Design in August | Branding & Stationery Studio » Custom Wedding Invitations

Stationery | Damask Invitation Suite

Daiva — Thu, 13 Sep 2012 19:53:29 +0000

“Is damask out of style?” she asked me at our first meeting.

Sometimes, yes.

“I just don’t want it to look ‘oldish’ you know?” she said. “I’m already what I’d call a ‘mature bride’…”

Then you’ve come to the right place.

Careful not to go down the road often traveled (who hasn’t done damask?), I set out to bring a fresh perspective to stationery designed with a damask motif. I played with scale and using different sections of the damask. I paired it with other patterns. I reversed out the inks for an all-black out-of-town reception card. I proposed non-traditional accents, such as a black rsvp envelope. (Black for a wedding?! Absolutely. Why not?)

The result was this bold, graphic and fresh take on a traditional (and dare I say, potentially boring) damask invitation suite that even the youngest of young brides (and the maturest of mature brides) would be delighted to call their own.

My favorite card just might be the all-black Memphis reception card. Perfect for a formal house party!

The main invitation card alone is oh.so.romantic.

And more than 600 envelopes later… They were all lined! Including the outer, the rsvp and the thank you note envelopes. Whew!

Stationery | C+C Hatch Show Print

Daiva — Thu, 14 Jun 2012 21:04:38 +0000

Nashville meets Coastal Carolina! Clayton + Catherine found my original Hatch Show Print-styled invitation by way of an internet search. They were looking for a way to tie their two worlds together for a Rehearsal Dinner invitation. He is from Nashville. She is from the South Carolina coastline. The solution? Cowboy boots for him. The palmetto tree and crescent moon for her. Another personal touch with a C&C monogram capped off the look for this invitation colored in navy and rusted orange. Deep hues for an October dinner on the lawn in the deep, low country of South Carolina. Clayton + Catherine loved it so much they also requested poster-size versions of the invitation to gift their parents! What a perfect memento!

I love the navy envelope!

Overlapping inks of the orange and blue for a truly screen-printed feel.

Stationery | Andrew & Anna

Daiva — Wed, 06 Jun 2012 14:25:42 +0000

Jewel tones, peacocks and… Cornhole? These are some of the words scribbled among my notes and sketches for Andrew & Anna’s wedding invitation suite design. And I am super thrilled with how they all came together in this design! Anna found me via event planner extraordinairre Mary Alice Sublett of A Delightful Day Event Planning. Anna was a Washington D.C. area bride planning her fall wedding at the beautiful Carnton Plantation right here in Franklin, TN, and it was one of our earlier projects that caught Anna’s eye at Mary Alice’s studio.

There were many weekend details to include for guests, so we developed a multi-card invitation suite to organize it all. And Anna wanted to communicate the feel of the party to her guests. Wording like “Southern chic attire, y’all” and a little sketch of a Cornhole game by the reception details – these things said, “Hey, this is going to be a really fun garden party like only the South can do.” Anna really gets the idea that an invitation can communicate so much more than just the When and Where of a party!

A brightly golden colored bellyband with the couple’s initials bound the cards together neatly.
Recognize the ornate frame? We used the same design element for Anna’s Rehearsal Dinner invitation.

The damask and diamond patterns hinted at the Civil War era wallpapers and textiles found at Carnton Plantation.

One of my favorite details: the RSVP wording.
“Will be there, undecided on bells…”

Southern chic attire, y’all.

And here’s a peek at how it all came together!

Event photography by Erin Lee of The Collection.
Head on over to A Delightful Day’s blog for even more event details and a full vendor listing.

Stationery | Tex-Mex Rehearsal Dinner

Daiva — Thu, 31 May 2012 17:39:46 +0000

Last summer I worked with a Washington D.C. area client who was planning her Franklin, TN, wedding weekend coming up in October. We began designing her wedding invitation suite inspired by jewel-toned teal, purple, and gold… and peacocks! Can’t wait to post that design, but before I do, I want to show you these rehearsal dinner invitations. With the wedding invitation design wrapped up, Anna called me up again and wanted to explore a custom-designed rehearsal dinner invitation. Only this time we were going with a Tex-Mex theme to coordinate with the dinner menu. What fun! I pulled inspiration from Mexican tiles, lace, and folk art. We incorporated the teal and gold and the monogram frame (you’ll see!) of her wedding invite, but swapped out the purple with a bright and cheery red. I am so, so proud of this design. And I can almost taste the carnitas and salsa. Delicioso!

Stationery | LaBruce + Harrison’s Save the Date

Daiva — Mon, 19 Mar 2012 19:05:00 +0000

LaBruce and Harrison wanted to set the stage for a very elegant, coastal South Carolina wedding. LaBruce contacted me when she saw my own calligraphic invitation suite. She wanted a Save the Date inspired by this look, but done in a black + ivory palette. This particular design was entirely typeset though, with a little finagling of flourishes to give it that hand-drawn look. Specialty paper with a slight texture, plus a custom return address rubber stamp, completed the mailer. Best wishes to you, Mr. + Mrs. Trammell!

Stationery | Rick + Tonia

Daiva — Mon, 25 Jul 2011 23:24:58 +0000

Just a few short months ago, my friend Rick found his dream girl – and two days ago they tied the knot! It may have been a fast track to “I do” but when you know you know… you know? Although I was not able to travel to their wedding in Greenville this weekend, I did have the distinct pleasure of working with the lovely bride on designing her invitation suite. Tonia shared her ideas of blue mason jars, wildflowers, and charcoal grays for this July event. Wedding ceremony in an old church. Reception on the lawn of a plantation house. She also really wanted their initials carved on a tree. The result? Rustic elegance with southern charm. And pops of mason jar blue. Congratulations, you two. Happy Honeymooning!!

The main card was printed front + back. Guests were first greeted by this oak tree carved with the couple’s initials.

Invitation on the flipside. All wrapped up in twine.

A separate card for rehearsal dinner guests.

Sweet details. And a custom rubber stamp!

Stationery | Hatch Show Print

Daiva — Wed, 22 Jun 2011 21:08:19 +0000

When my studio line rang and I heard, “Can you design a rehearsal dinner invitation in the style of a Hatch Show print?” I didn’t miss a beat and said, “Absolutely!” The lovely Karen Kaforey of Signature Events coordinated all the details for her client while I got in touch with my inner-Nashville gal. My love for typography (the design and arrangement of letterforms) combined with the opportunity to communicate a message with that typography really gets my creativity flowing. Combine that with a really great point of inspiration and voilá! The result: a rehearsal dinner invitation evoking the screen printed feel of an old Nashville standby. How very Nashville. How very festive!!

Stationery | Young Program

Daiva — Wed, 01 Jun 2011 19:57:56 +0000

More ivory + chocolate brown + coral loveliness. These liturgy programs echo the design of Kylee + Dan’s wedding invitation suite. Did you know the guys wore brown tuxes and the gals wore coral dresses? Just perfect for an afternoon wedding in May. If you’d like more information about stationery or event ephemera design, message me using the Say Hello link above!

Stationery | Young Suite

Daiva — Fri, 27 May 2011 16:58:11 +0000

It’s almost the Big Day! Kylee + Daniel are celebrating their wedding in just about 24 hours! And I am pleased as punch to share their invitation suite with you. This design was a follow up to their Save the Date postcard. An elegant ivory paper with chocolate brown ink and shades of coral accents, this suite is formal, timeless, and full of fresh personality for a May afternoon event. Be sure to catch the Inspiration Board for this bit of loveliness if you missed it. And stay tuned next week to see Kylee + Dan’s coordinating wedding program… Congrats, you two!!

Events | The Little Black Dress Revue, Part Deux

Daiva — Thu, 10 Feb 2011 18:49:13 +0000

**Update! Use promo code LBDBride for a $5 discount on your Little Black Dress Revue tickets! Register here.

It’s time for Round 2! Sarah of Music City Events and Gregory of Gregory Byerline Photography are once again joining forces to bring you an exclusive bridal event on February 24th. And Design in August will be the featured stationery studio!

It’s an actual party for couples to experience what their wedding day can be like. Instead of visiting 30-40 vendors in an 8×8 space at bridal shows, see 16 carefully selected vendors in action.
Enjoy a swanky night out at the Noah Liff Opera Center from 6:30–9:30 p.m. It’s a fairly new event venue with modern & stylish sensibility. (Follow the link – isn’t it fabulous?!)
Design in August will be the featured custom invitations designer! I will be on hand to show samples and chat about my design services for your custom design needs. You will also get to see my designs in action, as I will be providing all the custom paper goods for the party.
Savor delicious hors d’oeuvres and scrumptious desserts (Hello, TLC-featured Maples Wedding Cakes!) while enjoying Little Black Dress cocktails (with stir sticks designed by yours truly!) and local brews with music by a live band. Bring your dancing shoes!

Each $15 ticket includes dinner, dessert and dancing PLUS an entry into a drawing for a Grand Prize worth over $5,000 from top-shelf Nashville wedding vendors! That’s three zeroes… and a big chunk saved from your overall wedding budget. Among so many wedding goodies, the Grand Prize Package includes custom thank you cards by Design in August. See a complete list of bridal vendors at the Little Black Dress Revue vendor page. See you there!

Event photography by Gregory Byerline Photography.