I’ve always been obsessed with paper pretty, be it a limited edition print, the sweetest piece of wrapping paper (with matching ribbon naturally!), a strip of decadent wallpaper or a luxurious stationery set. In fact I’ve been hankering for my own personalised stationery suite for some time now and I have been know to stockpile greetings cards by the bucketload purely because I like the design on the front.
It was no surprise then that it was important, nay imperative, that my wedding stationery was both bespoke and beautifully designed even down to the vintage stamps and handwritten calligraphy on the midnight grey envelopes.
I’m lucky in that my job allows me to watch, with interest and excited anticipation, for the arrival of new entrants into the wedding stationery market and revel in the experienced designs of those more established suppliers. Hell, it means I get to indulge my paper vices on pretty much a daily basis and for that I thank my lucky stars.
And so it seemed only right to share with you lovely lot some of our recommended stationery stars for your big day. Whether you’re looking for a wonderful whimsical design or a contemporary elegant creation, a full on bespoke stationery suite or just the bare essentials you can guarantee that these stationery suppliers will have it covered.
Let’s take a look.
CLD Stationery
If I was Enid Blyton then I’d be inclined to describe the work produced by CLD Stationery in much the same way as a Famous Five feast. Think languorous, looping swirls of font on the richest colours of thick, buttersoft, weighty cardstock dipped in metallic foils. There are embossed monograms, letterpressed details, rasied text and bevelled edges.
As it happens I’m not Enid but I will say that CLD Stationery makes my heart sing. Based in West London, CLD Stationery have over thirty years of experience of creating beautifully designed, competitively priced, luxury wedding invitations. They believe that the best designs are those that possess both simplicity and sophistication combined with the best materials and expert printing methods and when the results are as good as this I’m inclined to agree.
If you’re a floral maven that loves illustration to boot then I’m guessing that this first design shown here is right up your street. Believe me when I say that it’s even more beautiful in real life. In fact had I received this flower strewn save the date from one of my nearest and dearest I’d be inclined to frame it for all to see.
And I haven’t even begun to wax lyrical about the map…I mean look at the cutesy church and the bunting bedecked marquee. I think my stationery self has died and gone to heaven.
I’m a complete sucker for grey and white colour schemes – you only have to see my own wedding stationery to know this so it’s not surprising that I’ve gone dotty for some of CLD’s designs. Sarah and Jonathan’s suite is a particular favourite with its letterpressed details, the adorable order of service pamphlet and the super-luxe luggage label place name with matching silk ribbon. Even the envelopes feel like you’re opening hand delivered post from the Queen.
Dottypink Designs
If CLD Designs is like dining out on luxurious all butter croissants for breakfast then Dottypink Designs is the equivalent of indulging in a knickerbocker glory. All cutesy colours and sweet motifs, Amy Seager the designer behind Dottypink Designs knows exactly how to cater to our girly, feminine sides. Even the parcel sent to RMW HQ containing her wonderful samples was covered in iridescent hearts…immense right?!
Amy’s love of graphic design and colour is infused in each and every one of her stationery designs. I love how she mixes and matches different types in a single invitation too. If I had to choose then the birdcage design is perhaps my favourite – I particularly love the graph paper background which makes the neon-esque colours pop even more.
If you think that Amy might be your stationery girl then you can find Dottypink Designs in our Yorkshire and Humberside region as well as in the National category too. Amy assures me that all of the Dottypink Designs stationery ranges are fully customisable and bespoke designs can also be created too.
Golden Apple Designs
Leah is the ultra talented one-woman band behind Golden Apple Designs who can be found in our East Midlands region.
Leah’s wedding stationery ranges are created using unique hand drawn illustrations mixed with super contemporary fonts on high quality materials. There’s a huge selection of designs to choose ranging from the whimsical to the retro all of which can be customised with your chosen wording and colours.
I’m particularly enamoured with Leah’s botanical inspired prints – from the chic lemon motifs (perfect for an Italian wedding…limoncello anyone?) to the monochrome wildflowers so beloved of the British Isles, there’s something for everyone particularly those of you who have a soft spot for hand drawn illustration.
Lastly Golden Apple Designs’ use of packing and baker’s twine to bind together all the different pieces of the wedding invite – think RSVP, directions, general info – is genius. It looks gorgeous and adds that final finishing touch too.
Wedding In A Teacup
It took all of two seconds from when I first clapped eyes on Wedding In A Teacup’s nautically inspired stationery suite to fall in love. I even half considered hosting my nuptials port side just so that I could make the most of this jaunty design. I mean what girl doesn’t want rope inspired type, nautical turns of phrase, ship’s wheels and actual miniature anchors. The splashes of red and the customised postmarks are simply genius.
Imagine my delight then when I found that there was another equally gorgeous range inspired by love and keys no less. Think ‘key to my heart’ and ‘love is the key’ and you catch my drift. If you’re thinking of having a secret garden inspired big day then this is the invite for you. The mossy green colour scheme, looping type and large old fashioned key illustrations lend themselves perfectly to hot summery wedding days held in countryside gardens. In fact it’s almost as if I’m there right now.
The other wonderful aspect of Wedding in a Teacup designs is the quality of the paper and card that they use. It’s textured, it’s creamy and it screams luxury and you can’t say fairer than that.
Look for more gorgeous Wedding in a Teacup designs in our National and South East Stationery regions.
Pirrip Press
These guys make me very, very happy indeed.
Why might you ask? They say actions speak louder than words so I encourage you to take a look at the ultra cool images below…
Whilst Pirrip Press might be a small design + print studio, these folks have BIG ideas! Based in the South West, Pirrip Press specialise in letterpress and silkscreen printing and work closely with their couples to produce bespoke wedding stationery with unique outcomes.
These guys excel at producing clear and attractive designs with interesting illustrations often inspired by the natural world – think floral, fauna and animal. We’re talking everything from oak leaves to ostriches, pheasants to long-horned cattle and olives to feathers. They have a self-confessed love of print, and want to share this enthusiasm by creating beautiful, professional, hand-printed stationery especially for you!
Perhaps erring on the more masculine side, you can guarantee that your groom will appreciate these designs as much as you do. In fact Adam was practically galloping around the office in glee as he photographed these beauties.
It’s difficult to choose a favourite but the red and grey tartan creation has stolen a huge piece of my heart. I mean you can’t beat a huge long-horned beast and his pheasant friend can you now…
Weddings Vintage
Rock My Wedding has long been a fan of the Weddings Vintage girls based in the North West. One part stationery, one part photography (yep they take photos too folks!!) this dynamic duo will add a serious amount of vintage sass to your big day.
Hayley is responsible for the stationery side of Weddings Vintage catering for those brides looking for bespoke, retro themed wedding stationery guaranteed to get people talking months before and after the big day. Whether you want the whole shebang or just the bare essentials, Hayley is happy to help you out. You can either choose from a range of designs on the website which can then be tailored to your specifications or alternatively suggest your own ideas and Weddings Vintage can make it happen.
Hayley never fails to amaze me with her ingenuity – take this Cath Kidston inspired bunting. Yes folks that’s actually an invite doubling up as the sweetest bit of w-day decor. Add some patterned place names and menus into the mix and some retro clothes-pegs and you’ve got vintage heaven right there.
The music inspired stationery shown here was a bespoke design for couple that loved music and gigs. Hayley devised a six page foldout design based around one of their favourite Bob Dylan tracks complete with custom guitar pick – I know, immense! And I just need these cassette placenames in my life.
Amelia Lane Paper
If you’re looking for something contemporary with a huge dollop of wistful femininity then it’s Chanel at Amelia Lane Paper that you need to call. Providing whimsical, fun and modern invitations and stationery suites to both National and Central London based brides, I think Chanel’s work will particularly appeal to those that have a love of typography.
Chanel professes her love of unusual layouts, striking typography and beautiful illustrations to create designs that stand out from the norm. And stand out they do; the Garden Wedding invitation suite pictured here is reminiscent of floral crowns and exudes a bohemian vibe whereas the Modern Calligraphy collection sets the scene for chic city dos.
If you’re looking for a completely bespoke invitation suite then Amelia Lane Paper offer this option in addition to their exquisite ‘off the peg’ designs too. Chanel will work closely with you to translate your ideas into your dream stationery suite whilst embodying the distinctive Amelia Lane Paper vibe.
Which one is your favourite?
Pepper & Joy
Central London based Pepper & Joy describe their big day stationery designs as elegant and hearty and folks when you check out what they have to offer I think you’ll agree.
Whether you like modern or vintage designs, it’s likely that Pepper & Joy encompasses something in their repertoire that suits your style. What’s more they offer all of their designs in both printable and printed versions so you can print your invites yourself at home or they can take the stress out of it and print them for you. You can also add a bespoke touch to your big day paper pretty by changing the colours and wording to match your theme.
Whilst it’s hard to pick a favourite, I have to admit that a smattering of watercolour always makes my heart melt and this hot pink and grapefruit fusion is no exception. If you’re a music lover then feast your eyes on the ‘Vintage Romance’ range which boasts a grand gramophone and a plethora of hearts.
Pepper & Joy also have some of the best collections of quirky and fun save the dates that I’ve seen in a long time. From connect-the-dots (I know, immense right?!) to supersized magnets that you can treasure forever, each piece has been designed with the recipient as well as the lucky couple in mind.
But it’s Pepper & Joy’s Caractère range that makes my heart sing the most. I’m a sucker for a yellow and grey colour scheme at the best of time but it’s the attention to detail in this particular design that steals the show. Combining intricate patterns, pennants, hearts, diamonds, dotted borders and two different fonts, you wouldn’t think that it would work but it so does.
Wouldn’t you agree?
All images taken by Team RMW
So there you have it…a whole heap of paper pretty.
It’s actually been pretty heavenly compiling this post for you lovely lot – I mean how often does a girl get to feast her eyes on and stroke mountains of beautiful paper.
Ummmm, well I did say that I was a paper fanatic…
So which one of our lovely Love Lust Listers has caught your eye then?
Are you still searching for the perfect wedding stationery or have you decided that you’re going to DIY it for the big day?
And what style will you be going for? Does beautiful type float your boat or is it all about the graphics for you?
Perhaps like me you go more than a little bit crazy over letterpress and the gsm of the paper or card you’re using. I know I drove my sister insane with my demands that the placenames should be ‘as thick as a beermat’.
Told you I was a little bit obsessed didn’t I…
All my love Lolly xxx