FAQ - Weddings
For frequently asked questions and information please see below.
WHAT IS LETTERPRESS?
Letterpress is the oldest traditional printing technique dating back to the 15th century. The process entails pressing plates with your design into paper to create a wonderful texture and visual appeal. Each piece is hand printed and each color is printed separately. It's an incredibly artistic and patient process which makes for a stunning result. Due to our variety of machines dating between the late 1800's up to present day, and our extensive experimenting, we are able to print on a variety of paper and materials. Only our imagination can limit us.
If you would like something out of the box and completely original let us know and we can work together to create an amazing custom invitation set. Or select one of our lovely template designs that are sure to impress again and again.
WHAT IS LASER ENGRAVING?
Laser engraving utilizes a powerful laser beam to remove the surface layer of a material like paper or wood to achieve depth and tonal variances. Laser cutting allows for intricately cut shapes that can't be produced using other traditional methods. It is a time-consuming process but it provides us the opportunity to use extraordinary materials creating some very interesting results .
END RESULTS MAY VARY
Because of the nature of both letterpress printing and laser engraving, each piece may vary slightly. This is part of the beauty and the unique quality of using hand made processes and natural materials, where each person receiving gets something slightly unique to them. So each piece you receive may differ slightly from what you see online, as well as what you see from piece to piece, in things like color, texture and variation in ink. Sometimes the paper itself can vary slightly in color as well.
WHAT PAPER IS MY INVITATION PRINTED ON?
The invitation is typically printed on 2 ply cotton paper or thicker paper made to best take the letterpress impression. The RSVP and other items are printed using 1 ply cotton paper or thinner paper. This is the case for all wedding invitations unless otherwise stated on the product's page. If you prefer something different please let us know exactly what uncoated paper you'd like and we can certainly examine the possibility of printing on that paper.
HOW LONG DOES MY ORDER TAKE
Generally, orders from our Wedding Collection section will be delivered 6-8 weeks from your order date, assuming the invitation information and approvals are provided within 48 hrs. of our request. However we do often book out far in advance, so be sure to check with us on our availability to fit you in right away. Typically it's best to allow 3-4 months for the production of your invitation set. This allows us to place your information into the design, get your final approval with spell checking and time/date confirmation, and ample production time.
HOW MUCH AND HOW LONG FOR CUSTOM DESIGN ITEMS?
For Custom Wedding Invitation sets the design fee begins at $1,500 and goes up depending on the number of pieces. The timeline will depend on what you're looking to accomplish, so please contact us for more details. However, as a general guideline you should provide us with 5-6 months advance notice minimum to do custom design.
WHEN SHOULD I MAIL MY INVITATIONS?
It is polite to send invitations anywhere between 8-10 weeks prior to your wedding and giving your guests at least 3 weeks until the RSVP date. If you're short on time, 6 weeks is acceptable. A Save-the-Date card is recommended to be sent 6-12 months prior to your wedding, this is extra helpful if you have many guests traveling from out-of-town for your event.
WHEN SHOULD I BEGIN WORKING ON MY INVITATIONS?
As soon as you have your date and venue booked! Your final invitation order will need to be made at least 4-5 months prior to your wedding and you will need to have your wording and guest list finalized at this time. Much like dressmakers, stationers can get booked up early (we often are!) so start researching your options and don't wait too late.
WHAT ARE MY OPTIONS FOR LETTERPRESS ON ENVELOPES AND GUEST ADDRESSING?
You will most likely need envelopes for at least your Invitations and RSVP's. If you purchase these through us we will be printing your return address on the invitation and your mail-to address on the RSVP. Letterpress cannot do personalization of guests names and addresses. We recommend hiring a calligrapher for writing your guest names and addresses if you prefer not to do it yourself. Check with the calligrapher on their timing and quantity requirements as it may add to what we recommend. Typically calligraphers require 10–20% extra envelopes.
DO I STILL NEED TO BUY POSTAGE STAMPS?
Yes. Our prices do not include postage stamps. You'll need postage for both the invitation and the RSVP's. Depending on the set you go with and the weight/size of the pieces the invitation stamp will range between $0.65–$0.85 per letterpress set and $0.85–$1.15 per wood set plus $0.35–$0.45 per RSVP. Postage rates and requirements change frequently, so it's important to confirm with the US Postal Service.
DOES MY PURCHASE INCLUDE ASSEMBLY OF THE INVITATION SET?
No. Your pieces will be delivered to you un-assembled. We are happy to put them together for you for a fee. If you have a basic set of invite, invite envelope, RSVP and RSVP envelope, we will assemble them for you at $2.00/invite set. In addition we will charge the cost of the RSVP stamp since those will need to be applied prior to assembly. If you have more than the basic set our assembly fee starts at $3.00/invite set and goes up to $5.00/invite set, plus the cost of the RSVP stamp. Then we'll send the unsealed invitations to you, ready to be addressed by you or your calligrapher. You can purchase glue dots or stick tape from any craft store for adhering belly bands. If you want us to add this it is an additional cost at your request. Please contact us directly for this option.
HOW MANY INVITATIONS AND ENVELOPES DO I NEED?
Figure out how many households you'll be mailing the invites to, then add 10–15 extra in case some additional people come up last minute. It's much more cost effective to order extra sets now rather than reprints later. Also, if you're hiring a calligrapher, they require extra envelopes for any mistakes. We suggest you order extra envelopes for yourself as well, but if you're hiring a calligrapher check with them to see how many extra they require.
DO YOU SELL YOUR ARTWORK TO BE PRINTED DIGITALLY?
No. Our artwork is exclusively printed by us. We work hard to create unique, one-of-a-kind designs and products so that you'll be getting original pieces. Our artwork is copyrighted and any users and producers of imitations or direct copies of our work will be prosecuted.
