Wedding Stationery Tips with The Social Page
So you are newly engaged, CONGRATULATIONS! Since downloading The Engagement Guide FREEBIE I am sure you have a crystal clear idea of the things you need to do when you are newly engaged!
Once you are ready to start diving into designing and planning your wedding (now that’s the fun part) you are going to begin researching vendors. I thought I would save you the hassle of this research and sat down with Calgary wedding stationery designers, Ali & Claudette, with The Social Page to get all the details on wedding stationery and 2021 wedding stationery trends.
“We shared a bond over the love of all things pretty and paper”
With over 10 years of graphic design experience, Ali & Claudette have been designing custom wedding stationery for Calgary couples since taking over The Social Page in 2019.
What are the top benefits of hiring a professional wedding stationery designer?
There are few good reasons to hire a professional wedding stationery designer first, off it takes the pressure and work off of you! But it can also open up possibilities on what you can have for artwork and fonts to make them custom and uniquely yours. This is what we do so we have plenty of ideas and samples and might show you something you never knew you wanted but absolutely love! We are here to help bring your vision to life. You know you will receive a quality product, and we care about and love what we do.
Besides wedding invitations and place cards, what other items can you design for couples?
Wedding stationery designers can create items to enhance your day and make it personal to you. Signage, so your guests know where to go and what is happening. Signature drink signs that are named after your dogs.
We can basically do anything your guests see and/or read to make it all look cohesive, beautiful and unique to the couple.
Image provided by The Social Page
What are the top 3 questions couples should ask a wedding stationery designer before hiring them?
1) What is your production timeline?
2) What is your availability?
3) How does your process work?
We always love to have an initial conversation with our couples, and encourage newly engaged couples to do so. It’s so important to feel comfortable with any vendors you hire and vice versa.
Image by Justine Milton
If a couple wants to DIY, what would you recommend they do?
We think the best part would be stuffing and sealing your own invites. This way you get to see what your guests see when receiving them in the mail. We do offer this as a service if you don’t have the time to do it. It really depends on the couple’s skill and comfort levels as to what they want to take on.
When it comes to DIY wedding invitations, what would you say is the true cost of DIY?
Your time is probably the main thing. If something goes wrong like your sizing is off or your printer gets jammed, you have to figure out how to fix it. This can lead to waste and additional costs and time. Sourcing materials can also be a stressful task if you don’t know where to look, or what you're looking for. This of course isn’t the case for everyone, but a few things we have heard over the years from DIY brides and couples who choose to DIY their wedding invitations.
How can a wedding stationery designer help you get the most out of your wedding budget?
Decide what is the most important to you with your stationery. If you don’t have the budget to do it all, don’t feel like you have to. Look at the different options, discuss with us what is most important to you and spend your budget there. Some couples want to do a wow invitation and more simple day of items. Others feel more value in unique escort cards and day of items and send a more simple announcement.
How much should I budget for wedding stationery for 50 guests? 100 guests?
A typical suite will include invite, mailing envelope and a minimum of 1 additional insert card. We have studio suites that are semi custom as well as fully customized, so the price will vary between the two. For 100 custom invites you may be starting at $7 per invite and semi custom is closer to $3. When you order more invites, the total price goes up and the price per invite will go down as the cost is spread across it all. The fewer invites you order, the individual price will be more but the total will be less. We recommend allocating at least $1000 for stationery.
What wedding stationery trends are you seeing for 2021?
Some common 2021 wedding stationery trends we are seeing are lots of are requests for vellum details. People are still loving the vellum! However we are also just seeing a want for different textures, mixing and layering them together. Handmade paper, wax seals, silk ribbon. Mixing in unique shapes are still popular going into this year's wedding season, as well as really pretty and rich earth tones.
Image provided by The Social Page
Image by Justine Milton
Image by Bretton Grassie
Image provided by The Social Page
FUN FACTS ABOUT CALGARY WEDDING STATIONERY DESIGNER:
What made you decide to become a professional wedding stationery designer?
Ali: I went to design school in Montreal with the goal of working at an advertising/marketing company but when I moved back to Calgary, I started creating invites here and there on the side. I stopped into The Social Page to pick up paper one day and ended up with a job! I worked with them as a designer for years, left for a minute to try the corporate marketing thing, as well as start my own stationery business, but very quickly found that I enjoyed designing for myself or a place like The Social Page much more than corporate life.
What’s your favourite colour palette to design?
Claudette: I love the feminine colours, any colour palette that includes pinks, nudes, peaches and blush. Super girly girl!
What’s your favourite material to create on?
Honestly, paper, straight up delicious and luxe paper. It's so versatile and the possibilities are endless.
We hope you learned some insightful tips about wedding stationery and 2021 wedding stationery trends. When you are ready to start planning your wedding and are looking for a Calgary wedding stationery designer be sure to reach out to Claudette and Ali who are eagerly awaiting to customize your stationery for your special day!
Still have questions about what stationery is needed for your wedding? Or any other wedding stationery questions? Pop them in the comments below, we’d love to answer them for you!