Custom Save the Dates, Unique Wedding Invitations & Personalized Stationery

99 Most Inspirational Wedding Websites in the World!!! My Personal Artist Blog made the list! I am honored to be among the top 34 in the USA!!!! Along side ‘Martha Stewart Weddings’ and more! I FAINT!!

I started “blogging” back in 2000!!!!! My “journal” online was called “my thoughts.” Who knew that I would still be blogging 12 years later?! Time flies when you are having fun and doing what you love.

Thank you to all of you who voted. And a huge thank you to Zankyou Magazine and judges for the LOVE!!!

Just Married! Congrats to Sydney and Chris!!

When I was asked to custom design Sydney and Chris’ barn themed wedding invitations, I was thrilled! I had never designed such a theme. After much research, we were ALL very pleased with the results. A white folder invitation in thick white cardstock boasting my hand-painted barn complete with a couple kissing in the door way. Inside a metallic card layer in blue with white invite on top. Hanging outdoor lights streaming on the left side of the card to the right. The invite was scored by hand and hand-folded  then wrapped twice with baby yellow satin ribbon and hand-tied into a bow. You can view more details of the invitation on this page.

(once like a spark) photography was Sydney and Chris’ photographer. Hop on over to the post “Fun and Spirited So Cal Wedding” over at “A Paper Proposal” to view MORE lovely photos from their wedding including MORE of the stationery I designed for the couple. Another FABULOUSLY FUN couple married!!!

TRENDING today at My Personal Artist are letterpress wedding invitations, MANY shades of pink and gray, and wedding couples’ names boasting LARGE fancy fonts. My favorite font, shown here today is Bellucia Pro. As you can see it letterpresses perfectly into our 100% cotton paper. GorGEousss!

Since we do own our VERY own Heidelberg Letterpress Printing Press … our EVERYDAY pricing includes 100 letterpress invitations and reply cards for $477.00. Printed on the finest 300gsm 100% cotton Crane Lettra cards. NOW THAT is  affordable!! Questions? Please email our in-house letterpress printer direct [email protected].

This morning I SHED SOME LIGHT on how many watercolor lighthouses I have hand-painted for custom wedding invitations! As I searched for a “lighthouse with a bit of ocean at the base” for Dianna’s place cards, to my surprise I found 7+ lighthouses I had illustrated for invitation designs in the past. I would love to layout samples for you to see the invites for each. But time does not allow that right now. So here you will find the lighthouses in watercolor that are available. If you want a custom invitation design with a lighthouse that is not shown here, no worries! Just ask me! I personally LOVE to paint them. And they do look so lovely on an invite. I promise, “in my spare time” I will snap a few photos for nautical invitation ideas!

Shown in the upper left corner (not the top photo) and lower right corner the St. Simons Lighthouse in Georgia. Shown in the middle, Marblehead Lighthouse in Ohio. Top right corner is Montauk Point Lighthouse in New York.  Bottom left corner, Hope Town Lighthouse in the Bahamas. Middle bottom row, Cape May Lighthouse in New Jersey. And below, York Lighthouse in Maine.

If you would LOVE a lighthouse invitation quote, please email me the quantity you want at [email protected]

Do you have a favorite lighthouse that you have visited in person that you just LOVE? Leave a comment! I would love to hear from you.

I am DEEELIGHTED to share my clients, Nancy and Richard’s, custom wedding invitations with you!! (personal wording details were changed for the photo above) Nancy wanted me to design a vintage, bohemian, old Spanish/Mexico wedding invitation for her boasting hand-painted papel picados. Papel Picado means perforated paper and features Mexican folk art. She showed me photos for inspiration which I have now included in the idea board above! I fell in love. So very romantic and the colors… amazing hues of burnt orange, pops of yellow, pink rose, and grass greens as well as bluish greens. I was thrilled to be able to actually hand-paint their names in the custom papel picados for their invitation design!

The succulent bouquet, wedding cake, and candles photographs are by the fabulous This Modern Romance Photography. (A HUGE Thank You to them for giving me permission to share the photos!) The color swatches and invitation photos are by My Personal Artist Custom Invitations (that’s me!). The oh-so-romantic hand-embroidered bride-to-be’s wedding dress can be found at BHLDN. The papel picados photo by Mexican Sugar Skull.

When you are preparing to have me design your custom invitations, send me your personal inspiration photos or create a Pinterest board for me to view!! This way I can match up your personal style for your wedding or event invitations perfectly!

I am always delighted to research color reports and guess what the 2013 wedding and party color trends will be. I’ve been researching wedding colors and trends for over a decade now.

What appears to be the TOP trending colors for 2013 are quite a lovely bouquet of hues. I am seeing conflicting reports of neon colors in the UK though. So we shall see! Some may say, well how on EARTH do you know what is TRENDING if 2013 isn’t even here yet. But, oh yes, it is. In the fashion industry they are always a year ahead. ;) And fashion ALWAYS impacts the wedding industry and all color trends.

My favorite OF COURSE, it has been for years now … is BEETROOT WATER. What a gorgeous rich hue of fuchsia fandango.

I see Coca-Cola red Pantone color 485 is in the mix and a darker hue of Pantone 1805 not quite brick red, I would call it dark red. My client Elizabeth recently referred to her wedding colors as black and dark red as well as others. So I actually see this color already trending with my clients at My Personal Artist.

One of my favorite combos is Azure Blue with Wisteria Lilac. I married this wedding color combo together for you Sky Blue and Lilac with Green in 2009. Pastels are proving to rule the color charts. As well as rustic hues of burlap brown, rustic cream, and yet another red I’ll call barn red.

Good ol’ nautical navy, never disappoints. Although I am seeing a less saturated hue prowling about called BLUE WOLF. Also in the blue family indigo blue is proving its popularity yet another year! Right at their side baby azure blue. I’m guessing blues will RAWK because of the release of The Titanic movie.

Plum purple is climbing the color charts at My Personal Artist! It is such a gorgeous color to letterpress!

Celadon MINT green and Coral CARROT orange are making a splash in summer colors now. So FRESH like a beachy spring breeze. I have seen LOADS of pins from my fashionista friends on Pinterest with mint and coral.

I will continue to research and share my findings with you!!!

Until then, what are your favorite color combinations of these colors?? Please comment! I would love to hear from you.

UPDATE 9/13/12: Today I found the Pantone® Spring 2013 color report!!!! All colors I mentioned are included. Awesome!

My Personal Artist clients Ryan and Lauren wanted their beach wedding invitation art printed with their names, wedding date, and location for a keepsake. I just LOVED the idea. They wanted their guests to sign and give well wishes! Originally we were going to do a large 11″h x 17″w print, however I thought the smaller print with the matt looked so lovely… they agreed. They bought their own frame and matt, this one is mine (I found while on a RUSH order hunt for parchment paper perfect for a pirate themed announcement yesterday).

The print is personalized 7″h x 5″w and fits perfectly in the “photo” spot of the matt. Cost $21.00 for the print. Available to My Personal Artist Clients ONLY (who have bought their invitations with us) at this time.

I just received an email and phone call of the mother-of-the-bride who was very upset, saying she messed up. She ordered WAY TOO many invites. So I am sending out a friendly reminder to you friends. Be sure to order 1 invitation PER HOUSEHOLD, NOT 1 invitation PER GUEST. Save yourself the money and stress. It is truly a common mistake. Twenty years ago for my wedding I did the very same thing! I ordered 400 wedding invites when I should have only ordered 250. Oh dear. I think I will take my mother and father to a nice dinner again soon for my mess up. ;)

If ever you have questions when ordering from My Personal Artist, always feel free to ask me!

I walked by a table in the studio and found these lovely postage stamps boasting my watercolor seahorses! I just HAD to share! They match our exclusive The Shelby Design Seahorses Wedding Invitations perfectly! You can buy my postage stamps to coordinate with almost all of my artworks in my Zazzle Shop.

You must take ONE invitation envelope FULL of every stationery piece you are going to mail and have your local postmaster give you a postage rate quote. Sometimes the cost can also vary depending on WHERE you are mailing your invites to also. Traditional size invitations can also cost more to mail depending on layers and card inserts you add. To be on the safe side always take one filled invite envelope to your local postmaster for current postage rates.

After you mail your wedding invites, be prepared to answer MANY phone calls from your friends… did I say PHONE CALLS? Absolutely. They will be so super impressed with how creative YOU and your invitations and stationery are!!!

Have fun celebrating!

Pretty Purple Party Decorating Ideas! Say THAT 3x.

What a FIND! I stumbled upon this fabulous little purple party on Pinterest! The balloons caught my eye immediately. Now if you are going to use balloons to decorate your party, this is the way to do it. Hats off to Shannon over at 8footSIX.

I love that this intimate party has limited seating with colorful decorations that POP! (no pun intended) Even though it is a small party, the decorations scream *LET’S CELEBRATE!* Perfect for a bridal shower, birthday party, luncheon, and more.

Now go celebrate something!!! AND if you think you threw a fancy party, send your professional (or almost) photos to me to feature on my blog.

At My Personal Artist customizing our hand-crafted layered invitations to fit your beach wedding color scheme is easy! After you order, tell us the colors you want to see. For instance Amy wanted to see all kinds of blues used in comparison with our original brown and sand metallic shimmering cardstock design on our The Lara Ann Design beach wedding invitation. Note how the slight difference in card colors can change the look and feel of our beach theme invitations.

As always you can customize your invitation color to match any color scheme. If you are using hot pink, orange, purple, teal, green, or red! No worries, we delight in customizing your invites! And don’t forget you get to choose your invitation font and font ink colors also! If you want to make one of my artworks larger or smaller, go for it. Just note this in your order. The center invitation card piece, fonts, ink colors, and envelope art has stayed the same throughout all photos. Adding a slightly different hue changes the invite so ever slightly. Which one is your favorite?

P.S. – I normally do not assemble the invitation cards. If they appear off a tiny bit, they might be. Note that James (my husband of 20 years, in May!!!!!!!!!) assembles your invitations PERFECTLY! xo

Oh my good gorgeousness!!!

Here is a sneak peek of Elizabeth and Dan’s custom designed and hand-painted tulip wedding invitations. Per request of the groom-to-be he wanted me to actually hand-paint each tulip with metallic paint! LOVEEEEEE! The light bounces off the paint amazingly. I can not wait for my clients to see this in person. I have NEVER seen anything like it. So vibrant and detailed. I think it will knock their guests socks off.

Recently food choices have become a must have on most reply cards here at My Personal Artist. If you are having a sit down dinner at your reception and need to know what food your guests are eating, response cards with a food choice  helps distinguish your guests exact food choice. We now have these cute hand-drawn food choice motifs for your response cards. Just ask for us to add them when you place your order. No additional charges!

Over the past 14 years I have had this question asked often… “What stationery pieces do I need for my wedding?” Of course the answer for everyone is different. Some just print up invites and have their rsvp on the invite. Some buy ALL pieces possible including fan programs. Read the descriptions below to help you decide what you TRULY need.

SAVE THE DATE CARD

The save the card announces you wil be married! Giving your guests a heads up is GREAT especially if you are having an out of town / destination wedding! You can mail these out 8-12 months in advance. View samples of our save the date cards.

WEDDING INVITATION
Sets the stage for your SPECTACULAR wedding day! This card INVITES your guests to your wedding! If your invite is truly unique, your guests may hang your invite on their frig for months. Our customers have bought the invitations with the vellum overlay and art on the 2nd layer card. We are told their guests take off the vellum and frame the card art! How fun! Be unique! REMEMBER, order ONE per household and NOT one per person. This will save you money. Order invitations 4 months before your wedding and mail them 2 months before your special day. View samples of our wedding invitations.

RESPONSE CARD
Your guest will reply to you using this card! Normally the reply by date is 1 month before your big day. We found a reply by date at least 1 month before your wedding day allows you to prepare your last minute wedding stationery pieces with less stress.

SMALL CARD / INFORMATION CARD
The small card can be used for a reception, direction card, registry card, or hotel and additional information you guests will need. Many times, people will list events and times for guests also. Remember, NEVER write “No gifts” on your invitation or small card.

OUTER ENVELOPE
Your invite and other cards go in the inner envelope then the OUTER ENVELOPE. You address it to mail to your guests. We print your return addy on the back flap! These are normally nonlined.

INNER ENVELOPE
Your invite and other cards go in the INNER ENVELOPE then into your outer envelope. You write or have us print your guest names on this envelope. This helps your guests know WHO is invited. They say the inner envelope originated when the mail was delivered on horse back. To keep the invitation neat and free of mud and debris, the invitation was inserted into the inner envelope. The outer envelope kept the inner envelope clean and neat in appearance, as your guest opened their invite.

The inner envelope is sometimes used for decorative purposes, by lining with beautiful colors.

You can write the guests names on this envelope also. This allows you to invite exactly who you want to your wedding. For instance you write “The Miller Family” on the outer envelope front along with their address. Inside on the inner envelope you would write “John, Kathy and Liz”. This way they know their daughter Liz, age 15, is invited but their other 2 younger (ages 1 month to 3 years), children are not. if everyone is invites you would write everyone invited on the inner envelope. Unfortunately some people will bring the younger children invited or not. be prepared.

THANK YOU CARD
Thank you cards rock! they are the BEST! They thank your guest! Try to mail these out ASAP! Guests get super sad when they receive their thank yous 2 months later! Before you marry … address your thank you card envelopes all you will have to do when you RECEIVE a gift is write the thoughtful thank you…throw in the envelope and mail that day!

INFORMAL CARD
See thank you card above. The informal card has your names on the front instead of the word “thank you.”

WEDDING ANNOUNCEMENT
Announces your wedding day! A document that announces a special occasion has occurred or will occur. Contains a date and description. For wedding, it is said, you should not announce the time your wedding occurred. This card is often used to announce and invite guests to a reception at home after a destination wedding couple has already been married away from home then will return to parteeee! You should mail your announcements ON your wedding day.

MENU
Shows your guests what you will be eating at the reception.

TABLE CARD
Shows your guests what table number or name of the table is. Some of our creative brides name their tables after islands, beaches or countries you have visited together! On the place card or escort card you would list “You are seated at table number ___.”

PLACE CARD / SEATING CARD / ESCORT CARD
Shows your guest’s name and what table they will sit at the reception. Again, on the place card or escort card you would list “You are seated at table number ___.”

WEDDING FAN
Cools your guests and also doubles as a cool favor and/or program!

WEDDING PROGRAM
Helps your guests follow your ceremony and introduces them to your wedding party. this also helps them understand some traditions you choose to incorporate in your ceremony. View samples of our wedding programs.

Good morning from Aruba!

Well, okay, the truth is I am still in Ohio. But I wouldn’t mind sitting at the base of this tree for a bit feeling the tropical winds blowing in my face and sand between my toes …

I’m delighted to share Samantha and Jonathan’s custom-made destination wedding invitations for their wedding in Aruba. My hand-painted watercolor divi tree is printed in colorful inks stroke for stroke on thick 110 lb. white cardstock layered with quartz metallic cards then layered yet again on the back with another 110 lb. card boasting raised navy ink. A luxe 3 layer card is quite substantial if you have never had the pleasure of holding one in your hands. Top notch and screams “My event is going to be F-A-B-U-L-O-U-S!!!!!”

My thinking for this design was to create an artwork the guests could treasure forever. They can frame this invite as a keepsake. The quality is amazing and truly sets the tone for any fabulous event! Imagine my bermuda moongate, romantic hibiscus, cruise ship, lakeside tree artworks and more on this style of card.

If you need help choosing your invitation style, feel free to contact me today! [email protected]