Wedding Wednesday: Save the Date

It's been 5 days since we started distributing our Save the Dates and it's such a joy seeing the expression on friends faces every time they get a first glimpse of our wedding day. 

When I grabbed hold of this pack from the printer, my heart skipped a beat. The kilig kind. Our set has come a long way, from the design process with the talented graphic artist, to the printer - which by the way - is a major headache! (it is safe to say that we're not having the invitation printed with them), to the casual calligraphy by the Cunanans and now the distribution! 

Yes, Save the Dates are fun! -(",)-*wink*

Some pointers from  Martha Stewart Weddings:

1. Save-the-date cards create the first impression that your guests will have of the wedding, so you want them to reflect the style of the event. 

2. Send save the date cards 4 to 6 months before the wedding to give guests time to book travel arrangements and accommodation. 

3. For a formal event, the cards can be worded simply: "Please save the date of Saturday, the ninth of November, for the wedding of  Ann Jones to Mark Brown". For a casual wedding, you might say something like "We're getting married! Please save the date: November 9, 2002, New York City"

4. You may want to put essentials in the card, itinerary of wedding events, map of the area, etc.

And as any typical Wedding Wednesday, allow me to share the Save the Dates I fancy on Pinterest.

Keeping it simple and structured

A little casual

I like that this one is handwritten, letter-pressed on a pretty paper

Now if you have those rockstar pre-nup photos, why don't you try something like this. I like the textured grey lines.

Now this is brilliant

If you want something vintage and scrabble-inspired, try this.

There are so many creative ways to present your Save the Dates. Personally, we find Save the Date essential, especially that our guests are coming from all over and we want them to feel that they are valued and we give them ample time to prepare so they can join us on our wedding day.

Wedding Wednesday: Calligraphy by the Cunanans

Calligraphy, as defined by Wikipedia, is the design and execution of lettering with a broad tip instrument or brush in one stroke. Modern calligraphy ranges from functional hand-lettered inscriptions and designs to fine art pieces. Calligraphy continues to flourish in the forms of wedding and event invitations, font design, original hand-lettered logo design, religious art, announcement and calligraphic art.

Because today is Wednesday, we'll discuss how we're incorporating this form of art on our wedding day. Etiquette has it that wedding invitation envelopes should always be addressed by hand. It is often the first impression of the wedding an invited guest will have. It should set the tone and give the recipient a sense of how formal or informal the event would be. Black ink is the most formal and traditional manner but of course, colored ink is also acceptable. 

Calligraphy tools from Martha Stewart

Sample writing randomly found on Pinterest

A wedding monogram

And envelopes

And so... because we're doing a D-I-Y (aka wala na kaming budget) wedding, we've enlisted the help of the very talented Cunanans to handwrite the names and address of the recipients of our Save the Date card. 

We bought calligraphy pens from National Bookstore. The pens are really nice, flat-tipped and brings out the best handwriting you've got. The set comes in 3 sizes: 0.8, 1.3 and 1.8. There's also a converter so we can switch between ink cartridge and bottle.

We're keeping the set to write cheques and sign documents at work with! Hahaha!

Little brother Cunanan practiced on the test printout from the printer.

This is Ate Cunanan's output 1.

Her output 2. 

Team n&k approves!

Then this is Papa Cunanan's calligraphy.

We're loving it, too!

Having fun with the pens.

I am pretty sure the black ink on top is my output. Walang talent?

Gosh, this is a very talented bunch. Person A's output is also a winner but he has a lot of things to do so we're farming it out to the family.

Family project. Or maybe, we should make a business out of this hobby.

I highly suggest pursuing a DIY calligraphy rather than spending PhP30/invite on calligraphy. It's fun and easy peasy! Great family bonding.