Nantucket Weddings Unveiled

With the style of the paper suite established, it made working on the paper-products for the wedding day very easy. For the ceremony program, the pattern was done as a border on the bottom of the cover, almost the same look of the reply card from the invitations. We incorporated another surprise – Jen did the most amazing pencil drawing of the Sankaty Lighthouse which was printed on the back cover of the program. It added a highly personalized touch to the ceremony programs. At the reception site, we had escort cards and on the table, donation cards. For the escort cards, we created a mini version of the save-the-date piece. Again with a grommet in the corner, the guest name was written on the front and the table name on the inside card. Instead of having favors for all the guests, Jen and Carter made a donation to cancer research. They had pins which they invited everyone to wear, in memory of loved ones. To convey this message, we created a card which was inserted into the napkins on the tables. It was double-layer, with a fuschia backer card and white top card. The ink was navy, keeping that color in the mix. Besides giving their guests an important message, the cards added a pop of color to the tables and tied the blues of the paper-suite to the colors of the flowers.

Creating a paper-suite for you wedding can be an overwhelming process. However, your stationer is there to help you! With communication and collaboration, you can create something as beautiful as this collection but reflective of your own personal style. I always advise my brides to bring in pictures of anything they see that they are attracted to. It helps me understand the look they are going for, and gives us a place to start. The wedding invitations really set the tone for the wedding, whether traditional or contemporary, formal or informal… the most important thing is that it reflects the style and personality of the bride and groom.

Flowers by Soiree Floral. Linens & Chairs from Placesetters, Inc.

Parchment is located at 11 Washington Street or you can e-mail Heidi directly at Heidi@parchmentnantucket.com

Today, Brea and Dawn asked that I write about one of my favorite invitation suites which has come out of Parchment. This job was a total collaborative effort between myself, the bride, and a few opinions from the groom! One element of the design process that was unique is that the bride is an architect, so she was not only able to envision the final product but she also had some fabulous ideas about the construction of the save the date and invitation.

Lets start with the save the date! The letterpress paper suite was produced by William Arthur, through their custom department. Using the custom avenue at William Arthur allows for variations on what is shown is their albums as well as creation of pieces that are not shown in the albums. Jen and I started with an existing design in the Save-The-Date album and altered it to allow for letterpress printing. We also used an existing pattern for the cover, but had William Arthur enlarge the artwork so the scale worked better for the size of the piece. On the interior pages, Jen and Carter included a brief note about the reasons they chose Nantucket as the location for their wedding. The third page had some information about getting to Nantucket and places to stay once here. They did a great job of keeping their copy tight and not turning it into a “Chamber of Commerce Guide” which allowed us to keep the piece on the smaller side as well as giving their guests important information without overwhelming them.

When we started out, it was not our intention to have everything match all the way through, but the finished Save-the-date was so beautiful that there was no choice… we had to carry that design forward! Jen had seen an invitation format that was more like a cover with a pocket on the inside. We designed it so when open, the pocket was on the left, holding the reply and reception cards. The invitation was mounted on the right side of the interior. When closed, the invitation had a double band around it. Instead of using the inner envelope, the band served as the place to write the guest names. It was a unique and fun way to not only eliminate the inner envelope, but add an element to the cover that broke up the pattern and brought forward the darker navy paper that was the base of the cover. Besides carrying forward the pattern from the save the date, we also used the same ink colors with one addition – just a splash of hot pink on the reception card, which said “and then they danced”. It was a fun surprise to open the invitation, in shades of navy and french blue, very traditional wording and layout, only to find that one line if whimsical copy in the fuschia! We also brought in the pattern just as a border on the bottom of the reply cards, and as a singular element on both the invitation and reception card. Again, that served to carry the design forward and bring all the paper elements together in a cohesive group.

One detail that was not in our original plan… the grommets! When the invitations first came back from the printer, there weight of the paper was causing the foldover for the pocket to not hold fast. It was a heartbreaking situation… we had literally spent hours designing this invitation! So, the solution we came up with was to fasten a grommet in the upper and lower corners of the pocket. It not only harkened back to the grommet that was used on the save the date, but it also added a fabulous architectural element to the invitation (not to mention that it solved a Big Problem!) With this problem ironed out, the beautiful invitations were off to the guests.

Stay tuned for more details on this stunning custom designed invitation set from Parchment! Programs…. seating cards…. so much more!

Breathtaking evening on Nantucket Harbor for this newly married couple.

Photo Courtesy of Brea McDonald Photography

I recently photographed a stunning Nantucket wedding at the White Elephant. The bride and groom infused their wedding with lots of classic Nantucket details. One of these elements was their Nantucket postcard escort table. I LOVE this idea and thought it was such a fun twist! The table was filled with a tray of deep thick grass that held up the vintage Nantucket postcards. Each postcard had the bride and grooms name and address already filled in so that after the wedding the guests could send them their wishes. So fun!! The cards also had the guest name and table name printed at the bottom left of the card where the post office bar code would end up.

What a great way to seat your guests and relive the wedding through their wedding postcards the weeks after the big day!

Photo courtesy Brea McDonald Photography

See each other before the wedding? That’s an option?!?! Yes! Many of my wedding couples these days are opting to see one another before the ceremony to do their portraits. There are so many reasons why this works for some couples so don’t scratch this idea just yet.

Meeting before the wedding allows for a private moment for the happy couple. Seeing each other alone, before the ceremony is very intimate and often becomes one of the highlights of the big day. This is common practice in the traditional Jewish ceremony and makes for lovely photos. It can also quiet the nerves for that walk down the isle.

Time is a major factor at any wedding when you want to have incredible portraits. Visiting your favorite island location might not be possible during the cocktail hour but when seeing each other before the ceremony you can make the trip and take your time for your portraits together. This allows you to never miss a hug during the cocktail hour and gets you the time you need for the photos you want.

Talk with your wedding planner and photographer if this is something you would like to consider. They can help make your “first look” extra special for the two of you!

It’s your Nantucket wedding weekend! You have worked so hard with all your vendors to put every little detail into place. Now, you need to sit back relax and enjoy your wedding with your guests. Sarah from A Private Concierge share with us a great option to keep you at ease. Her On-Call for the Weekend Package will help you to be a bride and not worry about all the details! Perfect!! Here is what Sarah shared with us about some of her services.

A Private Concierge offers all the services you need the weekend-of your wedding.  Our offering of services to make sure your wedding weekend is spectacular for you and your guests are endless. The couple has planned every detail for the wedding- the location, the venue, the flowers, your photographer, the invitations, the guest list, etc we just step in at the last minute to be the point person that executes your vision so that you (and your bridesmaids) can relax and enjoy.

A FEW OF OUR WEEKEND-OF TIPS:

Get wedding items in place weekend/day-of

Share your signature drink recipe

Playlist (and don’t play list) to the entertainment

Hydrate your flowers

Get your gown to your location.

Arrange transportation home for your bridal party & family

Don’t go hungry

Pack a big-day emergency kit

Transport any gifts from venue

Photo Courtesy of Mai Norton Photography

“The Final Touch” package continues to be a great asset to many brides this season, click here to see the services our weekend-of package includes.

Please sign up for our mailing list on our website to stay informed about our weekend-of wedding services, including another giveaway with Vineyard Vines for one lucky couple this June.

Contact us at info@privateconcierge.com or call (508)-332-9422.

Photo Courtesy of Mai Norton Photography

A glamorous garden portrait by Laurie at Pixel Perfect.

One last little touch before the bride is ready to go!

Photo Courtesy Brea McDonald Photography

How exciting to see a Nantucket wedding featured online at Brides Magazine and then to see the fantastic team at Nantucket Photo Booth featured was the icing on the cake! The photo booth is a great idea for wedding receptions or rehearsal dinners. A great way to create a guest book, as seen here, and a way to provide your guests with a memento from your wedding weekend.

Today we have guest blogger Marty Kelly of Marty Kelly Papers giving us the 411 on how she came up with her designs.

When WellWed told me they would be shooting a tablescape on Nantucket in a sorbet color palette, I knew my designs would have to be super summery, fresh, and fun. For the menus and escort cards I chose beach umbrella and flip flop motifs, reminiscent of carefree moments in the summer sun. Knowing that sorbet was being served, I designed some colorful personalized word cloud cone wrappers. On each wrapper I printed the couple’s names and all sorts of loving sentiments and sweet nothings, like “joy, hope, smiles, forever, friendship, and family”.  Summer loving at its best!

photo by Zofia Photography

photo by Zofia Photography

This beautiful cake was created by Jodi of Jodi’s Cakes:

photo by Zofia Photography

These amazing, creative and fabulous tasting appetizers (trust us, we sampled them ALL) are by Kim Reed of A Taste of Nantucket:

photo by Zofia Photography

Great inspirations for your summer Island wedding!