What makes a great wedding invitation

That's right, this is a wedding invitation. These are completely hand made and mostly of paper. Picture top right is Ella all put together and ready to ship to the party guest.

The box size and shape are completely customizable, it all comes down to your theme and/or taste. This one has a picture of the wedding location printed on top of the lid, along with a personalized (to each guest) greeting. The lid front also shows the date of the event.

Open it up and find a little stage complete with red curtains! To the right there is a antiqued wooden dial for the viewer to turn. Turning the dial moves the "play" on the stage from scene to scene. This one has 6 scenes, starting with the title, and ending with another personalized invitation and event details.

Attached under the lid (top right, bottom middle) you'll find two slots for additional information, this one has directions, location information, and a RSVP card. Of course, the style of anything seen here is completely unique - there is no "default" or "stock" templates, we prefer to approach every project as if it is our first time.

Notice the lid detail - this was all designed for this particular wedding. The wedding had a vintage/french feel, and was at Greystone Mansion here in Los Angeles. Top right is one of the "scenes" I mentioned earlier. This Ella had scenes of how the couple met, what they had went through, and where they are going. 

Below are the cards that were held in a pretty little pocket under the lid. The pocket was hand made with a little peek a boo slit to see what the cards where about before you pulled them out by their handy tabby. Bottom center is the bottom of the box, and it had a little message from the bride and groom. Lastly we have the invitation all ready to go packaged in a cardboard shipping box padded with excelsior.

I'll be putting up larger images and more detailed information for this project pretty soon - as well as a matching mini save the date!

(Lower quantities are price negotiable.)

Creating your Ella begins with a design phase, which starts with a non-refundable $500 deposit. This includes 10 hours of consultation and can begin the initial design phase. During the consultation, we discuss with you your ideas and expectations as to what you would like to see and accomplish with your message. (Much like when hiring a design team.) For example, does your event have a theme or destination?

Afterwards, we show you draft samples of our design ideas - swatch colors on kraft board, printed design elements, sample tactile elements, possible shaped parts (dial, lid), etc. Once certain details are decided upon, we move forward and complete the initial design phase of your Ella. Throughout this process, we provide proofs for you to approve.

The nature of Ella is that each client's creation is unique, commanding their own set of materials in varying qualities. Because of this, the 10-hour allotment is commonly not enough to complete the initial design. If this is the case, there is a $50 per hour design extension until the final design is approved.

Simultaneously, we will place you with an artist to illustrate your message in a style that compliments your theme. The artist can cost $150 and up, depending on detail, style, etc. If you know of an artist you wish to implement, we'll gladly use their work to be placed in your message. We do not mark up artist fees, so if your artist is a friend that charges $0, we charge $0 too!

After the design and artist are settled, each Ella is printed by us and construction starts at $100 each, with a minimum of 10. Lower quantities are price negotiable, but because we handcraft each one individually, costs run higher than the minimum quantity price of $100 each.

Once your Ella's are constructed, we ship them for you! (USPS Parcel Post is included in our pricing.) Your invitation or announcement is wrapped in excelsior and packaged in a box, which is addressed with a personalized label of our design to your guest. (Your guest list should be finalized and provided towards the end of the design phase.) We like to ship 2-3 months before your event date to ensure that guests (and you) have ample time to handle RSVPs.

5-6 months Deposit, Initial Design Phase
4-5 months Complete Design
3-4 months Finalize Guestlist, Printing, Construction
2-3 months Shipping

Remember, this timeline has many variables and is only a sample.

If you would like a completely new concept, especially one that is not Ella, please add additional time to your planning. Engineering is the longest process of all - we suggest contacting us ASAP to discuss such an option.

Along with this, please realize that we do *not* book more than 2 large events per month. This helps us concentrate on each client with sufficient attention without burning out or sacrificing quality of work. We do not wish to rush through construction!