Many couples can feel overwhelmed by both the choices available for weddings today and the desire to have a look that really represents them.
Key people you will work with like your photographer, florist, dress designer and of course your stationer will ask about the theme, style or look you're going for. And this is important if you want a consistent and polished look for your day. Even the most casual looking styling can require the most planning.
The easy road can be to engage a skilled wedding/event stylist or planner but it is possible to do it yourself and we've got some thoughts on this because we believe that amazing memorable invitations set the scene for an amazing and memorable occasion.
So how to choose your wedding style and theme?
But first some definitions...
STYLE: this is the look and feel of your day this should be fairly open such as casual, modern, minimal, glamorous, classic, fun, vintage, bold, rustic, bohemian, romantic
THEME: This is a recurring idea, event, period or locality such as beach, circus, 1960's, Breakfast at Tiffany's, country fair, romantic, travel, Parisian
MOTIF: a design element or graphic that is repeated and accents focal points of the wedding.
image courtesy of stylemepretty.com
Where to be careful is to make sure that your theme does not become your style or it can all become a little too much as can the overuse of a motif.
courtesy of "Handmade Weddings" 2010 by Moyle, Moyle and Faust.
Colour alone unfortunately doesn't make a style but colour choice that is relevant to your theme and style will add consistency to the look for example choosing navy as an accent colour would work well with a nautical theme. Colour is often best picked last after these three elements.
A great way to get started with working out what your look would be is to start a mood/inspiration board. Wedding blogs are a great place to start but of course you can find inspiration all around you. So start collecting things or images that you love.
Credit to: marthastewartweddings for table top, green poms and dress from bhldn.com, knottybride for daisy photos and bride.com for left hand images
There are several web based versions which make it easy to store images together on the one idea. We like pinterest and have a link to our boards lower left. Once you start collecting you'll start to find some commonalities in the things you're picking. This will be a great help in deciding on your style and you might even discover a theme you love too.
So once you've worked out which style of wedding suits you as a couple then you can nut out a theme. A theme can be based around your interests or just something that you think would create the right mood for the day you're imagining. If you're a fun couple and want that style of day then choosing a circus theme and playing around with those carnival type ideas would be great. But if you're imagining everyone in dinner suits and full length gowns sitting by candlelight then this theme would be wrong! You know how we said you should pick colour last- red would work great as an accent colour for a circus theme but would also work for a formal romantic evening too.
images courtesy of greenweddingshoes.com
When it comes to deciding on invitations then having a clear idea on style and theme really helps us to create something perfect for you both. We can use this inspiration to source the right materials, pick fonts that will work with the look your going for and even offer make suggestions of colours or motifs that would incorporate as well.
The other clever way to incorporate your style in your invitations is in the wording. Little things like writing numbers rather than using numerals or adding quotes can start to set the scene. Even how you ask your guests to reply to your invitation can tell something of the style of wedding.
When working with your key people always have a clear idea on your budget for this aspect of the wedding. An average Australian wedding costing is divided as 33% venue and entertainment costs, 22% clothing, 16% food, 11% photography, 5% on flowers, 8% stationery and 3% misc.
Being clear about what your budget is can help your key people guide you in choices that can achieve your look but stay in your budget. In terms of stationery and what Paper Dolls offer of course your invitations will be your main item but there are many complimentary services and products that can help you achieve your look. Some items can have dual purposes such as bombonierre with name tags serving as place cards and this can help you stick to your budget.
Stationery needs we can cover include save the dates, RSVP's, place cards, thank you's, ceremony programs, menus, maps or information cards, seating charts, chair signs, banners, favour tags, favour packaging/bombonierre, chair signs, table numbers.
The main tip we have is that this should be fun so relax and give yourself the time to set the scene well. We're here to help as much as you like and we look forward to working with you.
