We had the absolute pleasure of working with Ashley and Tyler through our NYC studio to create their beautiful custom rose invitation suite. We’ll let Ashley take it from here to share more about their wedding details!
CAN YOU SHARE WITH US A BIT ABOUT YOUR WEDDING AND YOUR INSPIRATION FOR THE EVENT?
Our wedding was held at the Bel-Air Bay Club in Pacific Palisades, CA. Ashley used to live in LA and while we joke that we had our wedding in CA instead of FL because of her curly hair, the truth is that she cried at the venue when we went to go see it. Getting married on a cliffside overlooking the ocean in CA has always been Ashley’s dream, and it quickly became Tyler’s dream too. Our wedding was inspired by French and Italian gardens we visited while on our engagement trip to Paris and Lake Como. We began watching Bridgerton together early on in our dating so we were also inspired by old European charm and romance. We wanted a garden theme, but set in LA with an ocean view. Tyler grew up on the Jersey Shore, so some surfers in the background brings back wonderful childhood memories of surfing in NJ.
WHAT WAS YOUR FAVORITE MOMENT?
Our first look – I definitely recommend doing this as it gives you private time together before you walk down the aisle. My husband did not want to do it at first, but I am so glad we did. He cried!!
HOW DID YOU CHOOSE YOUR INVITATION DESIGN & INK COLORS?
We had already mostly nailed down our florals for the wedding. We knew there would be a lot of pinks and peaches to compliment the Spanish style architecture. Our flowers really informed our choices for our invitations.
FAVORITE DESIGN ELEMENT OF YOUR BIG DAY?
Tyler says, my dress
I said the flowers
WHAT SURPRISED YOU MOST ABOUT YOUR WEDDING?
How fast it went. People always say the day goes by fast, but really it goes by in a second! Soak it all in!!!
WHAT ADVICE DO YOU HAVE FOR COUPLES CURRENTLY PLANNING A WEDDING?
Do the planning together, it is so much more fun when you are both involved. Tyler never missed a call with our wedding planner, and he always had input on what we were working on – whether it was the invitation font, or the wine we would choose for our guests to accompany their meals. Every last detail was planned by both of us alongside our wedding planner, Katie. Katie is amazing by the way!!
WHAT’S NEXT FOR THE NEWLYWEDS?
We enjoyed an amazing honeymoon in Bali, Singapore, and the Maldives. Now we are getting ready for my best-friend’s wedding in November in Carmel Valley. It’s so fun to be able to help her now that we have been through planning a wedding ourselves.
Mariana at our NYC studio worked with the wonderful Molly and Jason to bring their wedding stationery to life. They customized a version of our Elatus v.2 suite, updating with deep blue throughout. We’ll let Molly take it from here to share more about their wedding details!
CAN YOU SHARE WITH US A BIT ABOUT YOUR WEDDING AND YOUR INSPIRATION FOR THE EVENT?
Our wedding was at the Lighthouse at Chelsea Piers on 4/1/23. Our venue was on the water overlooking the Hudson River with a view of Hoboken/Jersey city. We really wanted the quintessential black tie New York City wedding with an invite that was subtle and refined, yet elegant. Jason loves modern aesthetic and our invites were the perfect mix of modern and classy.
WHAT ADVICE DO YOU HAVE FOR COUPLES CURRENTLY PLANNING A WEDDING?
Work together as a team and try to listen to each other’s opinions. And don’t worry about the weather – it will work out exactly as it’s meant to. Our weather forecast showed 97% of thunderstorms with damaging winds in the area. Needless to say I was freaking out. Jason stayed positive and that 3% came true – it was a beautifully sunny 72 degree day. We got so lucky for the 1st day of April.
HOW DID YOU CHOOSE YOUR INVITATION DESIGN & INK COLORS?
We got married on the water in early April. We wanted the design and colors to match the spring feel of our wedding but also knew the invites would be sent out in the winter, so we wanted to make sure they weren’t too florally or summery. The chambray blue was the perfect color that represented springtime. We also wanted to have a monogram of our initials that carried over throughout our wedding (napkins, photobooth monogram, etc.).
WHAT SURPRISED YOU MOST ABOUT YOUR WEDDING?
How quickly it passes after spending 1.5 years planning. Savor the moment!
WHAT WAS YOUR FAVORITE MOMENT?
My favorite moment was our first look. Jason hysterically cried seeing me for the first time (as I knew he would). He didn’t want to see my dress prior to our wedding day so he was in awe when he first saw me.
FAVORITE DESIGN ELEMENT OF YOUR BIG DAY?
Our favorite design was the twinkle lights over the dancefloor. We didn’t stop receiving compliments on them! I also loved how our florist repurposed our Chuppah florals and used them for the head table on the dancefloor.
WHAT’S NEXT FOR THE NEWLYWEDS?
We just got back from our honeymoon in Hawaii and Japan. It was the trip of a lifetime. Next, we plan to enjoy life 🙂
letterpress ink: deep blue | paper: bella smooth cotton bright white 2ply + 1ply | fonts: addington + aston script | envelope liner: custom liner in deep blue | envelope: bella cotton bright white square flap | customization #65513
Amara and Michael worked with Mariana at our NYC studio to create their stunning invitation suite for their wedding in Montana last summer. We’ll let Amara take it from here to share more about their wedding details!
CAN YOU SHARE WITH US A BIT ABOUT YOUR WEDDING AND YOUR INSPIRATION FOR THE EVENT?
I had never been a “wedding-kinda-girl.” I was eager to elope, but my fiancé, Michael (now husband) wanted a wedding. I really had no clue or vision of what I wanted except for three things, I didn’t want “conventional”, I wanted it in Montana (where my family is from) and I wanted it to be more about Michael and I getting married than the wedding. Besides that, I really was clueless! Thankfully, I have the most amazing mother. All while growing up, my mom always set a beautiful table-scape for dinner. I knew that I wanted our wedding to feel and look like those special memories of being a family at our dinner table. Honestly, it was really my mom who stepped up to the plate and created exactly what I wanted in a wedding. In the end, I can’t even imagine wanting to elope. I loved our wedding!
WHAT ADVICE DO YOU HAVE FOR COUPLES CURRENTLY PLANNING A WEDDING?
Wedding planning was VERY stressful for me, even with my mom’s generous help! It felt like I was non-stop having to answer a million questions from a million different people all while never really knowing how to answer them!! Do your best to give yourself a pat on the back and acknowledge that it is freaking hard and always ask for help when you need it! Outside of that, don’t compare your wedding planning to anyone else’s. It’s different for everyone! Plus, it does all work out in the end and the quirks of the day make it unique to you! (We forgot our marriage license!) Also, don’t be afraid to get married on a day that isn’t Saturday. We got married on a Sunday and it allowed us to book the vendors we wanted since they weren’t booked. Plus, some venues give discounts if you do a “non-Saturday” wedding.
HOW DID YOU CHOOSE YOUR INVITATION DESIGN & INK COLORS?
Coming up with our invites was a group effort. I worked with Mariana at Bella Figura and she was a dream! I was so scatterbrained and there were so many options, I really needed help! I knew I wanted our invites to reflect our rustic wedding in the mountains. We used sample invites and combined elements I liked to create gorgeous invitations. The invited were on the most beautiful gray/green, hand torn homemade paper. The copper text with just a hint of shimmer was perfect for a western wedding. My favorite part was the lining of the envelope, which was a spattering of three simple line drawings of flowers. Before stuffing them into the envelope, we tied the info card and the invite with a rusty pink chiffon ribbon. We carried a lot of the same elements into our menus and place cards. The whole design felt like it matched the natural beauty of Montana perfectly.
WHAT SURPRISED YOU MOST ABOUT YOUR WEDDING?
I was very surprised by how much my dad got into the planning! I flew out to Montana a couple weeks before the wedding and when I arrived at my parents house, the front porch was covered in huge planters with beautiful flowers. My dad had been growing and tending to them since the spring (our wedding was in August) to use at our reception! I also was surprised at how ready I was to get married. The day off, I was surprisingly calm. I just felt eager to marry Michael and start our life together!
WHAT WAS YOUR FAVORITE MOMENT?
There were so many favorite moments! Two that really stick out are walking down the aisle just after we were announced as husband and wife. It was surreal that the first moments of our new lives together were walking that aisle surrounded by family and friends showering us with applause and love! The second moment was when we had gone to the fire station to take photos (Michael is a firefighter, so we wanted some pictures with the fire truck!). Two kids had set up a lemonade stand across from the station and brought us free lemonade in paper cups. The kids were so sweet and that lemonade was our first toast together as husband and wife.
FAVORITE DESIGN ELEMENT OF YOUR BIG DAY?
I adored our invites. They were stunningly beautiful and served as the foundation for the look and feel of our wedding. I feel like the invites nailed the vibe of capturing the beauty of Montana. I wanted to embrace the natural landscape of work with it, not completely against the design of our wedding.Another element that was very important to Michael and I was our seating chart. Instead of a standard seating chart, we handwrote a letter to each one of our guests. Writing these letters allowed us to personally acknowledge each guest, thank them for coming and share how much they mean to us (along with let them know what table they are sitting at!). We stuffed the letter in envelopes that a family friend hand calligraphed our guests names on and we tacked them on a large white stand adored with green leaves. Writing the notes took forever, but was something Michael and I did together before the wedding. It gave us a chance to relish in memories of the people who love us and truly realize how grateful we are for all those in our lives.Oh! And I cannot forget our cocktail napkins! With us living in NYC and our wedding in Montana, it meant that our beloved cat, Bosco, and dog, Jax, were not able to join. It was vital that we incorporated them into our wedding, so we put their pictures on our cocktail napkins. They were a hit and big conversation starters, which really made us feel like, even though our pets were not physically there, they were a part of our day!
WHAT’S NEXT FOR THE NEWLYWEDS?
Anything and everything! We keep saying how excited we are to experience life together. First up, our first actual trip together to celebrate our honeymoon in Greece and Italy!
Campbell and Benjamin worked with our friends at Penny Post to create their invitation beautiful suite. Chambray letterpress throughout the suite is the prefect compliment to the waters of the Chesapeake Bay, which was a stunning ceremony background. The details card features Maryland crab motifs, another nod to the gorgeous venue location.
We had the pleasure of working with Michelle and David at our NYC studio. They reimagined our Hillock suite for their autumn wedding at Blue Hill at Stone Barns. We’ll let Michelle take it from here to share more about their wedding details!
CAN YOU SHARE WITH US A BIT ABOUT YOUR WEDDING AND YOUR INSPIRATION FOR THE EVENT?
We have both always loved the Fall season and knew that we wanted to get married during peak fall foliage timing! We also both envisioned a “New York adjacent” wedding, so when we toured the grounds of Blue Hill at Stone Barns and they had a mid-late October date available – we knew it was the place we wanted to get married. Our invitations and entire wedding aesthetic were really inspired by the venue – incorporating a classic, clean design throughout the entire celebration.
WHAT ADVICE DO YOU HAVE FOR COUPLES CURRENTLY PLANNING A WEDDING?
Bring on vendors that have past experience with your venue. I know this isn’t possible for every couple, but for us it was really important to work with people who could help guide our “day of” plan. We had a lot of different rain & COVID backups, so we really wanted a team we could trust to help make the day as seamless as possible!
HOW DID YOU CHOOSE YOUR INVITATION DESIGN & INK COLORS?
It was fairly seamless for us when looking at and ultimately agreeing on our wedding invitation design. We gravitated toward designs that were clean and classic. We ultimately fell in love with the vintage root vegetables motifs, which worked nicely with the fact that our venue is a working four-season farm. We were able to use a custom pattern as an envelope liner and added them to our Details card, and then later used them for our Table Cards. We also easily agreed on the color, Stone, which was a grayish/green. Also, after we had ordered our invitations we realized the font we chose was Garamond, which is actually the font they use in all American editions of Harry Potter. Early on in our relationship we bonded over our obsessive love of Harry Potter – so this felt especially “meant to be”!
WHAT SURPRISED YOU MOST ABOUT YOUR WEDDING?
How much love and support we received! It was truly so amazing to have everybody we loved and who loved us in a room together – cheering for us and celebrating the beginning of our marriage.
WHAT WAS YOUR FAVORITE MOMENT?
Immediately after the ceremony, we went off into a room by ourselves (the yichud, a ritual in Jewish weddings where the couple spends a few minutes in isolation after the ceremony). We were able to have 15 minutes to be with each other, sip some champagne, and enjoy some bites from our cocktail hour. Most importantly, we were able to take some deep breaths and enjoy being together one on one for the first time as husband and wife! It was a really great moment to take a breath and ground ourselves while also preparing for the reception!
FAVORITE DESIGN ELEMENT OF YOUR BIG DAY?
The peak fall foliage! We truly got so lucky with the fall colors on our October weekend – it was everything we hoped for when we booked the venue 13 months prior.
We spotted Kelly and Drew’s classic monogrammed wedding invitations on Martha Stewart Weddings and we’re excited to share a peek into their day. The couple worked with our friend Heidi at Engraved Images who made their vision of a traditional yet personalized suite come to fruition. From the engagement ring to the envelope liner Kelly imagined and designer Chelsea Culmann brought to life – the couple effortlessly tied their families together in more ways than one. The envelope liner highlighted each state they have roots in, a symbol of the Pentagon where the couple first met, and a Celtic knot to feature their Irish backgrounds. Both the invitation suite and their wedding reflected what it means to bring families together in paper and in person. Be sure to check out even more on Martha Stewart Weddings!
Start spreading the news, we recently spotted Alexandra and Matthew’s timeless wedding invitations on Carats & Cake and we’re thrilled to share a glimpse into their big day. The couple worked with our friends at Cardture who helped us to design and bring their vision to life. With a harmonious color palette of Olive letterpress and Copper Shine foil as the accent color, the couple’s vision of a simple yet luxurious invitation shined through. To enhance the level of sophistication, Copper Shine foil edging was added to their lavishly thick 3-ply invitation. The suite truly reflected the elegance and refinement of the inside of the New York Public Library with its warm tones and metallic accents. It’s easy to say that this classic invitation was the perfect fit for Alexandra and Matthew’s New York wedding. Carats & Cake has even more photos from their big day, but here are a few of our favorites – take a look!
We had the pleasure of working with Alyssa and Andy to create their elegant wedding invitations featuring romantic floral accents and a subtle color palette. The couple chose our Tristan design which set the tone for a luxurious summer affair at The Plaza in New York City. Find out more about their big day below:
Can you share with us a bit about your wedding and the inspiration for the event?
I was really inspired by our venue. The Plaza felt so iconic, so I wanted all of the details to be really beautiful and classic without being stuffy. Because our wedding was in the spring, I was looking for a lot of flowers to give the room a lush and springtime feel. Our florist did an amazing job creating the look for the day with centerpieces that had a really loose, garden-like quality.
What advice do you have for couples currently planning a wedding?
It’s so easy to get stressed out by all of the details because planning a wedding is obviously a ton of work. So I would say the most important thing during planning is to enjoy the process and try not to take yourself too seriously. At the end of the day, everyone is going to have an incredible time and it really won’t matter if you went with the chocolate vs. caramel buttercream in your cake.
How did you choose your invitation design and ink colors?
Our wedding colors were blush and gray so we wanted our invitation to match that color scheme. We absolutely loved the faint pearl foil in the floral design because it looked so beautiful but understated and complemented the gray font perfectly. We also loved the silver belly band with our monogram to add a touch more color to the overall design.
What surprised you most about your wedding?
Everyone said that it would fly by, but for some reason I didn’t quite wrap my mind around just how quick the entire wedding would feel. It makes me even happier that we have amazing pictures and videos to help us relive that day.
What was your favorite moment?
My favorite moment was definitely the ceremony. There was something so special and unforgettable about marrying my best friend in front of a room full of our friends and family.
Favorite design element of your big day?
That’s a hard question because I love so many details of that day. I think I’d have to say that my favorite design element was my dress. It was custom made by Mark Badgley and James Mischka and they worked with me every step of the way to design my dream wedding gown down the delicate lace and teardrop shape of the train.
What’s next for the newlyweds?
After our wedding, we went on an amazing honeymoon in Italy going to the Amalfi Coast and Lake Como. We currently live and work in NYC and recently added a little puppy named Bailey to our family.
This real wedding was a 5-day event, combining the casual with the formal. The bride’s mother worked with the team at Bella Figura NYC to customize our popular Sierra design to create a rustic yet elegant invitation suite perfect for their black tie affair in the mountains of Colorado. It was a week filled with everything from a bridesmaids’ hike, to a 4th of July BBQ complete with fireworks, and a stylish celebration at the Ritz Carlton Bachelor Gulch. Be sure to check out Style Me Pretty to see more photos from this beautiful wedding.
We were overjoyed to have the chance to make Jordyn and Manny’s stationery vision come to life and even more thrilled to see how beautifully the couple’s special day came together. The Amadore Antique design reflected their wedding perfectly with a Spanish flair, dressed up in navy letterpress and gold matte foil, colors that were accented throughout the day. The wedding was held at one of the oldest hotels in the United States, La Fonda on the Plaza. Jordyn and Manny’s guests were surrounded by Santa Fe traditions like a live mariachi band promenade through the plaza and personal touches like a surprise recording of Jordyn singing “The Nearness of You” as a gift to Manny.
We’ll let Jordyn take it from here to share even more about her elegant destination wedding in Santa Fe:
What was the inspiration for the wedding? What sort of look/feel were you going for?
We discussed weddings, what they mean, and what we want them to communicate to the world. I thought weddings should focus on the joy and solemnity of the commitment, while Manny envisioned a grand celebration to be shared. Everything began to take shape from these conversations. My vision for the wedding took on a polished and glowing aesthetic with old-world Spanish charm. The first time Manny and I spoke was because of the t-shirt he was wearing that he bought from Spain and it just so happened that I lived there while I was in college. Two nights later, he took me on our first date to a Spanish restaurant. His family is Mexican-American, so we also wanted to include their heritage as well. We had just moved from El Paso, Texas to Santa Fe, New Mexico, a storied place born of the intertwining beauty of these cultures. It was the perfect location and an exciting destination for our guests.
What were some of your favorite parts of the day?
Every part of the day was special, brimming with anticipation and meaning, but without question, the happiest moment was our vows. I was filled with the most profound, total joy and sense of peace. That’s fitting I suppose, since those are the adjectives I wrote down to describe our relationship, back in Belize during the first days I wore our ring.
Advice to future bride’s planning their own wedding?
First, DIY doesn’t have to mean make-it-yourself. I think of my wedding as hand-curated, not hand-made. Craft projects take time and skill and I didn’t have either. Consider your talents. I’m a singer, so I recorded a song that is special to us. I didn’t go to a studio instead I bought a quality mic off Amazon and recorded it in my closet. I think that definitely counts as DIY! Always keep the guests’ perspective in mind as well. We hated to make everyone travel to our wedding but given the far-flung nature of our clans, it was necessary. In thanks, we took their comfort, happiness, and convenience into account in every detail. Lastly, evoke what seemed magical about weddings when you were little, even if you’re the only one who will notice. Cascade bouquets were all the rage during my childhood in the 90’s, and I was captivated by them. I wanted a Pinterest-worthy wedding, though, so I ordered a hand-tied bouquet instead. At the last minute, I changed to a cascade. I really felt like a bride when I held it for the first time, and I still feel that magic every time I see a photo.
Anything else you want to share?
Many personal details precious to us enriched the night. My late grandfather gave his wife a gold locket on their wedding day in 1949. She cried when she saw that little something borrowed pinned to my bouquet. At 87 years, her presence with us that day was absolutely priceless. My brother is a competitive pistol shooter, so I gave him 9mm bullet cufflinks at the rehearsal dinner that he wore the day of the wedding. The groom gave me a gold necklace with my new monogram and I gave him a collection of boudoir photos. A conch shell from Belize held flowers with a photo of Manny and I from the proposal on the favor table. Even the last moment of the night held a special surprise with a recording of me singing “The Nearness of You” playing for our last dance.
