Our new ribbon gate-fold invitations will be launched soon but we are so excited about the range that we couldn’t wait to give you a sneak preview.  I quickly snapped these shots outside our studio before the professional photos are taken next week.  It will probably take a couple of weeks to get this range online because it will be available in a total of 37 different colours and, as with all our designs, we do our best to coordinate the whole range of products.  This means that with so many colours and so many coordinating items there will be a lot of photography to process.

The gentle floral pattern is another feature that coordinates on all the items in this range; its delicate emboss and pealescent reflection catches the light beautifully with understated sophistication.  The texture of the emboss is best seen in the flesh and you can do this by requesting a free sample when the range is online but this is one important element that we hope to capture with the photography.

I have a list of available colours to share with you and these will all be available to view online soon.

• Black
• Silver Grey
• Navy
• Dusky Blue
• Cornflower
• New Tuquoise
• Aqua
• Petrol
• Peacock
• Orchid
• Helio
• Dusky Pink
• Shocking Pink
• Pink Azalea
• Pale Pink
• Red
• Scarlet Berry
• Burgundy
• Plum
• Blackberry
• Purple
• Moss
• Khaki
• Hunter Green
• Jade
• Cuban
• Dark Brown
• Marigold
• Gold
• Yellow
• Lemon
• Orange Delight
• Rust
• Sable
• Honey Gold
• Cream
• White

Sophisticated stationery for a Wedding Abroad from Sweet Graphics. Paddington Bear would have approved I feel.

We have found it…. a set of wedding stationery for an overseas wedding that does’nt have a single cartoon aeroplane or tropical island on the front. This ensemble of stationery from Sweet Graphics is subtle, chic and beautifully coordinated.  The name of the range is Journey and the invitation shown above is printed on a champagne irridiscent 400gsm card stock.  One side shows a passport stamp design and the other side a chic suitcase design in champagne and ivory.  It is the extra touches that bring this design to life and the continuation of the passport stamps on the envelope means that your guests will be opening your invitation in anticipation.  Unlike many other wedding abroad designs this set adds romance to the wedding celebration and does’nt looks like you are wrapping your nuptials up in a bargain break package holiday.  

You can get a matching invite, reply card and personalised envelope for £4.00 which I think is a great price and if you wish to continue the coordination there is an information card, save the date, menu, place card, thank you and seating plan in the same set.

Since last writing about laser cut wedding invitations on this site I was disappointed to learn that Cartalia have moved their gorgeous range of laser cut wedding invitations away from the UK market as the company chooses to focus more on their home markets in Poland.  I also feel that the 10 year old designs from one of the early pioneers in the laser cut card field, ISIS, are starting to look a little dated.

So where is this article headed.  Well, this site received a tip off today about a stunning range of laser cut wedding stationery from the Hummingbird Card Company that has rekindled my love of the style.  The company started in 2007 so I am surprised that I have not come across them before.  Well, hopefully this site will help share the love around.

Humming Bird Card Company

The Hummingbird Company is run by two friends, Sally-Ann & Suzi, who both have a background in fashion design.  All their designs show off the gorgeous intricate effects that can be achieved with laser cutting.  As with any laser cut card the detail is not readily defineable unless there is some contrasting colour behind the laser cut edge.  The Hummingbird style in this respect is primarily to use white or cream card and create the contrast using soft pastel shade inserts.  This subtle contrast works perfectly to create classic designs of timeless appeal that do not draw any attention to the fact that they have been made using 21st century production techniques.  Cards can be finished off with coordinating ribbons and diamontes to add a handfinised touch.   I will pick out a few particular designs that grab my attention and write about them in more detail over the coming months when I have them in my possession.  In the meantime you will probably wish to take advantage of the Hummingbird Card Company’s sample service to get your hands on some of their cards yourself.  Please share your own thoughts on their designs in the comments below.

Letters design from Hummingbird Cards

These yummy wedding scrolls from Lily Dove mark the real start of summer on this site (or at least we hope).  The scrolls come in a delightful fresh pallette of colours and are enhanced with a double layer of embossed petals held together with an organza ribbon.

The range is called Floribunda, a perfectly fanciful name to match this style of stationery.  I presume the name is taken from the gorgous bush roses that produce masses of bloom clusters in summer.  The image above shows the range in Hot Pink, Soft Pink and Soft Lemon but also available is Soft Blue, Pale Green, Aqua Blue and Hot Red with organza ribbons to match.  Each scroll comes witha  bespoke casing through which the bride and groom’s names are visible and cost £3.80 each.  A full compliment of matching stationery is available in the set including some intriguing favour scrolls which are available from Lily Dove soon.

This pink and green floral wedding invitation from Paper Pleasures is called Summertime, and how perfect it would be for a summer garden wedding.  It has a beautiful Victorian garden feel with the pastel pink and green set against off white card and the offset opening reveals more of the pretty pattern on the insert sheet where the wording is also coordinated in pink and green.  Invitations cost £2.10 each including envelope and there are no minimum order quantities.  Also available are Evening Invitations which are postcard style, Order of Service, Menus, Placecards and Reply Cards.  

I like this rather novel design from Debenhams Wedding Invitations.  It is called Lotus Flower and its design is akin to the real thing.  In fact the lotus flower has quite a meaningful and symbolic status in some circles because it begins life at the bottom of muddy murky waters and reveals itself as an object of great beauty.  You can attach your own meaning in relation to a wedding if you wish or you could forget the theory and take a look at the invitation for what it is.

The clever folds of this design interlock the petals together and conceal the personalised wording which is fixed inside the flower design on a hexagonal insert.  You simply have to pull the petals apart and the whole card opens up in one swift motion.  Because of the nature of the design the card lends itself perfectly to have some confetti inside which adds a little surprise when opened.

Debenhams wedding stationery like many high street stores is actually manufactured and personalised by CCA Occasions in Preston who are the market leader in personalised stationery and christmas cards.  It is no surprise to learn that a very similar design is also available from other CCA distributors.  Take a look at the two designs below and you will see what I mean.  The interesting difference is the price.  The debenhams Lotus Flower wedding invitation costs £110 for 50 cards whilst the Pretty Petals design can be picked up for £95.20 from Olivia Samuel.  If you compare all the items in the set then similar savings can be made.

 Lotus Flower from Debenhams Wedding Service

 Pretty Petals from CCA Occasions