Happy Monday! I just want it to take a moment to share with you the latest project I’ve been working on. I was super excited when I was approached by the husband’s mother to help her select a gift and design an invitation for her son and his wife’s surprise vow renewal. See the trick here was to choose and design something without the couple’s input as the party proposal (therefore the invitation) was going to be the Christmas gift to the couple.

The couple had a modest wedding 10 years ago. They got married at the beach with a handful of friends and family, so the mom wanted to gift them with a bigger ceremony this time around. They got married at the beach, the wife is an island girl, the husband is a surfer, and their bedroom is decorated in soft blues and creams. As a matter of fact, his mom described him as having sea water in his veins. How cute is that! The theme was therefore a no brainer.  I couldn’t go wrong with a beach color palette. After talking with the mom for a while I learned that she was looking for a casual elegant vibe for the party. My marching orders were in!

I have to admit I gave A LOT of thought to the gift part. After all, it’s not every day someone receives a “I’m throwing you a vow renewal party” gift for Christmas. Such a thoughtful gesture required an equally thoughtful gift. It wasn’t the material gift that was important, but the meaning. I was instructed with the challenging task of making them imagine the ceremony once they opened the gift. It finally came to me! They have a precious 6 year old that would make the most beautiful flower girl, so I decided that the physical present would be the flower girl basket. What a most special moment for a parent than to see their little girl walk down the aisle as their flower girl? I could not think of something more emotional than that (but maybe I’m biased because I’m a parent myself).

I envisioned the basket made out of a large shell and with that my search began. The best tip I can give you, when looking for something unique ALWAYS try etsy.com first. I certainly found what I was looking for and able to customize with my color palette. Jessica from Urban Elements was very helpful, easy to work with and my order arrived as she promised it would.

The inspiration for the invitation was driftwood on the beach. I imagined a beautiful shell getting caught up in the driftwood and the invitation was born. Choosing the right shade of blue was imperative to keep the casual elegance requested. After some soul searching I decided on the shade of blue you see below. A month after I chose the color Pantone released their 2016 color of the year, Serenity. You can’t even begin to imagine my excitement when I discover that I had chosen the color before they even released it. Score!

She did say casual elegant so I chose a crystal metallic cardstock and a metallic silver baker’s twine to give the touch of elegance she was looking for. The shell charm had different shades of blue and gray streaks that tied the blue and gray of the invitation. It also had rhinestones which make it pop even more.  I cut the silver baker’s twine and frayed the ends to resemble a shell lodged in the driftwood. The envelope insert was chosen because it resembled driftwood and because it would tone down the elegance of the metallics of the invitation to give a more casual look and feel to the overall invitation. To finish it up I did the calligraphy for the envelope in white ink.

I am very pleased with the end result and most importantly the client was VERY PLEASED as well. So sad the picture doesn’t do it justice.