What to think about when planning your wedding stationery with Grania from Ink & Paper.
So, you’ve booked the perfect venue, you’ve bagged the photographer of your dreams and maybe found the perfect planner to complete the picture; now it’s time to think about your wedding stationery.
I love it when a plan comes together
Wedding planning is one of life’s great challenges. How are you supposed to know what to do when you’ve never done it before? And searching for your perfect wedding stationery is no different.
These days there is a lot of choice, and I mean A LOT. Be it letterpress and hot foil, watercolour, hand drawn, elegant and classic, punchy and modern, there is a whole world to choose from and this can feel overwhelming. Wedding stationery isn’t just limited to invitations; it covers anything from save the dates to order of service, menus, place cards and on-the-day signage.
It helps to take a step back and think about your day as a whole: where are you getting married? Don’t forget to set up that Pinterest board to help you define your overall look and feel… are you heading towards classic romantic, or modern? Urban or rural? Invitations are a great way to set the tone for your wedding, by introducing your colour scheme or offering a teaser of a wider theme.
You’ve got the look
Clients come to me because they value Ink & Paper’s modern romantic design aesthetic and are drawn to the old-school charm of letterpress printing. There is a wonderful keepsake element to letterpress, with its deep and tactile deboss impression. You’ll struggle to give your beautiful stationery away and your guests won’t want to part with it either!
Stationery is such a personal choice, and whatever you choose, it’s important to find someone who understands your vision and you feel can help bring it to life. I love to meet or talk to my clients and get to know you a little before we work together, as this helps me guide you in bringing your love story to life on paper.
Say my name
When choosing wedding stationery, there is no right or wrong way about it anymore, so it’s helpful to consider what is important to you: do you want an incredible wedding invitation, but to collect the guest RSVPs digitally? Are you having a wedding website and invitation, but want to set the tone for the day with a showstopper save the date? Do you want beautiful calligraphy place cards to go with your menus? And wouldn’t it be lovely for your vows to be a gorgeous memento to hang onto long after the day has passed?
Be our guest
And of course, you need to think about the numbers: how many people are attending each element of the day (or weekend!). A good rule of thumb for calculating the number of invites you need is to divide the number of invited guests by two (a lot will likely be couples after all!) and then add 20 to accommodate for singles, a few spares just in case (or to keep) or for a reserve list if you have one.
When planning wedding stationery, it is well worth doing a little research to understand the costs involved. I don’t believe in saying that stationery should account for X% of your wedding budget (that’s for you to decide) but techniques like letterpress and hot foil will always require more investment than mass-produced stationery. It’s also always a huge help if you can tell your stationer how much you are looking to spend, so we can then present ideas that suit your budget and offer alternatives where necessary.
Timing is everything
As a general rule you should be looking to send invites out four to six months before your wedding, or six months to a year if you are having a destination wedding. If you are considering bespoke letterpress or hot foil, you will need to allow an additional 4-6 weeks from when you would like to send these as artisan printing methods take longer than mass-produced items.
And don’t forget the custom and bespoke elements you may want to consider: venue illustrations, beautiful hand calligraphy or a little gold leaf to accentuate a design – these all take time, love and experience to create.
If you are eyeing up a particular supplier, it is worth booking in with them when you know they are the one for you. Small suppliers in particular can get booked up months in advance.
About Ink & Paper
Born in 2018 but many years in the making, Ink & Paper marries traditional letterpress printing with contemporary design aesthetics to create truly unique and bespoke stationery for modern couples.
For a truly hands on experience, you can also book “Print Your Own Wedding Stationery” workshops and create your invitations together on a beautiful 1950’s printing press.
Grania is the designer, printer and creative force behind Ink & Paper. She’s left-handed, which in bygone days would have ensured she was unceremoniously thrown out of the print studio. When she’s not in the studio, she’s usually plotting where she wants to eat or travel next. Or running. Or both.