Mowing the Driveway

50 for $50 - Weekend Special!

 

Happy Weekend!  Exciting offer available this Friday, Saturday, & Sunday ONLY...Lilywillow P+P is offering 50 Save-the-Dates for $50.  Any design in the Lilywillow Invitation Collection can be customized with your choice of  ink colors, fonts, papers & envelopes.

Choose From...

• More than 60+ Ink Color Options
• More than 90+ Fonts/Typestyles
• Bright, Soft (Cream), or Natural White Paper (Ivory) & Envelope Selections

We'll include all your details - names, dates, locations, accommodations, wedding website, etc. - any text/wording you prefer. We will digitally print your save-the-dates and provide coordinating unprinted envelopes. Our traditional upgrades are of course available too - offset or letterpress printing for an additional fee, backing papers, wraps, ribbon, printed envelopes, envelope calligraphy, and more!

Confirm Your Special Offer: Give us a call - 970.454.5564 or send us an email - info@lilywillow.com. We only need the basics to get started - the who, when, where, and your contact info.  We'll prepare your design proofs, wait for your approval, provide coordinating envelopes, get you printed and shipped within 5 days of proof approval, and to the Post Office right away!

When Do I Send My Save-the-Dates? Most save-the-dates are sent 4-6 months ahead for local weddings and anywhere from 6-12+ months ahead for holiday weekend, destination weddings, or events where a majority of the guests will be traveling from out-of-town.

Enjoy and have a wonderful Friday!

Design File: Save the Date Idea

Perfect for Jen & Cory (since they're getting married in the truly gorgeous Boston Public Library), we created Bookmark Save The Dates with the lovely ladies of Gus & Ruby Letterpress .  Sized to a number ten (roughly 3.5" x 9 inches) we sent ours in a deep dusty rose envelope. Printed digitally on Lilywillow's Soft White 110lb. Cover in complimenting shades of silver gray and pink, we trimmed to size, punched the holes and found sterling silver bookmark tassels to complete the set.  Available as a save-the-date option for any of Lilywillow's invitation designs (in any color combo you can think of) - Love it!

Sneak a Peek!

 
In the beginning phase of a design project with two lovely Colorado wedding vendors for a photo shoot next week.  The theme is sort of warm and fuzzy, horses and hounds, gorgeous yummy blacks and browns, reds, plaids, houndstooths, the brasses.  We're thrilled to be participating - look for more photos in the coming weeks but wanted to share a piece of the process now...GREAT example of how custom design projects work at Lilywillow. You give us the vision and we run with it. Now, which one will they pick?!?

p.s. If you're planning a wedding at an English Manor surrounded by all things equestrian - we've got ya covered.

Hello 2011 Brides & Grooms - Time to Get Down to Business!

We're just thrilled to be scheduling our 2011 Wedding Invitation Appointments (complimentary of course) and our January calendar is beginning to fill.  If you are getting ready to order your invitations, or are even beginning to think about the invitation process - give us a shout. 

We'll definitely talk by phone first but then, we have a few options...

1. We can dive right in with the completion of a Lilywillow Wedding Order Form and get started with the design process immediately. This may be the fastest and the most efficient option for our late March & April brides and grooms.
2. We can begin the process by phone and email. After we talk, Lilywillow will send out samples, examples of our papers and printing methods, more information, etc. by mail and then we'll work together to complete your Order Form, prepare your cost estimate and start your first set of invitation proofs. This is our typical process with out-of-state couples but works just as well for the locals!
3. Or, we can sit down together in person.  Lilywillow will bring our designs, inks, papers, embellishments and more to the meeting and we'll "talk shop" for 30-60 minutes and begin outlining the wedding invitation suite you'd like us to prepare.  This appointment option is very beneficial for our "Custom Design" brides and grooms that usually have a specific idea or direction they'd like to go, as well as for couples who are gathering information and are really unsure of all the options available.

ANY of the consultation options assist in the creation of unique and beautiful wedding stationery and we're very much looking forward to hearing all of your wonderful paper visions this year!

The Beginning...at the End.

Happy New Year!

 

Lilywillow is looking forward to 2011 with a renewed sense of purpose and some anticipatory energy for all the wonderful things this year could and will hold - Working with our new brides and grooms, some exciting changes here in the studio, out-of-the-box wild and crazy custom design opportunities, and of course our continually rewarding relationships with our wonderful retail partners. 

 

2010 was a big year for Lilywillow P+P.  We just completed our 3rd full year of operation here in Colorado (our 5th total counting our time in Pittsburgh - Go Steelers).  This accomplishment alone gives us pause for reflection and a multitude of gracious thanks to the family and friends who have helped, supported, encouraged, listened, chimed in, re-focused, re-harnessed, treated us for dinner, dropped by a bag of dog food or a 6 pack of beer, and unwaveringly stood with us in making Lilywillow the success she has become.  We could not, quite literally, have done this without you.  Thank you all a million times over.

 

There's a practice around today's dining room tables - High/Low - where you share the very best part of your day (the high)  and the very, well worst (the low).  We thought we'd play that here.

"The Highs" for Lilywillow P+P the past 3+ years:

• Waking up everyday to a sky full of mountains and a backyard full of critters instead of spending hours staring at the license plates of the cars in front of us to sit in cubes or go to pointlessly repetitive meetings for the 900th time. Amen.
• Enjoying the privilege of working with some of the most creative, kind, thoughtful, generous, and talented retailers and vendors in the stationery and wedding industries.  You are an un-ending source of thought, idea and delight and we love every single project and opportunity.
•  Helping more than 300+ brides and grooms (192 in 2010) create wedding invitations that were uniquely "them" - from the colors and type down through to the perfect artwork or wonderfully quirky wording.  These projects ARE Lilywillow and we've loved each project in its own way. All told this is more than 1,800 wedding-inspired stationery pieces (invitations, response cards, reception cards, schedules, programs, etc).
• Going "International" this year with weddings in Finland, England, Italy and Canada - Hurray!
• Learning a bit more about the Jewish faith with several English/Hebrew invitations and our first Bar Mitzvah invitation suite.
• Three FAVORITE Wedding Invitation Projects (there are so many more of course!):  1.) A "barn-inspired" Vermont wedding with the sweetest and kindest bride/woman I've ever met via email and phone in my life.  2.) A "family-inspired" CO wedding with the most "clients" I've ever designed for on a single project and the most gorgeous full-suite of pieces when all was said and done.  3.) And, a mountain-inspired (Devil's Thumb Ranch - Tabernash, CO) wedding that produced the most custom design options for any couple yet brought us back full-circle to the existing invitation design that caught the bride and groom's eye the first day we met - pushed the design in unique ways and made it work just for them.
• The preparation, design and printing of 285 unique stationery products - everyday cards, holiday cards, stationery sets, gift tags, party invitation, baby announcements, and more.
• Our custom projects with Holland Photo Arts of Charlottesville, VA (see their most recent holiday project tomorrow), a fabulous type-inspired 1st Birthday Party invitation for the Hudson Man (thanks mamma Sara), and some wonderfully one-of-a-kind projects with Gus & Ruby Letterpress in Portsmouth, NH (including our letterpress collaborations).  Big smooches to all!
• Three trips to New York City to exhibit in the National Stationery Show, a trip to Atlanta for the Gift Mart, Denver (of course) for the Home & Gift Show, 27 Bridal Shows in 3 States, and 7 Craft/Gift Markets locally - meeting all the lovely people, enjoying our fellow vendors, getting out of the studio for a few days at a time, and peddling our wares! 
• Lilywillow's Stationery being picked up in 46 stores, in 18 states and 2 countries and Lilywillow's Wedding Collection being carried by 43 retail partners in 19 states and 2 countries. We never dreamed...thank you.
• Appearances in both print and online with some of the best wedding and stationery themed publications and blogs in the business. We truly appreciate it!

 

"The Lows" for Lilywillow P+P the past 3+ years:

• Some pretty sleepless nights in the beginning waiting for the economy to make a turn around...slowly catching back up in the sleep department but bless you coffee maker in the interim.
• The "sprinkling" of gray hair that seems to have spread like wildfire (I am not kidding) with each passing month.
• The loss of the Lily Dog this year, our Company Namesake & Director of Funny. She is much missed around the studio and on our walks in the backyard field.  I dare say the UPS man does not miss you nearly enough.
• Yup, that's about it.

  

What's coming in 2011 for Lilywillow P+P?

• A completely re-designed and re-launched Lilywillow Website coming in January - www.lilywillow.com - with big, gorgeous project photos and a clearer overall purpose and process.
• 8 NEW wedding invitation designs coming in February.
• A collection of personal/business stationery coming in April, a small holiday collection coming in August, and another paper surprise coming late fall.
• A VERY WELCOME year off from the National Stationery Show to take 2, most-likely 3 exciting Lilywillow Road Trips to visit our Existing Team of Retailers - we're planning to do the East Coast this spring, the Mid-West in June or July, and the West Coast in September.  We will be blogging these adventures so look for that later this year.

So...it is going to be a big, crazy, silly-busy year and we can't wait!  Again, all the best to our brides and grooms from the past 3+, our retail friends, and industry pals.  You're the best and we're looking forward to everything 2011 has in store.

Boston State of Mind

 
Working once again with the Lovely Ladies of Gus & Ruby Letterpress of Portsmouth, New Hampshire we created a wedding invitation suite combining the Lilywillow Sentiment Design and a unique take on the Boston city skyline.  In a gorgeous charcoal gray and a deep regal purple on our natural white (ivory) paper, the set is sophisticated and clean.

 
 
 
 

With the Leonard P. Zakim Bridge as inspiration and some "creative" skyline configuration we made it work.  Enjoy and congratulations to Rachel and Michael!

Great Questions to Ask BEFORE Ordering Invitations...

 

There are several important questions to ask yourselves about invitations BEFORE you begin working with a stationer - Hopefully Lilywillow!  Providing these answers to ANY stationer though streamlines the invitation ordering process from start to finish and helps in the preparation of an accurate cost estimate from the beginning of your project.

  

THE BASICS:

1. How many guests are we planning to invite?
2. What is our wedding invitation budget?
3. How formal is our event?
4. What are our wedding colors and do we want them included on our invitation?
5. Do we have a style preference - classic, romantic, dramatic, botanical, themed, etc.?
6. Would we like to incorporate a monogram or a wedding logo?
7. Do we know which printing method we prefer or can afford?

 

THE PIECES:
1. Do we need save-the-dates? For the guest list or for out-of-town guests only?
2. Other than the invitation and response card set, what enclosure cards do we need?
3. Should we consider a response postcard instead of a response card/envelope set?
4. Do we need to include menu selections on our response cards?
5. Is our venue difficult to locate? Do we need directions or a map?
6. Should we include our wedding website in the invitation suite?
7. Have we booked rooms at a hotel/hotels we need to let guests know about?
8. Are there events guests may be invited to - rehearsal, brunch, group activity?
9. Do we want our envelopes pre-printed with our return/response address?

 

THE EMBELLISHMENTS:
1. Do we need inner envelopes or envelope liners?
2. Would we prefer an invitation folder, wrap, or sleeve?
3. Do we want to use ribbon, raffia, or cord to bind the invitation?
4. Should we consider calligraphy - computer or handwritten - for our envelopes?

 

WEDDING DAY PAPER:
1. On our wedding day...what stationery pieces do we need?
2. Are we planning a wedding program with our officiant? What style do we prefer?
3. Do we need place cards/escort cards to help guests find their tables? Table numbers?
4. Are their unusual foods we'd like to share with guests at the table via menus?

5. Are we giving guests a favor or welcome gift? Do we need a note or tag?
6. Is there any additional signage we need for the reception?

 

THANK YOU'S:
1. Will we need thank you notes in the same style as our invitations?
2. With engagement parties, showers, and gifts, how many thank you's do we need?

 

AFTER THE BIG DAY:
1. If we are having a wedding with a limited guest list, do we need announcements to share the news with friends and co-workers?
2. Are we moving to a new home/apartment and need to share our new address?

 

Looking for samples or more information about Lilywillow P+P? Ask and you SHALL RECEIVE! Samples and inital consultations are ON THE HOUSE.  If you see an invitation design you like on the website - www.lilywillow.com - or you'd like additional info, a cost estimate, or just to talk paper, ink, type and more - give us a shout!

 

Send an email to info@lilywillow.com or call 970.454.5564.

Nature Study

One of our very favorite designs (because the possibilities are endless), we thought we would share two very unique couples and their approach to Lilywillow's Nature Invitation.

With Leora and Ethan's wedding planned for the Onteora Mountain House - pine trees, wild grasses, and birds were perfect invitation details. Paired with the Hebrew script honoring their religious heritage, elegantly letterpressed with garden green ink into the heaviest 100% Cotton bright white paper we could get our hands on...wedding stationery bliss!

The set includes the Primary Envelope with little bird detail and return address, the Invitation with pine tree border, two soaring birds, and the combination of English and Hebrew, and a double-sided Response Post Card with wild grass, bird, names, date, and location on one side, and a minimalist approach to the response information on the other. Our little grasshopper/photo shoot assistant certainly feels right at home!

Kim and Adam took a different approach...With their wedding day planned for the Millenium Garden at the Plymouth Creek Center in Minnesota, we modified the tree selection to start with but incorporated a few one-of-a-kind details they had their hearts set on.

The first was the inclusion of the little rabbit nestled under the tree branches (they have a little bunny at home they wanted to remember on their invitation), the second was the grommet in the upper left hand corner which attached the invitation to the double-sided details and direction card, and the third was the selection of the sunny yellow envelope to carry their invitations through the mail to expectant wedding guests.

The set, digitally printed in royal blue ink, includes the Primary Envelope in yellow with the return address in royal blue, the Invitation with poplar tree and bunny, double-sided Details Card with a bold branch, reception, and accommodation information on one side and driving directions, map, and grass border on the other, and a double-sided Response Post Card with wild grass, names, and location on one side, and response information, including menu selections on the other side.

Congratulations to both Leora & Ethan and Kim & Adam on your "Nature-Inspired" Wedding Days!

Under the Sea

We're a little smitten.  Okay a lot.  Check out Katie and Parwaiz's deep, deep blue version of the Lilywillow Pearls design.

The set includes a Primary Envelope, a Custom Invitation Folder, an Invitation Wrap Band, the Invitation, a Details Card, a Reception Card, Response Card, and Response Envelope in a dark navy, shades of blue green, and sky.  We went with a more formal script and classic serif style for the type and a soft ivory (Lilywillow's Natural White) paper. 

With alternating strands of "Pearls" in the varying shades of blue, running across the folder inside and out and the wrap band and cards - the entire suite, card by card works in a modern, wave-like way. Congratulations Katie and Par!

 

Anatomy of A Wedding Stationery Suite

Can you guess the second most often asked question I'm asked after "Where in the world is Eaton, CO?"

What do I need to include in my wedding invitation suite?

I LOVE this question.  Seriously I do! The sky's the limit and Lilywillow can design exactly what you want - from your first save-the-date or engagement announcement right down thru to the very last thank you note. All in the design you like, with your colors and typestyles, with matching papers and details throughout.  Keeping your look and theme consistent from start to finish.

Now...what do you ABSOLUTELY need to include?  Two very important things:

The Invitation and a Response Card. The invitation first and most importantly tells family and friends you're getting married and the to whom, when and where. The response card lets YOU know if the guest(s) will be joining you on the Big Day. 

Information you might like to share can be included on a single card - a Details Card - or can be spread between several if you have lots of events or details to share.  The most common is a Reception Card, especially important if the reception is NOT at the same location as the actual wedding.  Guests will need to know where the celebration is and when they should arrive so an address and time are usually included.

Other informational cards include Directions/Maps with addresses and driving instructions.  These are very helpful to out-of-town guests that may not know the area or the best way to get from Point A to Point B. Accommodation Details are also important if you've reserved a block of hotel rooms for guests at a specific hotel or hotels and can include instructions on how to get the group rate if you've arranged one. 

A Schedule of Events card is usually included if you have a number of activities or events guests can choose to join you for - a welcome party, rehearsal dinner, pre-wedding mixer, morning-after brunch, tours of the city, golf outings, etc.

Some other pieces to consider: Even before the invitation suite goes out a Save-The-Date is a great way to share the basics with guests, especially if you have family and friends traveling long distances to come to the wedding.  Times are tough and giving guests enough time to plan financially for travel and hotel expenses is kind and thoughtful.  A save-the-date is usually sent 6 to 9 months ahead of the wedding date. The save-the-date is also a great way to set the look and feel of your wedding invitation suite in motion - colors, type, theme, formality/informality, etc.

Thank You Notes or Personal Correspondence are another stationery item to consider.  With wedding showers, engagement parties, and gifts arriving weeks and months before the Wedding Day it's a good idea to get a head start on all those thank you cards.

A quick note about formal monograms...while the formality of weddings has changed in recent years...thank you Emily Post for this one...a formal monogram, with the first initial of the bride and groom on each side of their new last initial, should NOT be used until after the official wedding ceremony.

Wedding Day stationery items include Wedding Programs, Place Cards, Table Numbers, Menus, Favor/Welcome Bag Tags or Stickers.

Wedding Programs typically include an introduction with the bridal couples names, the date, and location. Then it's nice to provide guests with the outline of the ceremony so they know what to expect and can follow along.  Another important element to the wedding program - calling out the wedding party. Some families also include a thank you to their guests for joining them on this special day or acknowledge those who couldn't be with them. Favorite scripture passages, quotes, song lyrics, and more are common as well,

Reception elements like Menus are GREAT for seated receptions (vs. buffet). Guests want to know what they're about to eat and giving them an idea of what's in store is a great conversation starter but also gives those with food allergies a heads up if they need to pass on a course.  With buffets, small cards can be prepared and placed with each dish in much the same way.

 Favor Tags/Welcome Bag Tags are another place to share a thank you with your guests for joining you on this special day and acknowledging the love and support that brought you to this moment.

Embellishments shown here like the green invitation folders, the black backing papers, and ribbon are all details that can make a wedding invitation suite unique and one-of-a-kind.

HUGE Thank You to the Berryman and Cummins families for letting me work with them on this beautiful invitaiton suite.  Today is Kristin and Matthew's actual wedding day - Enjoy every minute!