I knew that Stacy wanted some sparkle in her invites, so we paired up three gorgeous metallic cardstocks and a handful of crystal embellishments for these lovely gatefolds.  Take a look at how it all came together!

I used the monogram I'd created previously on the oval seal for the tucked-ribbon belly band.

A closer look at the belly band and seal. I love the tucked-ribbon look; it's a ton of extra work, but it's worth it.

The invitation panel was mounted to a pink metallic cardstock mat inside the gold metallic gatefold.

There were five crystal accents on each invitation panel - a pink one in each corner and an amber one in the center.

The inserts all maintained the graphics and fonts from the invitation panel and were mounted to pink metallic cardstock.

The only insert that didn't get a cardstock mat was the RSVP card, because it's paired with a coordinating pink envelope (not pictured).

It was so much fun designing such an elegant set of wedding invitations for what was undoubtedly a gorgeous and detail-rich affair this past June.  Stacy and Shannon, I wish you all the best in your marriage – thank you for the opportunity to create these pieces for you!

I’m excited to finally share this with you all – the gorgeous wedding of Katie and Preston, my giveaway winners!  I knew after my first meeting with this couple that their wedding was going to be something special, and it did not disappoint!  Their lovely details earned them a two-part feature on OnceWed.com, which you should definitely go check out (click here for part 1 and here for part 2).  And enjoy these beautiful shots of the event, captured by Leigh Miller.

Katie's stunning ruffled wedding dress was custom-made by Kate Towers.

Katie and her mother sewed all of the fabric items for the wedding, including all of the dinner napkins, and collected heirloom mismatched china for each placesetting.

The florals were all done by Laura and Blake of Hoot and Heart. Such lovely bouquets!

Preston and his dad made all of the wooden benches for the ceremony seating.

The dessert table, which held an amazing array of bite-sized treats for the guests to choose from.

So in love with their stationery suite! Katie designed and created everything - she even perforated the tear-off reply card at home with a sewing machine! Genius!

The bridesmaids chose their own dresses, and Katie's mom made the ties for the groomsmen.

The beautiful cafe lights were also DIY - Preston, his father, and the groomsmen all pitched in the day before the wedding to set them up, and their hard work definitely paid off.

Head over to Leigh Miller’s blog post about K+P if you want to see some more amazing shots of their wedding and read Katie’s write-up of the big day.  It was a pleasure meeting and working with all of the wonderful vendors below:

Photographer: Leigh Miller

Videographer: Ben Bonnet Films

Florist: Hoot & Heart

DJ: The Flashdance

Venue: Condor’s Nest Ranch

Thank you so much, Katie and Preston, for giving me the opportunity to be a part of such a beautiful celebration!  I wish you a long, happy, love-and-laughter-filled life together.

Daniella, the youngest in my favorite group of women in the world (she’s the one in the blue sweater), is now an RN!  To celebrate this huge accomplishment, the TKN gals wanted to get her something that we knew she could use in her new profession – cute scrubs!  But since we weren’t sure where she would end up working or what the dress code would be there, we pooled our money and opted for a group cash gift instead.

Giving cash can be kind of awkward, especially when it’s between friends.  I know it’s a great gift to receive, but it can feel impersonal when you’re tucking a few bills into a card.  I like to dress it up a bit if I’m going to give a cash gift.  My grandmother is a master at this – she’ll tape a check to the sole of a pair of slippers, or tuck the bills inside a pair of barrettes.

So in order to dress up Daniella’s group gift, I created this card – it measures 5″x7″ and is styled to look just like a miniature medical chart!

The outside of the card - tan heavyweight cardstock was used to mimic a manila folder.

When you open up the card, the text panels on the inside are set up with medical chart information – both typed and “handwritten” – and there’s a small envelope clipped to the left side that’s the perfect size to hold a few bills.

A wide shot of the inside of the card.

A closer look at the personal message - I used the least legible script font I had to approximate a doctor's penmanship.

A view of the left side of the card with the gift envelope detached.

Ordinarily I wouldn’t bother posting about a card I made for a friend – I make individual cards quite often and don’t generally reproduce them – but I was so excited by the way this one came out that I thought it was worthy of an Etsy listing.  Besides, I can’t be the only person out there with a zillion doctors, dentists, nurses, and PAs in her life!  It’s graduation season, and if anyone out there is looking for the perfect way to present a cash, check, or gift card to a new medical professional, get an order in today!

Melissa recently redesigned her entire website and blog, and she asked me to create some whimsical thank-you cards in her business colors that she could use to send out with her orders.  She loved the metallic linen paper I used for Stacy’s save-the-date cards, and she sent me some inspiration images that used a collection of different vintage/circus fonts.  So I went through my collection of crazy fonts, did some Google foreign-language translation, and came up with this:

The Bling Diva Designs thank-you card, in shades of purple and teal

Aren’t they gorgeous?  The metallic paper is just perfect for a business that deals entirely in bling!  Here’ s a couple more shots:

Totally charming.

I love the diamond detail that we added to the bracket flourish.

Melissa, it was so much fun working with you to create these, and I look forward to more collaboration in the future!  And a note to all brides-to-be… Melissa and I have a special deal worked out for anyone who hires TCK Design for a coordination package, so contact me if you want the details!

Me, grinning like a crazy fool after opening the most awesome Christmas present ever. EVER!

That’s right. The Cheshire Kat Design Studio is now the proud owner of an antique tabletop letterpress, and in the coming months I’ll be offering letterpress printing in addition to standard digital flat printing. I’m hard at work on a couple of exciting letterpress projects right now, so keep an eye out for them on the blog.

In the meantime, feel free to browse through the site and check out our new look!

I drew the winning entry at random using a spreadsheet and a random number generator from Random.org, and I seriously squealed out loud when I saw the winning names.

Katrina and Preston are the winners of a free DOC package for their wedding this spring!  Congratulations to you both!  I am truly looking forward to helping you execute your creative vision for your big day.

Thank you so much to all of my entrants!  Best wishes for your upcoming weddings!

Here’s a quick repost of the details:

To enter to win our free day-of coordination package, email me at katrina@thecheshirekat.com with “Contest Entry” in the subject line, and answer these questions:

• What is your name?
• What is your fiance’s name?
• What is your email address?
• What is your phone number?
• What is your wedding date?
• Where will your ceremony and reception take place?
• How many guests are invited?
• What do you love the most about your wedding plans so far, and why?
• What part of wedding planning is driving you crazy?

Entries will be accepted until January 31st, 2010, at 11:59 PM.  A winner will be chosen at random from all eligible entries and will be notified via email.  No duplicate entries, please!

In order to be eligible to win:

• You must have a wedding date between March 1st and April 30th, 2010.
• You must be getting married somewhere within the following counties:  LA/Orange/Riverside/Ventura
• You must grant consent for TCK Design Studio to post pictures and/or descriptions of your wedding on the blog and/or use them for promotions and advertisements in the future.  All of your personal information will remain confidential and will not be posted.
• You must be willing to sign our standard day-of coordination contract.

For details on our day-of coordination package, click here to download the standard contract.

Good luck!

For this announcement, I took my inspiration from the gorgeous modern nursery that Ramona designed – everything is Texas Burnt Orange and gray, with a circular motif.  Ramona asked for something that was modern, yet classic, and she gave me complete creative freedom with the design.

Here it is!

Isn't he adorable? We had such a hard time choosing just three photos!

A closer look - I love that retro '50s font!

The announcement is a 5.5" square; it's mounted onto a gorgeous matte gray cardstock and paired with an orange square envelope.

The photos of Grayson were taken by the lovely and talented Emmycube Photography.

I’m so excited about this one that I decided to add it to the Etsy store!  It is currently available in four different color combinations – the original orange/gray, of course, and green/gray, blue/gray, and violet/gray.  Each one is mounted to the matte gray cardstock as pictured (because I just love it so much!), and each will be paired with a colored envelope.

Ramona, Nik, and Grayson – thanks so much for the opportunity to create these for you!

I’ve been focusing on invitation design and paper products since I started this little venture last year, but my intention has always been to branch out into event coordination as well.  I worked as a stage manager, set dresser,  and art department coordinator for years, and since I left the industry, I’ve found that I miss the creative and interpersonal nature of it.  The last-minute, we-need-this-yesterday disasters that I could magically fix with a roll of tape, fishing line, and a few yards of fabric that were in my trunk (just in case!).  I’ve rented semi-trucks and helicopters, found and purchased everything from antique St. Christopher’s medals to feathered roach clips, and pulled an all-nighter to print, cut, and sew canvas letters onto 18 enormous punching bags.  I’m good at both last-minute details and long-term planning, at tracking budgets and tying bows, and I still have a trunk full of tools and scrap fabric (just in case!).

We’re at the start of a new year and a new decade, and in the interest of expanding this area of the studio and helping out a bride who’s getting down to the wire on her planning, I’m kicking things off by giving away one day-of coordination package to a lucky couple getting married in March or April of 2010!

To enter, email me at katrina@thecheshirekat.com with “Contest Entry” in the subject line, and answer these questions:

• What is your name?
• What is your fiance’s name?
• What is your email address?
• What is your phone number?
• What is your wedding date?
• Where will your ceremony and reception take place?
• How many guests are invited?
• What do you love the most about your wedding plans so far, and why?
• What part of wedding planning is driving you crazy?

Entries will be accepted until January 31st, 2010, at 11:59pm.  A winner will be chosen at random from all eligible entries and will be notified via email.  No duplicate entries, please!

In order to be eligible to win:

• You must have a wedding date between March 1st and April 30th, 2010.
• You must be getting married somewhere within the following counties:  LA/Orange/Riverside/Ventura
• You must grant consent for TCK Design Studio to post pictures and/or descriptions of your wedding on the blog and/or use them for promotions and advertisements in the future.  All of your personal information will remain confidential and will not be posted.
• You must be willing to sign our standard day-of coordination contract.

For details on our day-of coordination package, click here to download the standard contract.

Good luck!

This is the Spring/Summer 2010 issue. Look for it at your local newsstand!

This is the article, which appears on page 219. We're one of three couples who were willing to share our budgets and vendors. All photos in the article are taken by Zenia Photography.

Our portion of the article, with our total budget right up at the top.

A closer look at the picture of the two of us (and our total budget for a wedding with 130 guests).

The second page of our budget breakdown. I love that Brassworks got a picture in there, too!

This next one is almost as exciting as having our pictures in a magazine…

And there we are, listed as the stationery vendor! So awesome seeing it all in print!

A big thank-you to the editors of The Knot and to all of my awesome vendors!  Be back later this week with more big news!