Kraft wedding programs

Yesterday I somehow ended up on Google+, and while I was there, I changed some picture settings. Today I had a comment on an old blog post saying the pictures were missing. At first I thought I might have reached my storage limit (is there such a thing on blogger?), but quickly realized what had happened. Reversing that was harder than I would have thought, but about an hour of googling and trial and error, all my pictures are back where they were. Lesson of the day: Keep your Google+/Blogger photo albums public, and DO NOT delete any of the pictures. 

After this warning, back to some wedding chatter. There really isn't any plan of order for the wedding posts, they just happen, in case you were a little confused by my blogging lately.

Making the wedding programs myself was a given: I have experience with layout and design from work, and it was a great way to save money. Since we and our guests speak two different languages, I thought it would be helpful with pretty detailed programs, which is actually very common in Norway anyways.

First: Ceremony programs

These were pretty straightforward once we had decided on what to include in the ceremony. The order of the service and text for the hymns were all on the inside. On the front we used the illustration from our invitation, and the names of the all people involved in the ceremony were on the back. This was printed on medium heavy kraft paper in black and white. I made separate English and Norwegian copies, and since it was a small wedding, our lovely greeters knew who needed which one.

Secondly: Programs for the party

This project was a little more complicated. The contents of this booklet included the program and menu for the evening, some local barn history (!), a short presentation of each guest, fun facts about American and Norwegian wedding traditions, and our guest book. Writing these pages took a while, but I enjoyed it! I didn't get to ask our guests if they liked it/found it helpful/entertaining, but I know my dad couldn't stop reading it the day we were setting tables...

The cover is printed on heavy kraft paper and the contents is normal white printer paper, to save some money and increase readability. Everything was stapled together, and each folder got a piece of washi tape on the front where the guest name was written. Which meant no need for place cards! One of the deciding factors for assigned seating was in fact these programs, as I couldn't figure out another way to get each guest a program in their own language.

I just love mail, and even before we were engaged I pinned a postcard guestbook. I started collecting vintage postcards, but for the longest time had no idea how to actually use them. The solution I ended up with was to tape a postcard in each wedding program, hoping guests would write a greeting during/after dinner. It was never explained except in written form in the program, which might be why only about a quarter of the guests used it. So now I have a stash of amazing postcards waiting to be used, and that is no bad thing either.

Did you/would you have programs for your wedding?

RESOURCES
Kraft paper: Green Earth Supplies
Tape: WeXStore
Vintage postcards: Memory Saver and Hens Feathers on Etsy, and second hand stores here in Norway and the States
Fonts: Animatic and Channel

Photography: The nice action shots are by Michaela Nichole Photography, the others are taken with my phone in my kitchen.

Wedding invitations DIY

I love paper. And envelopes. I have a whole suitcase full of decorative paper, cutouts from magazines, scrapbook paper bought on travels and much more. Naturally, when it came to our wedding invitations, I was quite excited to send out pretty mail.

After reading a few wedding/illustrator blogs I had a good idea of what I wanted, and kraft paper was a non-negotiable. It doesn´t hurt that it is recycled, which makes it almost second hand, or what?

I have surprised myself a little with this project. Originally I planned to go to Oslo to score the PERFECT paper for envelope liners, but ended up using something I have had for many years, but found too pretty to use. I calculated and thought I would have enough, but my math didn´t add up right, and I ran out. Luckily the store still had the same paper, probably 9 years later!

Kraft paper, illustration, typography, pretty patterns and vintage stamps. Could my heart be happier?

For the layout I used Indesign, as it is the program I know best. You can recreate something similar in Word, as I did for the sketch, or use Photoshop or whatever you prefer. The fonts are free and found online.

In total, the only really new thing I bought was three sheets of light A4 cardstock and some washi tape. The rest was new/recycled, vintage, or stuff I had at home!

My total spent for around 60 invitations: 650 kr, plus 500 kr for postage.

Sources: 
- Kraft paper and envelopes: Green Earth Supplies
- Envelope liners: Norway Designs in Oslo. You can find the same styles online by searching for florentine paper
- Illustration: Angie Thompson
- Vintage stamps: Auctions at QXL
- Embroidery thread: From my grandma´s sewing kit
- Monogram paper: Norli at Arkaden in Skien
- Washi tape: WeXStore

The invitations are out!

It was a work in progress for a little while, but the invitations are finally out, and we are starting to get RSVPs, which is so much fun! Here is a little sneak peak, but a post with all the details will come later.

I have been working more on our wedding blog lately, and therefore neglecting this one. There are a few posts I have started on though, (mostly wedding related) and they will come in the near future.