ina+tee : wedding welcome bags

April 20, 2015

if you were able to read the copy from our save the date, you know that tee and i chose Costa Rica for a very special reason. and in choosing Costa Rica as our destination wedding, i also knew i wanted to put together welcome bags for our guest for when they arrived at the hotel.

every item that went into the bag was specifically placed in there with personal experience tee and i had with Costa Rica 10 years ago.

1. “in sickness and in health” – Hangover & Survival Kit – everything you need to survive and recoup for the wedding week ahead (ibuprofen, anti-itch cream, diotame, antacid, antiseptic wipes, band-aids, mints).

2. “to care and to protect” – Sun Survival Kit – something for before and after the sun (i learned the hard way, 10 years ago, that the closer you are to the equator, the harsher the uv rays. sunblock and aloe vera gel became my best friend.)

3. Avon Skin So Soft Bug Spray – the only bug spray that i find actually works and smells good.

4. Snacks – something sweet & something savory to nibble on while unpacking or for a late night snack.

5. Water Bottles – ’cause you have to stay hydrated when you’re drinking and basking in the Costa Rican sun! 🙂

more desk embosser fun!!!

6. “to have and to hold’em” – Playing Cards – endless games, endless fun.

7. Guidebook & Map – extra info is always good to have.

our guidebook included a little welcome message, a map of the hotel, the wedding week group activities, as well as other suggested activities and any important contact info our guests may need.

8. Custom Printed Tote Bag – a little something for our guests to carry home to remember our special day and if necessary to use as a carry on bag for souvenirs that don’t quite fit in the suitcase.

it was great to see our bag being used and taken around Costa Rica!

ina+tee : wedding thank you notes & a custom desk embosser

April 17, 2015

i knew that my letterpress budget was maxed out when we did the invitations, so i decided to invest in a custom desk embosser for our ina+tee logo for all our other stationery needs.

i used the leftover paper from the invitations and embossed each one for our thank you note cards.

they also made for the perfect size notecard to write our vows on.

i have to admit, when i first got the custom desk embosser i had to fight every urge in me to emboss every flat piece of paper in sight.

you’ll see the use of the custom desk embosser on other various items for the wedding on the next few blog posts.

ina+tee : wedding invites (behind the scenes)

April 15, 2015

as promised, here are some behind the scenes shots i took while working on mine and tee’s wedding invites.

i thought the letterpress dies were so cool, i asked the printer if i could keep them. not sure what i’m going to do with them yet, but i’m sure i’ll think of something…

here’s a close up of the mint color hand painted edge of the invite.

the tools for the job…

another helpful tip, always make sure you go to the post office with a complete invitation so they can weigh it and let you know if any extra postage is necessary.

due to the thickness of the invite, the envelope could not be fed through the post office machine, as it is too rigid, so extra postage was definitely necessary.

ina+tee : wedding invites

April 13, 2015

the long awaited debut of mine and tee’s wedding invitation…

this definitely was the most stress i felt throughout the entire wedding planning process. no lie. compared to this, everything else including the actual wedding day was easy breezy!

i knew i wanted to incorporate one our engagement pictures taken by christine chang photography some how into the invite. envelope liners are always fun and adds that extra “something-something.”

i also knew from the get go that letterpress printing was a MUST! i mean, seriously, have you seen and felt letterpress printing??? G-O-R-G-E-O-U-S!

as you know, i am a bit of a paper snob, so of course i had to use the best of the best when it came to letterpress paper. crane’s lettra 220# pearl white paper for the invite and 110# for the reply card.

with the thickness of the 220# invites, mint color hand painted edges made for a fun added detail and a great way to introduce the pop of color that will be incorporated in the wedding colors. (i’ll be sure to share some behind the scenes shots of the hand painted edge process in another blog post.)

a useful tip i read about and applied to our invites, when we got ready to mail them out, was numbering the backside of each rsvp card with the corresponding number assigned to each guest on your list. you’d be surprised at how many rsvp cards get returned back without a name.

this way you can refer back to your list and see which guest is #35.