Since Kate’s wedding colors are apple green and chocolate brown, I used a vintage fruit crate for the inspiration for her invitations.  I printed a barn wood pattern on metallic linen cardstock in a champagne color (gorgeous paper!) and created a gatefold to frame the invitation panel, which used a combination of chocolate brown text and a green apple graphic motif.

The closed gatefold with the fruit label belly band closure.

The back of the closed invitation, with the RSVP postcard and reception card tucked into the belly band.

The opened gatefold, showcasing the invitation panel with a chocolate brown cardstock mat. You can't really see the champagne linen metallic cardstock on the sides of the gatefold in the picture, but it is absolutely stunning in person!

Kate wanted the invitation to ride the line between traditional and modern, and to help with that, I created a postcard RSVP that could easily be personalized with each invited guest’s name.  For meal choices, I used icons in order to conserve space on the card and add a whimsical touch.  The front of the postcard repeated the vintage fruit crate label design that appeared on the belly band closure.

The RSVP postcard with space for personalization and meal icons. The white space left on this card is required by the postal service so they can add their labels and marks to it.

A closer look at the back of the RSVP postcard.

I included a simple Reception card using the same green apple motif and tucked it behind the chocolate cardstock belly band with the RSVP card.

The full suite, with the open gatefold, belly band, RSVP postcard, and reception card.

The whole invitation package was outfitted with an apple green envelope – I printed the return address on the back flap in brown and created a set of wrap-around graphic labels for the mailing addresses.  These labels were printed and sent to Kate and Chris with a template to add the addresses, and they printed and cut them to size themselves (and they did a great job!)

The mailing address label and apple green envelope. These labels were sent to Kate and Chris as full sheets of wood-grained stickers with blank areas for the addresses, and I sent them a template so they could print and cut them themselves. The barn wood pattern is the same one that appears on the outside of the gatefold.

The back of the mailing envelope, with the address printed in brown on the back flap.

Congratulations, Kate and Chris!  Can’t wait for the wedding – it is going to be absolutely gorgeous!

Kelly contacted me on Etsy and wanted me to design a custom vintage fruit crate label for her wedding to Jeff.  They’re planning a charming affair with the theme “The Perfect Pear,” and she wanted the label to involve pears and Southern California, since that’s where the two of them met.  The colors they are using are primarily clover green, yellow, and brown.

I asked her for a few more details – names, dates, places, etc., – so I could have some interesting text elements to incorporate in the design.  For a wedding design like this,  I like to know if the bride is planning to take the groom’s name; I respect and appreciate that many women make different choices about this issue, and I don’t want to offend anyone by showcasing one last name  when it wouldn’t be appropriate to do so.

We discussed the fees, and I created a custom listing for Kelly on Etsy that covered our agreed amount and the cost to ship the printed product.  As with all of my custom digital designs, this fee included two preview designs for her to choose from and three minor revisions to the design she chose.

Once the listing was purchased, I got to work!  Here are the two preview designs that I sent her:

Preview Design #1

Preview Design #2

Kelly and Jeff chose Design #1!  From that point, they were entitled to three revisions.  Kelly, sweetheart that she is, only asked for one – they wanted the label to say “Jeffrey” instead of “Jeff.”  Simple!

This is the final design:

The finalized design, with the text edited as requested.

Once Kelly approved it, I sent it off to get printed as a 12″x18″ sticker, then packed it up and mailed it to her.  She should receive it in just a couple of days.

Thanks again, Kelly and Jeff!  It was an absolute pleasure working with you, and I wish you all the best with your wedding and your life together!

The outside of our rehearsal dinner invitation - a Playbill program.

The inside of our rehearsal dinner invitation, with all of the necessary information.

The back of the rehearsal dinner invitation, with hand-drawn Photoshop map.

I used a high-resolution photo of a Broadway Playbill and Photoshopped it to include one of our engagement pictures and our own custom text.  The inside contained the necessary information, but it was set up as a program.  On the back I included a hand-drawn Photoshop map with the address and directions.

We used black envelopes for these, so I created labels for the mailing and return addresses that looked like show tickets.

The ticket label for our return address; the mailing address was printed on a similar but larger version of the same label.

The files for this invitation are also available for free download from my married bio.  If you want me to re-work the design for you with your pictures and information, contact me and we can work something out!