Hello and welcome back! We have a very exciting blog post to share with you today featuring a special guest, Dimitria Jordan, a luxury wedding stationer based in London, U.K. Dimitria helps bring your wedding stationery visions a reality. Whether it’s stationery from a studio collection or a bespoke design, Dimitria provides a personal one-to-one service and believes in making the whole process creative, fun and stress-free. Just like us, Dimitria loves anything gold and can’t resist a slice of cake.
Dimitria Jordan is sharing the 8 most important wedding stationery tips with us and this blog is sure to not disappoint.
CHOOSING YOUR STYLE
When choosing your style, the most important thing to remember is to stay true to yourselves. It is easy to be swayed by current trends and well-meaning opinions of friends and family, but you want to look back on your special day with no regrets. Your stationery is integral to your wedding day through your menus, place cards, table plans and of course through your wedding invite before the big day. It is therefore important to choose a style that you love and will adapt across your whole day.
If you are having difficulty choosing a particular style, think about your venue and how you imagine it looking on your special day. How would you describe your wedding venue? How will it be styled? Think of three adjectives to describe your wedding venue and apply these to your wedding stationery.
TIMINGS
It is advisable to make a start on your wedding stationery as soon as possible. If you are sending save the dates, once you have your wedding venue booked you have all the details needed to begin your save the dates. Below is a rough guide to timings for your stationery:
Save The Dates – Ideally, 9-12 months before your wedding and 12-18 months for destination weddings or weddings in the U.K during the Summer months or over Bank Holiday weekends.
Invitations – Wedding invitations should be sent 3-4 months before your wedding date and 4-6 months for destination weddings or weddings in the U.K during the Summer months or over Bank Holiday weekends.
On-the-day stationery – Once your guest numbers and menu have been finalised, it’s time to think about your on-the-day stationery. Items such as table numbers, place cards and menus can all be planned in advance to save stress as your day gets closer. Your table plan will be the last item to print once your guest names have been finalised. Ask your wedding stationer when the latest this can be sent to print is, as it is worth printing this as late as possible in case of any unexpected changes.
Thank You Cards – It is advisable to print your thank you cards alongside your wedding invitations or on-the-day stationery. This ensures you have them ready to begin writing after your special day is a lot more convenient.
POSTAGE
Remember to include postage into your overall costs for your wedding stationery. You will require postage for your save the dates (if sending), your main invitation, rsvp return envelope, as well as thank you cards after your special day.
TYPES OF PRINTING
As well as digital colour printing, there are other types of printing available for your wedding stationery. Below is a brief summary of the most popular types of printing, which can also be combined in most cases for a beautiful finish.
- Digital Printing – The most economic type of printing.
- Digital Foil – This is the more cost-effective option of adding foil to your wedding stationery. The process of digital foil is less labour-intensive, and whilst it doesn’t have the same ‘deboss’ effect of hot foil, it is a great way of adding foil to all or part of your design.
- Hot Foiling – The more expensive option, as this is more labour-intensive and requires a special metal die to be made. Hot foiling has a beautiful ‘debossed’ effect on your stationery, which adds a real luxe feel.
- Letterpress – A similar process to hot foiling using a metal die, letterpress is a beautiful way of printing, giving a tactile impression on the card.
Printing processes can also be combined, for example, digital foiling with digital printing or letterpress with hot foiling. A combination of printing processes can really lift a design.
ON-THE-DAY WEDDING STATIONERY
Once your invitations have been sent to guests and numbers have been finalised, your focus will then turn to your on-the-day stationery.
Generally, on-the-day stationery consists of a table plan, menus, table numbers and place cards. However, this can also be extended to a welcome sign, favour tags, venue signs, escort cards, order of service booklets, and more. For each item, there are various formats and styles you could choose, so deciding what you require will depend on how you would like to style your wedding and budget.
You may decide, for example, to have your table plan printed on card and mounted on thick foamboard to display within your venue, or perhaps each table individually printed, framed and displayed on a table with flowers. The options are endless… if you have an idea in mind, do speak with your wedding stationer and discuss the ways it can be done.
Similarly, rather than having a few menus per table and place cards, you may prefer to have personalised menus. This ensures each guest has their own menu, and they could be further personalised on the reverse with a thank you message or an order of the day.
Keeping your on-the-day stationery in the same style as your invitations will ensure your day is cohesive and carries through your style from start to finish.
DETAILS
There are many ways of adding lovely details to your wedding stationery that will add to a luxe overall look such as:
- Invitations with guest names printed adding a personal touch to each invitations.
- Printed invitation envelopes with each guests name and address adds to your overall look, and save you time having to handwrite them. Printed invitation envelopes add a special touch and look pretty in a pile of post! Another option is to have a professional calligrapher address each envelope.
- RSVP with guest names printed this allows you to inform guests who exactly is invited, saves guests from filling in this section, and doesn’t require each invitation to be printed individually with guests names.
- RSVP envelope printed with rsvp address this adds to the overall look, ensures you don’t have to add your address to the rsvp and makes it easier for guests!
- Gold gilded edges adds a luxurious feel to your invite. This works best with invitations printed on a very thick card.
- Monograms adds a unique and personal touch to your wedding invitations.
- Ribbons and tags adding a real ‘wow’ factor when guests open the envelope.
- Envelopes a lovely way of adding detail to your stationery. Whether this is through lined envelopes in a design to match your invitation or in glitter to add some sparkle, or simply a contrasting colour to your invitation, envelopes are definitely a way of adding detail. Your envelopes could also be sealed with a chic sticker or wax seal.
PHOTOGRAPHY
Wedding invitations are often overlooked as part of your special day to be photographed, but it’s a beautiful way to capture the very beginning of your wedding. There are many ways to do this, but discuss this with your photographer to see what fits with your plans. You could, for example, send a spare set to your photographer before your big day for them to style and photograph. Or they could be photographed on the morning of your wedding in your bridal suite and styled with your bridal shoes, accessories, veil etc. Or a bridesmaid could be photographed holding it…there are many creative ways to explore, and it is a lovely way to have professional pictures of your wedding invitations. Do also make sure your photographer captures your on-the-day stationery (table plan, menus, place cards) as it’s a lovely way of remembering all the details.
CHOOSING YOUR WEDDING STATIONER
When choosing your wedding stationer, it’s important to choose a stationer whose style you love, and can imagine working with. Having a chat with a wedding stationer over the phone or coffee will allow you to discuss your requirements and see if they are the right fit for you. You will build a relationship with your stationer at different stages over the course of your wedding planning, so it’s important you connect with them.
Here at The Events Designers we adore Dimitria Jordans stationery suites and can highly recommend her professional, friendly and efficient service! You can check out Dimitria Jordans designs here.
See you soon for more wedding inspiration.
With Love,
Logo Design: Dimitria Jordan ● Wedding Stationery Photography: Holly Booth Photography ● Dimitria Jordan Brand Portrait: Emily Jarret Photography