Alternatives to the Traditional Guest Book {Ideas and Inspiration}

A few decades back a guest book at a wedding was simply a place where guests signed their names documenting their attendance. Nowadays guest books are a lot more clever and a great way to create a memento from your special day. Here are a few great ideas for different guest books to make your memories stand out. From simple DIY to more intricate ideas, we've got four great ways to make your guest book a keepsake to remember.

Photo Booth
Allow your guests to get creative and have fun with a photo booth. Guests take pictures of themselves with, or without, props and some photo booths even allow guests to write messages to the happy couple. Ask guests to include a copy of their pictures and a note in a photo book you leave on the side of the photo booth. For inspiration check out this real wedding over on Martha Stewart Weddings. 

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Thumb Prints
Leave an ink pad and a tree on a large piece of paper and have your guests fill in the leaves with their finger prints. Have them sign on or under their print to have a personalized guest book you can frame and display in your home. You can find pre-made thumb print trees on Etsy if you don't want to create one yourself.

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Photo Book 
Turn your engagement photos into a photo book by using one of the many photo processing sites such as Shutterfly, Costco.com, Mpix, etc. Or find a local photo development company to do it for you. Leave room on each page for guests to leave their sentiments. Or get creative and have guests give specific advice about certain things on every few pages. And if you are receiving professional engagements photos from a photographer make sure to ask them if they have any great sources for photo books. Odds are they already work with a company for weddings!

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Mini Envelope
We first saw this book over on Emmaline Bride and had to go over and check it out for ourselves. Elegantly Bound has a custom envelope guest book where each guest takes a notecard out of an attached envelope and writes their greeting. They then put it back in the envelope and are done! At the end of your wedding day you can go and look in each envelope to see what everyone has said! How creative is that?

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Whatever you decide, your guest book should be an item that you are able to treasure forever!

60s Chic Beach Wedding {Featured Stationery}

We were featured on Inspired By This! Check out the awesome stationery we created for this 60s Glam photo shoot for Destination I Do magazine. And yes, it's the same one featured in the latest issue of Destination I Do!

To see the full post and view all of the amazing photos check out this post here on Inspired By This. 

 

Photographer: Trent Bailey

Styling and Production: Desiree Spinner Events

Venue: Belle Mer, Newport, RI

Flowers & Decor: Stone Blossom Floral and Event Decor

Stationery: Cherish Paperie

Dessert Table: Delicious Desserts

Rentals: Rentals Unlimited

Linens: Nuage Designs

Linens: La Tavola

Bride’s Dress: Amy Kuschel

Bride’s Dress: Claire Pettibone

Bride’s Jewelry: Tejani

Groom’s Attire: Mr. Perry's Tux

Hair and Makeup: Wedding Tresses

Bridal Salon: Gabriella New York Bridal Salon

Winter Weddings {Envelopments Ideas & Inspiration}

Envelopments comes out with all sorts of wonderful ideas for wedding invitations. And that doesn't stop when the holidays roll out. Here's some information from their blog about the wedding invitation and stationery pictured above:

Yes, you may be tying the knot in the winter season, but that doesn’t mean your invitations need to incorporate snowflakes or use holiday colors. Your wedding day is still about you and your fiancé, not about how many degrees the temperature dropped. In the Adele & Jeremy Featured Sample, seen in the winter edition of The Knot magazine, we decided to fly south for the winter.


The inspiration for this destination wedding is the vibrant colors found in and around Santa Fe, New Mexico. The earthy colors of the landscape and architecture create natural and neutral backdrops to contrast with the red and turquoise found in southwest jewelry.

To see more of this gorgeous wedding stationery set please visit the Envelopments blog. And if you're planning a winter wedding and want to design some beautiful stationery like the one pictured below just contact us and we can get started today!

Bohemian Tablescape {Reception Stationery Designer}

How gorgeous is this? We were invited to create a Bohemian style stationery set for a beautiful tablescape. We included gorgeous green succulents, playful flowers and fun fonts in an effort to create the perfect look to go with the settings. What do you think?

To see more of these beautiful pictures pick up the latest Bride & Bloom Southern California Edition wedding magazine on newsstands now! 

As always, it was the work of an entire team to create these beautiful designs. Please take a moment to check out these awesome businesses we worked with on this Bohemian design:

Photography: Samuel Lippke
Florals and Design: Dolce Designs
Planning: Details Event Planning
Stationery: Cherish Paperie
Linens: La Tavola
Rentals: Town and Country
Production: Be Inspired PR

Paper Layering Tool {DIY Tutorial}

We recently ran across a genius DIY idea to make perfectly positioned layers on your invitations and DIY paper projects over at Project Wedding from a post in their forums. The poster's idea stemmed from a product that Envelopments carries called the JIGster. And since the JIGster costs upwards of $70 it just isn't in the budget for some DIY brides.

The end product creates the perfect template to use in layering paper on top of one another giving a clean, even look every time! I might just use this on my holiday cards this year to position my family pictures! The directions to make your own are below:

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Directions

• Go to your local craft store and look in their pre-cut picture mat section. Just buy the cheapest one (Michaels had a 5x7 that was already layered at a 1/4" - it was $1.80).
• Pick up some foam board (or anything that is sturdy). I picked up a small piece for $0.99 which I cut to make two 5x7 rectangles.
• Using an x-acto knife make a clean slice in two opposite corners.
• Using a hot glue gun (or any craft glue) and glue the 1st piece of mat on to the background board*
• Measure where you want the 2nd mat to hit... since mine was already at 1/4", I didn't need to do much. If you wanted an 1/8" or three levels you'll just need to measure where the steps should go and layer appropriately.
• Glue the 2nd mat on top of the 1st mat.
• Let it dry and you are good to go. Perfect edges without driving yourself mad!

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*The poster's only note is to glue close to the edges on the first mat. The paper that she printed on was thinner and had the potential to slip under the mat.

Do you have a DIY project you'd like to share with us? We'd love to post it on our blog! Contact us at danielle@cherishpaperie.com with your information.

Scratch-Off Save-the-Dates {DIY Tutorial}

Brides are always looking for a fun and unique way to set their stationery apart from others out there. Well we just ran into a great idea for a DIY save-the-date card over at Martha Stewart Weddings. It's not only cute but interactive as well! Guests are sure to clear their calendar for your special day with this original card.

Tools and Supplies

• Ink-jet and laser printer
• 8 1/2-by-11-inch card stock in white or cream (you will print 2 cards per sheet)
• Craft knife and metal ruler
• Metallic acrylic paint (we used Golden Artist Colors acrylic paint in iridescent silver, $4.75, utrechtart.com)
• Liquid dish soap
• 1/4-inch-wide watercolor brush
• A7 envelopes (5 1/4 by 7 1/4 inches)
• Pennies

Basic How-To

1. Download Martha's PDF file, and open it using Adobe Acrobat Reader (if you are using a Mac, use Reader instead of Apple's Preview application). 
2. Replace the placeholder text with your own (you only need to do this in one box; the form will automatically fill in the rest), and print onto card stock.
3. Use the craft knife and metal ruler to cut between the crop marks (do not cut all the way to the edges of the paper; this will leave the crop marks intact around all the edges to guide subsequent cuts).
4. Combine one part dish soap with two parts metallic acrylic paint. Paint neatly over the number in the center of the hearts with a thin layer. Let it dry thoroughly, about 1 hour, and then add a second layer. Let second coat dry thoroughly (about 1 more hour) before putting the cards in the envelopes.
5. Mail the card with a "lucky" penny for scratching (you will need extra postage for this).

Remember to weigh your save-the-dates just as you would your invitations to insure that each and every one arrives at its destination.

Red, White and Blue Fan Programs {Lake Anna, VA Wedding Program Designer}

As we've mentioned before, we love to see pictures of the stationery items we design when our clients receive them. And we also love to see what final touches our brides and grooms add to the stationery. We received a lovely email from Carrie the other day and she included a few pictures of the programs we designed and the ribbon she added to give them a bit more of a personal touch.

Here's what Carrie had to say:

Adrienne,
Thanks for all of your help with the program fans. They are EXACTLY how I pictured them to be when I first thought to do this for the wedding.


They are going to look great at the wedding!!


Thanks again!
Carrie

We love happy customers! Do you have pictures of stationery we've designed and printed for you? We'd love to feature it on our blog! Share with us by emailing your photos to danielle@cherishpaperie.com or share with us on our Facebook wall. And if you haven't already, come like us on Facebook!

Custom Donation Cards {Florida Wedding Stationery Designer}

Photo Courtesy of Domino Arts

 The donation cards pictured above are some that we designed for a bride working with Joni of Your Special Day. Their simple but elegant design has two uses, an escort card and a donation card. If you are considering doing donation cards in lieu of wedding favors then there are many options out there for you to choose from. Contact Cherish Paperie today to design the perfect donation card for your event.

Day-Of Timelines {Ideas and Inspiration}

We just recently discussed wedding maps and great ways to design and include them into your invitation. Now lets talk about day-of timelines. These cards simply let those around you know where they're supposed to be and when so there's no confusion about the timeline of the day. There are two different versions of the day-of timeline; there is the wedding schedule timed out by 15 minute increments to give to all of the wedding vendors and then there is the cliffs notes version to give to your bridal party and any other important guest at the wedding who needs to know the timing of everything.


Wedding Day Timeline
Wedding Day timelines are a must for your wedding vendors. If you've already hired a wedding planner than the planner will more than likely create this timeline for you as the big day gets closer. But if you're going at it alone you may need to create one yourself to pass along to your vendors. Basically this timeline tells the people you've hired when to get where and sometimes what to do.  Here are a few things to consider while planning out your wedding timeline:

Hair & Make Up - Getting Ready
For most brides, the morning of the wedding is the busiest. Not only do you have tons of people around you, there are also a lot of things going on. Making sure that you schedule enough time for hair and make up is very important because this will affect whole day's schedule. Not only should you write down the time you are scheduled to get your hair and makeup done but also write down what time those in your bridal party are getting dolled up as well. Also include the time that your ride should pick you up and take you to your ceremony location unless you are getting ready at the ceremony location.

For great tips on how to schedule your hair and makeup check out Wedding Photography Directory's post about Wedding Day Schedule Planning and Strategy.

Photography - Before or After
While most traditionalists believe that the bride and groom should not see each other until they meet at the alter, many brides nowadays are choosing to forgo this tradition in order to give themselves more time to enjoy their cocktail hour and reception. Make a decision that works for you and let everyone know when and where you would like your photographs to be taken.

Some great tips and tricks for wedding day photography can be found on Style Me Pretty in an article written by Christian Oth.

Ceremony and Reception
Now the ceremony might seem like an easy thing to schedule. But you also have to remember to include when the florist should arrive if you are having the location decorated, when the musicians or singer(s) should start and the timing of the processional and recessional so everyone is on the same page.

And the most amount of time scheduled will more than likely be at your reception. Not only are you scheduling set up, caterers and entertainment but you also want to include fun events like special dances, speeches and cake. Just make sure that while planning out your schedule you also include a special time for you and your spouse to have a moment or two to relish in the excitement of finally being married!

If you are in need of a template for your more detailed schedule check out this Google Doc created by Michelle Rago and Style Me Pretty.

Cliffs Notes Card
This simple card basically just gives the cliffs notes version of your wedding day timeline to your bridal party in a cute, stylish fashion. You simply include the times of the events they need to be at. You can also include information on the back of the cards that detail what each member of the bridal party is responsible for if there are responsibilities at the wedding for them to perform.



For great DIY timeline ideas please check out the following sites:
Adorkable Duo
NYCity Weddings

Cherish Paperie can also design your wedding day timeline to match your invitations or other wedding reception stationery. Just let us know what you want and we'll create it!

Custom Invitation Maps & Direction Cards {Ideas and Information}

When designing your invitation you main focus is to provide the details of your special day to your guests. A great way to help guests is to provide a map with your invitation information showing them where they are supposed to be and where they might be going.

Some guests may be from out of town or are unfamiliar with your wedding venue. By providing a map and directions on how to get there from different points of the city or county you can be assured that the chance of a guest being late due to getting lost or having incorrect directions is reduced.

If you are getting married at a place that is not right next to the location of your reception you can use a map to give step by step directions to your reception location. This will help guests not only find their way to the party but will also give them a way to plan the timing of leaving the wedding location and arriving at the reception location.

When thinking about designs for your map remember a few simple tips.

Less is more
Try to make your map as simple and clean looking as possible. You want to get your guest to their destination, not side track them with extra details and locations.

Include the important information
Try not to forget to put the address(es) on the map. It's helpful to put the address of the destination in a prominent place so guests can use other mapping tools, like GPS, to get to the destination.

Add a direction card
Including written directions on either the front or back of the map is something that should not be forgotten. Writing directions from the north, south, east and west is very helpful but if you think people will be able to get there by only giving two directions then feel free to do so.

Use simple fonts
A clear, easy to read font should be used on the direction cards. Sometimes more intricate fonts can be hard to read. You can use those pretty fonts for your names and the date if you want to use them. It's always fun to use the same fonts you've used on your wedding invitations. That way the map and direction card have a similar feel to the invitation itself.

If you want to try and design your invitations on your own, we've found a great DIY tutorial for you over on Wedding Bee's blog. It's actually very similar to the tutorial I used for my wedding map. Then simply send them to us with your invitation order and we'll print them up for you! Or if you don't have time to create a map yourself have us design it for you for a small fee.

Key West Custom Program Designer {Real Weddings}

We absolutely love it when we receive pictures like these in our inbox. The best thing about designing custom stationery is seeing the end product in action. Thank you, Joni, for sending these our way! Do you have a photo or two of our stationery at your special event? We'd LOVE to see them! Send them to danielle@cherishpaperie.com for a chance to be featured on our blog.

Photos by Studio Julie Photography

 

Photos by Studio Julie Photography

What Do I Include in my Invitation? {Ideas and Information}

Typically, an invitation is made up of the mailing envelope, invite, RSVP card, and reply envelope (which should include a prepaid stamp). Save-the-dates, reception cards (used when the party is in a different spot than the ceremony), and inner envelopes are common add-ons.

Recently, people have also started to include a map or page of activities for out-of-towners. And some use post cards instead of RSVP cards with reply envelopes.

Besides the invitations and save-the dates, we make items such as ceremony programs, menu cards, favor/dessert tags and custom signage. Basically any paper good element you would like at your reception can be created by Cherish Paperie.

No matter what you choose, just remember to be clear on what you would like to include when ordering your invitations and reception stationery. Some brides order their invitations and when they get the complete set they end up without the inner envelope or other piece of the stationery that they wanted to include. Being upfront with your expectations and wants is always the best way to begin your invitation process. We can't wait to work with you to design your dream wedding stationery!

The True Cost of a Wedding {Ideas and Inspiration}

Want to see where your wedding falls in the national scope of things? Check out this comprehensive chart we saw over at Divine Caroline. It's really interesting to see the breakdown of costs by item as well as by city. Where do you fall?

Photo Source: Divine Caroline and Credit Sesame

Miami Black Tie BBQ {Featured Events and Locations}

Our work was featured on Style Me Pretty's Miami Black Tie BBQ Build a Board! You may have seen some of the images from the Style Me Pretty gallery already when we featured them in our TC Events Real Weddings blog post. To see more of this wedding head on over to Justin & Mary Photography's blog. It was truly a beautiful event!

TC Event Design - Part 1 {Real Weddings}

TC Event Design in Hollywood, FL  is always so great  to work with, they always know exactly what they want...and even the most simple design we do becomes fabulous with their incredible styling! Check out some of our favorites below!

Photo Source: Danielle & Adrienne at Douglas Entrance

Photo Source: California Road Trip Wedding

Photo Source: Trump and Bling

Photo Source: Rylee's Mitzvah!

Photo Source: Lauren and Matias