We worked with PS Paper to create these blind debossed gray Bat Mitzvah invitations for Davis. Inspired by Sweet Christine, they customized the design by using our Light Gray paper. They opted for a clean sans serif font for the entirety of the design rather than including any script accents. Bronze Shine foil shined brightly on the Light Gray paper throughout each piece in the set. The suite included a corresponding reply card and party card. These particular pieces did not include the debossed pattern but used the honeycomb pattern in a different way with foil. Finally, the envelope liner in our Pearse pattern brought in another geometric element to the suite.
Kara and Robin worked with our friends at Sincerely Yours, Diane to customize our Sweet Christine design for their recent Florida wedding. Their modern letterpress wedding invitations featured a palette of charcoal and copper that was accented with a blind deboss pattern as well as a metallic copper envelope liner. The no frills typography paired beautifully with the design and added to the contemporary feel of the suite.
It’s always a treat to see our invitations in print, and in the latest issue of Weddings in Houston magazine we spotted not one, not two, but seven (!) of our designs! Their current Spring/Summer 2017 issue included a variety of invitation styles, and they opened up their special stationery section with a full-page photograph of our Sweet Christine design. A modern marbling spread included our modern Wilder and Onyx invitations, while the facing page showed off our Natura and Leyton suites. The last spread of this special stationery feature included our rich blue Garden Sun invitation, along with a fun round-up of tropical designs where our Traditional Palm design took center stage. Many thanks to Weddings in Houston for including so many of our invitation designs!
Kyle Laatsch’s Sweet Christine design feels right at home among the tribal patterns, antique decor and natural color palette of this edgy Southwestern inspiration shoot. For this desert wedding invitation inspiration he used olive and cream letterpress inks for an earthy palette and kept the look modern with an informal font.
Designer Kyle Laatsch is March’s Designer of the Month – be sure and check out his other designs and save 10% through March 31!
sweet christine customization | letterpress inks: olive + cream | fonts: revival + moravia | paper: bella cotton white | invite size: f8 | digital liner: natural woodgrain pattern in desert | original design + customization by in-house designer Kyle Laatsch
Whether you’d like your letterpress invitations to feature a few thoughtfully positioned lines of hand calligraphy or you’re dreaming of an invite that’s overflowing with line after line of hand lettering, it’s important to try and envision which calligraphy style is right for the type of wedding you’re planning. We work with a lot of amazingly skilled calligraphers here (some with several very distinct styles), and with so many different styles to choose from it can be a little intimidating trying to pick one calligraphy style for your invitations. So close your eyes for a second – what’s your wedding looking like in your head? Because you’ll most likely want your invitations to capture the mood you’re planning for the big day.
Beach Weddings
Kelle McCarter not only hand illustrated the seashells and beachy floral motifs on her Makri design – she also hand calligraphed the bride and groom’s names and their duogram in her flirty and fun Mulberry style hand calligraphy. “The expressive flourishes of this calligraphy style were designed to mimic the movement and soft swirls of ocean waves while retaining a reserved elegance,” says Kelle.
Vintage-inspired Weddings
“Heatherly is inspired by the romantic Victorian era with its heavily brocaded window coverings and beautiful flourished wall papers,” says calligraphy and designer Debi Zeinert. “The bride who loves Heatherly loves lavender, lace, scones and fancy buttons!” Debi’s Natalia style hand calligraphy is sweetly refined and lady-like and the perfect finishing touch for any vintage-inspired wedding.
Urban/Modern Weddings
When Kyle Laatsch was designing Sweet Christine he knew from the start that Nicole Black’s Mitty Caps style hand calligraphy was a must have. “Mitty Caps works really well with SweetChristine as a modern calligraphy style because it has fluidity and movement, crisp lines and is legible,” says Nicole. “It’s a hearty script that won’t get lost in the amazing design and deep letterpress impression. Mitty Caps and SweetChristine play off each others strengths to be a perfect match.” We couldn’t agree more.
Destination Weddings
If you’re planning to celebrate your wedding in a tropical paradise or other exotic locale, consider sending invitations that set the stage for what’s to come. Courtney Jentzen’s Tulum design is full of island-inspired illustrations (like pineapples and flamingos!) that are complimented by Patricia Mumau’s Murdock hand calligraphy style. “In creating Murdock I opted to use graphite as part of the styling to make it down to earth and accessible,” says Patricia. “Pencil has a free and fresh feel – a perfect tone for natural styled events. It pairs great with Tulum.”
Formal Weddings
Jessica Tierney’s Viviette design exudes dramatic elegance, while the addition of Sarah Hanna’s Victoria style calligraphy adds a classic formality to the design. “Great design, like marriage, is about balance,” says Sarah. “Jessica’s vision for strong, crisp lines paired with ornate calligraphy does a beautiful balancing act. The flourishes add warmth and volume while the block text and architectural lines maintain structure.”
Rustic Weddings
Meryl is rustic but not overly so – it works for barn weddings, backyard weddings, vineyard weddings and just about any gathering that is meant to feel comfortable and welcoming. Elizabeth Hardin’s Carlisle hand calligraphy compliments the casual warmth of this design by adding a touch of approachable elegance. “The Carlisle hand is thick and bold, but the loops and flourishes help it to maintain a soft and feminine tone,” says Elizabeth. “The vine detail mixed throughout the lettering helps to give it that organic feel.”
Whatever kind of wedding you’ve got planned, there’s a calligraphy style that works beautifully for it. But of course there really are no hard and fast rules here. Ultimately, if you have your heart set on one style of calligraphy more than the other then you should go with your gut and choose the one you like best. We’re here to help, too – contact us to chat about your wedding and together we’ll find the hand lettering style that perfectly compliments your style. Our blog is a great resource, too!
Using his Sweet Christine design as inspiration, Kyle Laatsch created this honeycomb birth announcement using a sunny palette of yolk and gold foil. A solid gold foil envelope liner highlights the gold foil accents on the card, adding a little shine to this bright and happy announcement.
Designer Kyle Laatsch is March’s Designer of the Month – be sure and check out his other designs and save 10% through March 31!
sweet christine customization | letterpress ink: yolk | foil stamping: gold matte | fonts: marilyn + moravia | paper: bella cotton white | invite size: sq-7 | foil stamped liner: classic color pattern in gold matte | original design + customization by in-house designer Kyle Laatsch
This March we’re featuring Kyle Laatsch as our designer of the month! Kyle’s collection is new for 2016 and includes the romantic Sweet Christine, which features hand calligraphy accents by Nicole Black and an elegant blind deboss honeycomb pattern, as well as Hemsworth, a masculine, type-based design that’s sure to make a statement. We recently re-imagined these designs as Bar Mitzvah invitations, and they take on a brand new look — see the before and after below! For the entire month of March, you can save 10% on any order featuring one of Kyle’s designs, and save an additional 10% when you order 6 printed pieces or more — this includes invitations of any kind, save the dates, announcements, business cards — you name it!
The fine print: this offer is exclusive to designs by Kyle Laatsch and does not apply towards the purchase of other designs. Orders must be placed by 11:59pm Eastern on March 31, 2016 in order to receive this offer.
