days with engagement, shower and wedding gifts being the norm, a girl needs to be able to have fun and cute note cards to pen each of those properly written thank you's.  That's where Fabulous Stationary comes in quite handy!  Located right here in Philadelphia, but also available online, their designs are inspired, and the modern edge definitely gives them a wonderful uniqueness.

For the bride-to-be, perhaps these custom designs would fit the bill for all those shower gifts:

Now that your a two-some, perhaps all that wedding gift appreciation would be better suited with one these:

And lest we forget the all import calling card to tell people where your new digs are located:

These are just a few of the samples that are provided at Fabulous Stationary, so make sure to pay their website a visit.  Your guests will "thank you."

(photos from Fabulous Stationary)

I Heard it Through the Grapevine

Still in the stages of finalizing the layout of our invites with my designer Meredith, and in doing research have found some extraordinary talent out there.  My latest find is Grapevine, whose owner Karen believes strongly in your stationary telling the story of your wedding.  Judging by her online portfolio, she is a fantastic story teller!  A few of my favs...

I love that it comes all tied together in a little metal compact!

   

A ceremony paddle fan for perhaps an outdoor wedding.  In Florida...?

These are great way to get your guests excited for a destination wedding! 

See more of Karen's portfolio on her website.

(photos from Grapevine)

Sign, Sealed, Delivered...

One of my bestest pals is getting married here in Philly next week, and I am very much looking forward to it!  Mary Beth is not only a great friend, but she is also one of the craftiest people I know, and her skills came in quite handy when it came to her wedding invitations.  Once again, she put me in awe of her talents as she took a bit of inspiration from Bird and Banner, and hand crafted her own invites.  Such an amazing job...

Check out  Mary Beth's blog to read the full story, and find out the step-by-step process of how she created the invitations. 

(photos from Mary Beth)

You are Cordially Invited

I spent the evening brainstorming ideas of how we are going to have our wedding invitations designed, in layout, color, font, etc.  Again, like many things, I can't seem to make up my mind because I like so many things.  While on looking around Minted, I was really impressed at the various designs, as well as the all the various designers they offer for wedding invitations.  There were so many that gave me great ideas, but I particularly enjoyed the work of The Happy Envelope.  I enjoyed the variety of their designs, some leaning towards a more classic and formal feel, and others presenting a more modern and funky approach.  Rather entertaining, and definitely inspirational.  A few that stood out in the crowd...

(photos are The Happy Envelope, via Minted)