As if we needed another reason to love Haute Papier, the Arlington-based custom stationery shop has launched a newly curated subscription service. For $80 per year (or $20 for a one-time shipment), Haute Papier will send you four goodie boxes—one every three months—with an assortment of its best-selling and newly launched writing utensils, notebooks, coasters, various greeting cards, and letterpress trinkets.
We got a peek at the first Haute Box and it featured a handful of whimsical birthday and thank-you cards, heart-print coasters, a miniature notepad and notebook, and two gold-print pencils. Think inside the box and buy a single package or a subscription for a year—we think it’s a great gift for a bride-to-be.
The "Stripe Up the Band" invitation suite. Photograph courtesy of Fig. 2 Design Studio
In the “Ask the Experts” section of the Washingtonian Bride & Groom Winter/Spring 2012 Issue, we incorrectly stated the price of the Fig. 2 Design Studio invitation pictured above. The pricing for 100 sets of this design (called “Stripe Up the Band”) starts at $750 for digital printing, $1,600 for offset, and $1,980 for letterpress.
If you’re interested in seeing this invitation and many more from Bethesda-based Claudia Smith of Fig. 2 Design Studio, her designs are available at the Dandelion Patch. You can also check her out at the Dandelion Patch January Paper Party on the 26th at its Georgetown location. Smith will be offering her thoughts on 2012 trends, as well as helping brides pick out invitations from her suites. There will also be a raffle for 50 free save-the-dates from Fig. 2.
A gown with architectural details and greenery in lieu of flowers contributes to a contemporary feel. All photographs by David Hartcorn Photography
We love a good backyard, vintage-inspired wedding as much as the next gal, but we’re starting to think that clean, ultramodern events are what’s next in wedding style here in the DC area (we’re thinking a toned-down version of Kim Kardashian’s black-and-white wedding, perhaps).
So obviously we were delighted to see this photo shoot styled by the unique and chic Julie Savage of Strawberry Milk Events (whose blog we’ve admired for a while), and shot by David Hartcorn Photography. Several other Annapolis vendors (listed below) also contributed their creativity and talents to these photos, which were shot at a private residence in Annapolis.
According to Savage, the shoot was inspired by the phrase: “Love is the most beautiful art form.” With a color scheme of black, white, and kelly green, the vendors created lots of inspiring details (the mini champagne bottle save-the-date, the black dinnerware, the graphic menu), that are totally wedding-worthy.
The finished product. All photographs courtesy of Haute Papier
When DC invitation designer Sarah Meyer Walsh of Haute Papier sent us these recent creations, we knew we just had to share them. We absolutely love the pink-and-gray color scheme—the pairing of a feminine hue with a modern neutral is pretty brilliant. Turns out these invites were created for Trish, the manager of the super-cute Valerianne boutique in Vienna. Here’s what Walsh had to say about the design:
“The inspiration for this invitation suite came from Trish’s love of textiles. She told us she loves magnolias, so she also wanted to incorporate those into the design. We then went to town creating a beautiful two-color suite, and made a pattern using a magnolia motif for the envelope lining.”
Click the jump for more photos of these invitations.
Last week, we showed you Tania and Rafael’s modern black-and-white wedding at the Newseum. But we left out some wonderful, unique details—their invitation suite and programs.
The couple worked with the Dandelion Patch in Georgetown, which commissioned design house Bella Figura to create the two-sided, letterpressed invitations featuring the DC skyline, as well as the fan programs (perfect for a hot September day!). They really take the whole “city skyline” invitation concept we’ve seen many times to a different and undeniably cool level—the black-and-white photograph presentation gives it a vintage-meets-modern look. Tell us: Are you a “fan” of this paper suite?
The Dandelion Patch can customize these cards to fit your theme and color scheme. Card courtesy of the Dandelion Patch and Bella Figura
Heidi Kallett from the Dandelion Patch just sent me these letterpressed Bella Figura guestbook cards and I thought they were so clever. Instead of having your guests sign a book that you’ll probably never look at again, give out these cute little Mad Libs-esque cards. Your guests can either write heartfelt sentiments, or be more playful. Then, you can have them place their cards in a box or a book for safe-keeping.
To test them out, we told our interns that we were playing a traditional game of Mad Libs, and here’s the hilarity that ensued:
We are slimy for Sarah and Peter! They are the most swanky cupcakes and we wish them nothing less than slushy dinosaurs for the rest of their lives together.
Don’t forget to always brush your teeth before you occupy and don’t count your chickens before they hatch after the tennis shoes. Peter should always meander Sarah’s lipstick and Sarah should always articulate Peter’s hamburgers. We wish you 7 years of happiness and red signage. With Love, Ernie and Bert
Well, that's some, er, interesting marriage advice.
I definitely see this as a playful ice-breaker to keep guests entertained during cocktail hour. The cards are $458 for 100; visit the Dandelion Patch’s Web site for more information.
The final product. Invitation by Weswen Design, photographs by JT Taylor
With the cooler weather starting to settle in, we find ourselves longing for warm summer weddings at the beach. Lucky for us, Ashburn invitation designer Wendy Wade of Weswen Design sent us a lovely beach wedding invite to bring a little summer brightness to the current chill.
This paper suite was created for a couple who married Labor Day weekend on the Eastern Shore.
“They wanted an invitation that was classy, yet had beachy themes and ideas,” says Wade. “They also loved the idea of placing a little crab somewhere on the invitation, which made me so excited.”
Wade used a marigold, red, and navy color scheme in creating the design.
“Both being avid beachgoers themselves, they loved the idea of seagrass and wanted to see how that might be incorporated,” says Wade. “The trick with this invitation was keeping it elegant, since they were hosting a formal wedding, all while including some natural elements like seagrass and a crab.”
To do this, Wade used formal, traditional fonts, but placed the text inside a box with an organic, ocean-wave-inspired shape. And of course, the little crab is featured at the bottom of the invitation.
“You can always take non-fancy ideas and dress them up,” says Wade. “That’s the fine line I walk all the time when creating an invitation design.”
For more information on Weswen Design, check out Wade’s Web site.
Now that we’ve started pulling our boots and tights out of our storage units, we’re all about fall. So we asked Heidi Kallett of the Dandelion Patch, a stationery store with locations in Vienna, Leesburg, Reston, and Georgetown (you might remember her from our Vendor Q&A last week) to share the latest trends in fall wedding invitations.
“For fall, we’re seeing lots of nature-themed invitations, using images of trees, leaves, mountains—and lots of peacocks,” says Kallett. “We’re also seeing couples mix and match patterns like stripes, florals, and checks, all in the same design.”
She also listed monochromatic styles (think two tones of purple), heavyweight paper with hand-painted edging, diecut envelopes and invitations, and personalized envelope liners as other big trends.
The hot stationery colors this fall? “Copper, deep purple, and jewel tones,” says Kallett.
Some of her favorite fall invitations are shown above.
1. Vintage Bookplate invitation suite by Grapevine
2. Middleton invitation suite by the Lettered Olive
3. Invitation suite by Spark
For more information on these and many other invitation designs, visit the Dandelion Patch's Web site.
Yesterday, Heidi Kallett of the Dandelion Patch answered your questions about handling divorced parents on your invitations, calligraphy, and ceremony programs. Today, she’ll solve your queries about everything from matching your save-the-dates and invitations to DIY-ing.
A PERFECT MATCH?
Question: Do my save-the-dates, invitations, place cards, thank-yous, and other printed items all need to match? Do I have to decide on the style, colors, and theme immediately so the save-the-dates will match everything else?
Kallett says: “While it is nice to have continuity between all your pieces it is certainly not required. Often times, save-the-dates tend to be a bit more fun and casual than the formal invitation. If you have your wedding colors selected, it is nice to use those in some capacity on your save-the-date, invitation and other pieces such as your program. If, however, you are unsure what colors you’re using, more neutral palette is totally acceptable. If you’ve finalized a theme or you have a particular motif you’d like to use, that can also be a nice element to tie all of your pieces together but it is certainly not a must-have.”
“Don’t delay getting your save-the-dates out just so you can have them coordinate with your invitations—what’s more important is that your guests have enough notice so that they can join you on your special day.”
• • •
Like so many Washingtonians, Heather Noss used to spend her days working for the government. But after catching the design bug, the former foreign service officer decided to make the leap from embassies to invites. So in 2008, she left a world of monochrome letterheads to launch Letterpress Light. Two years later, she expanded the business to include Digby & Rose, a design and print studio on Macomb Street NW.
To achieve her texture-rich designs, Noss uses a unique embossing method called the Compression Plate Process. “I take a design that has already been printed on our thick paper, and very slowly and carefully line up the pressing plates,” she says. “You won’t find it anywhere else, because as far as I know, I’m the only one who produces invitations and stationery in this way.”
