When you begin to plan your own wedding, as I am now, other weddings that you care to attend are treated as a shop window, a chance to judge, scrutinise and flirt with other peoples ideas and choices, to compare them to your own tastes.
When the invitation for Cath and Andrew’s wedding arrived through the post, we already knew we were looking at something quirky and eccentric, yet still rooted in a traditional sense of this forever moving, modern world.
Different is sometimes used to ridicule or highlight what is culturally known and safe. But sometimes different can just mean different. It is not the same as hundreds of wedding ideas that Brides and Grooms are almost forced to accept. Another choice to add originality is exactly what arrived on our doormat this day.
The Invitation formed in a small handcrafted booklet made its first impression through its simplicity and yet attention to detail. The small binding of the booklet making it seem like it was specially made for the recipient. The deep red background making the cream front sheet stand to attention and proudly announce our names.
Once we had carefully extracted the perforated edges so as not to damage the beauty of the card, we found ourselves staring at pages of what Cath and Andrew’s day would bring.
After being formally invited to their magical day, Cath and Andrew used the remaining pages to offer as much information as they could to their guests while making sure that a minimum amount of work would be required. It followed a simple structure allowing room for personality to shine through with specific wording, clearly acquired to their tastes.
We were left with an R.S.V.P. to a wedding that would clearly be in the making of a couple whose imagination and creativity would know no bounds.
When attending the service we were greeted at our chairs by a beautiful order of service and a small packet, hand-stitched closed and full of dried rose petals ready to use as confetti. It was again a nice personal touch.
Dinner is always an interesting time at a wedding. Different personalities thrown together and expected to make merry because of the one thing they certainly have in common; the Bride and Groom.
Finding our table was a pleasure within itself. The guests shuffled over to an old index box to find their names filed in alphabetical order.
Once primed with our table number we made our way into the dining room. Our table was not hard to find. Our number proudly sat atop of the table. Projected into a 15-inch 3D rendering. It was on closer inspection that we saw the table number was plastered in pictures of us and our fellow table guests. It made the table our own. Our table was unique to us and we already felt like a group rather than a group of strangers.
The last element that completed the usually awkward introductions was a beautifully inspired cutlery holder. Adorned with an itinerary of the nights events, including speeches. It made light suggestion of conversation among our fellow guests as we guests were invited to 'guess the first dance'. But the most personal touch was by far the most powerful. A section of the cutlery holder that tears away and is folded to make a name tag which not only adorns your name, but also an interest, or statement made by the bride and groom about you. It was this fact that got the table talking. The ice was broken and all through a simple yet almost genius idea.
The wording and style of each item was clearly thought through with the idea that freedom and expression would ultimately rule their occasion. After all what is a wedding if not two personalities meeting and altering to meet each other’s needs.
The one similarity that all these carefully crafted ideas and beautiful realisations had; was that they shared the same label. Two words. Raspberry Toast.
Guest Blog contribution: Thanks go to Matt Killingbeck
Design by Moors Creative
0 comments:
Post a Comment