Notebook

paper post: table numbers

littlebitheart_paperpost_tablenumbers

A tip about table numbers (and a story about my mom haha).

Every. single. time we talk about named table numbers, Jenna’s mom comments on how confused she gets when tables have names instead of numbers: when you walk in and see “Las Vegas,” how are you supposed to know what direction to head in for “Cape Cod”?

Now, a little disclaimer- we LOVE named table numbers. It’s such a sweet way to bring in a little more about your love story and add a unique touch to something so functional. And if that’s what you want, we’re 120% behind it- it’s your wedding! But if you’re having a larger wedding (and a ton of tables), combining the two ideas might be something to think about. Here are some ideas for having the best of both worlds:

– Writing out part of the number and using numerals for the actual table number: “Ten-oh-9” in an address (let’s say the address of where you met, like “1009 Wesleyan Street”) for table #9.

– Do both! We do this often. So “Grayson Vineyard” would be “Table No. 1” and it would be printed as both on the table numbers and escort cards.

– You guys love sports? Google MLB or NFL (or whatever three letter league gets you cheering) team rankings and use the most recent standings for built in numbers.

A chronological list of places you’ve been (3rd trip together: Matt’s wedding in Western Massachusetts) or sites of significant dates (1st date: the bagel shop downtown) can be a great place to start- instant numbers! We’d love to know what you decide!

background image: maria vicencio photography

paper post: the program

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Let’s talk a bit about one of your day-of items: the wedding program.

Programs are usually given at your ceremony- they let guests know what’s going on, who’s who, and more. For amount, we recommend doing somewhere around half of our guest count, unless they are placed at seats. Here are some ideas for what to include:

– The order of the ceremony is always nice, so that guests can follow along. If you’re having any special religious or cultural traditions, explain their significance- if it means a lot to you, your guests would love to know about it.

– Let them know who’s standing up there with you! If you have a wedding party, list their names (and we think it’s also a sweet detail to include their relationship with you, like “Nick’s college roommate”). You may also want to list the officiant, your parents and grandparents, or give a shout to other VIPs, like your favorite aunt.

– If you’ve included any sentimental details or heirlooms in your wedding day attire or in the ceremony, share them! It adds even more to your ceremony for your guests to know what little touches you’ve brought in- from using a poetry reading that your parents did, or that the altar cloth was sewn by your grandmother. We like to include this in a section called “Wedding Notes”- if you have room, go for it!

A sweet thank you is also a nice touch- this is the perfect place to honor loved ones that can’t be with you, thank your wedding party, or give guests who came from near and far to celebrate with you a little love.

background image: maria vicencio photography

summer celebrations free printable

Hello summer! We had a weekend filled with graduation celebrations and wedding events- yep, it’s that season again! You’d think that we’d be better prepared with some pretty handmade cards (those are on our to-do list!) but we found ourselves this weekend whipping up some quick celebratory cards- these would be perfect to take along with your gift.

free printables - summer celebrations

These are sized to fit in an A6 envelope (make sure you turn off page scaling in the Print window)- we recommend Paper Source’s in Paper Bag, it goes with everything and we love the European Flap. Just print out the PDF printable (it’s right here) on a nice cream or white cardstock, cut along the crop marks and you’re good to go. We’re going to print a stack of these so we have a pretty note handy for any occasion!

Important but boring note: Printables are for personal use only & cannot be reproduced or resold in whole or in part. Paper Source has no idea who we are, we just love their envelopes :)

paper post: proofreading advice

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This, friends, is a true story that we’re sharing with you (although it’s embarrassing) because we can’t say it often enough: proofread, proofread, proofread.

I once laid out a proof of a menu card with copy-and-pasted text that the client had sent over, the whole time wondering what the heck “crab meta” was. Some kind of fancy crab meat? When I told Elizabeth about it, she had the good sense to guess that it was supposed to be “crab meat.” Our client also caught the error- points for good proofreading!

The point is- you can’t rely on your stationer or printer to proofread your text for you. For all they know, there IS such a thing as crab meta, and that’s why you’re responsible for carefully proofreading your final proofs:

– Proofread EVERYTHING, and ask others to look them over as well. More than one pair of eyes and multiple checks are the best ways to avoid errors in your final printed piece

– Read your text out loud or read it from bottom to top (basically, reading backwards so you don’t get tricked by context)

– You know the saying “Measure twice, cut once”? Think of it here as “Proofread three, four, five times, and then just print once!”

background image: kate ann photography

paper post: international postage

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International postage is something you might not run into, but almost every wedding we’ve done has had at least one international guest, so it’s nice to have a few tips!

One of our very first weddings was for a client who was temporarily living in Austria, but the bride was originally from Canada and the groom was from Maine. So we had an address list that was half in Canada and half in America, and to top off the all-over-the-map craziness, the RSVP address was in Canada. So we needed to order Canadian postage for half of the RSVP envelopes- they were going Canada to Canada. The other half needed to have US to Canada postage. Lots of geography to keep an eye on!

Your situation might not be as involved, but international postage is definitely something to think about. Here are our tips:

– Make sure to separate out your international invitations: these will need extra postage. It might be as easy as putting on two or three stamps instead of one, but you should check these individually with the post office before you mail.

– For the reply envelopes for international guests, you may need to leave off postage (well, you could put it on, but… they won’t be able to use it). The USPS used to offer vouchers that could be redeemed for the guest’s country’s postage to the US, but they no longer carry those (for trivia night: these “international reply coupons” were actually used in the original 1920 Ponzi scheme!). If a significant portion of your list is in the same country, it might be worth looking into ordering postage directly from there for those (like in our above example).

– If there are more than a few international guests, make sure to account for additional mailing postage in your budget, as it can make a significant difference.

background image: renee hollingshead photography