Get Inspired With These Creative Wedding Invitation Designs

People have been getting hitched for centuries. From “carry and capture” marriages where potential brides would be stolen from the next village over to today’s jovial affairs celebrating a couple’s everlasting love, we’ve come a long way to walking down the aisle. Ancient “weddings” were often traumatic experiences (mostly for the woman), but today a wedding means tear-jerking vows, an open bar, a DJ spinning cheesy crowd-pleasers, and plenty of fondant cake.

Just as the notion of marriage has changed, weddings themselves weren’t always grand, complicated occasions. In the early 1800s, most American weddings were private events held at homes, and the guest lists were relatively small. At that time, many pre-Victorian-era brides were married in their best formal dress – it was usually black or another dark color. It wasn’t until 1840 when Queen Victoria wore a white satin dress with a long lace train for her wedding to Prince Albert that brides began demanding a white dress.

By the 1920s, businesses began marketing to brides and grooms and the wedding industry as we know it was born. According to various studies, since 1945, over 138 million weddings have taken place in the United States, with Americans spending roughly $50 billion per year on their nuptials.

When it came to paper products, invitations were more commonly used by privileged members of society who could afford fancy engraved stationery. Shortly after World War II, affordable mass-produced wedding stationery allowed everyone to incorporate high-society etiquette into their events. Today, invitations are the No. 1 wedding item shopped for online by brides, and they account for just under one-third of online wedding-related purchases (favors come in first, followed by honeymoon travel).

Here is a collection of some of the best and most creative wedding invitation designs:

This wedding invitation was designed with a summer camp theme in mind. In fact, the festivities lasted an entire weekend as the wedding party and guests stayed at a historic log lodge in Oregon.

Source: http://cdn.greenweddingshoes.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/02/camp-wedding-03.jpg

This invitation set included RSVP cards with rounded corners.

Source: http://www.stylemepretty.com/gallery/picture/486122

 

Love to the rescue! This couple had comic book-inspired wedding invitations…complete graphic novel typography and plenty of action words to go around!

Source: http://cdn.greenweddingshoes.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/superhero-LA-wedding-02.jpg

 

These invitations were inspired by vintage circus posters.

Source: http://www.flickr.com/photos/thingsarebetterwithaparrott/5167199598/

 

The groom, a graphic designer, created the above wedding invitations, save-the-dates, and programs. He created a “logo” for their wedding – his and the bride’s initials with an anchor – and used it across all their stationery and venue signs.

Source: http://cdn.greenweddingshoes.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/10/rainy_wedding_seattle_02.jpg

 

This carnival-inspired invitation set was designed by the bride herself. She used fun, punchy colors to reflect her and her (now) husband’s “whimsical” and creative senses.

Source: http://cdn.greenweddingshoes.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/yeriadam-wedding-02.jpg

 

An invitation…NOT made of paper? Stop the presses! This couple wanted an outdoors theme for their mountain destination wedding, so their invitation was created from laser cut cherrywood veneer.

Source: http://ohsobeautifulpaper.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/Lasercut-Wood-Wedding-Invitations-Kate-Holgate-550×366.jpg

This map-themed invite set has an old-world feel with a modern touch.

Source: http://cdn.greenweddingshoes.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/Chicago-Wedding-16.jpg

Most classic invitations use one sans-serif, one serif, and a script typeface to communicate their event information with elegance and simplicity. This invitation takes it just a step further, using a more modern script to add some character to the invite.

Source: http://ohsobeautifulpaper.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/06/Black-White-Blue-Edge-Painting-Letterpress-Wedding-Invitations-The-Happy-Envelope4-550×366.jpg

 

At first glance, this guidebook and map set might look like something a girl- or boy scout would keep in a camping daypack…in reality, it’s the booklet-style wedding invitation suite of an art director. He designed the entire set, and little details like the scout badge favors to the wood grain-textured guidebook covers must have made the guests feel like they were going on an outdoor adventure!

Source: http://www.urbaninfluence.com/sites/default/files/assets/0003.jpg

 

Here’s another classic vintage-inspired invitation; what makes it different is the envelope within the invite, which contains a small postcard with more wedding event details.

Source: http://isa2.stylemepretty.com/wp-content/submissions/uploads/amandalschneider1@gmail.com/21682/pre023_t4k6636$!600x.jpg

The possibilities are endless when it comes to creating stationery for your wedding! We now offer invitation printing (complete with envelopes) in a variety of sizes. Program booklets and save-the-date magnet calendars are just a few more ways to make your big day memorable. Get started on your event invitations today!

We love to see the work of our customers! If you’d like to share your wedding stationery designs that we’ve printed, add us on Pinterest and pin your work with the hashtag #NextDayFlyers.