Colleen's invitations

I just realized that I haven't posted any pictures of my recent projects lately...so here is one of the latest, currently in progress!

This week I've had the privilege of working with Colleen on addressing the invitations for both her wedding and her rehearsal dinner in elegant, standard black ink. Here's a sneak peek...

Congratulations, Colleen! It's been great working with you- may all your dreams come true.

Season's Greetings!

Every year at Christmas I am reminded of how blessed I am with family, friends, and the ability to serve you. Corny, I know, but it's the truth!

Wishing a very happy holiday season from our house to you and yours.

Melissa

survey results are in!

First of all, a great big "THANK YOU" to my clients, past and present who participated in my brief survey last week. The survey is now closed and the results are in...

1. How important is calligraphy to you for your wedding or event? (on a scale of 1 to 5, 1 being essential) 95% = 2.0 *important*

2. Do you generally prefer handwritten calligraphy or computer fonts?  95% = handwritten calligraphy

3. What are the most important features / qualities you look for when choosing a calligrapher?  1) price; 2) service; 3) artistic talent; 4) location; 5-6) ink color variety and etiquette advice/ consultation

4. How has the current economic climate affected your event planning? 40% were not affected; 40% omitted services to save money; 20% chose a cheaper venue; 13% cut back the guest list.

5. What influences you the most when selecting a vendor?  52% = word of mouth / referrals; 23 % = online search and quality of website; 10% = portfolio / gallery or other; 5% event planner recommendation.

From what people are saying, calligraphy is important for the large majority and they also prefer to have it done by hand for their events rather than computer printed. However, price remains the number one deciding factor for them when choosing a calligrapher, with quality of customer service a close second (I was surprised to find out that artistic talent of prospective calligraphers only came in third!). While many of the respondents' budgets were not affected by the economic downturn, 40% opted to omit certain services altogether in order to save. Finally, the majority of people are selecting their vendors through word of mouth and referrals.

Calligraphia by Melissa strategies are to improve the following:
1) continue completing all work by hand
2) maintain low, affordable prices (currently $1.75 / per envelope vs. an average of $2-10 per invite)
3) encourage YOU to continuously spread the word!

price and advice

I've been reading the free advice that's circulating out there on the Web about the "calligraphy basics": how to find the right calligrapher for your event, the information you'll need to get from potential calligraphers before booking their services, the amount of money you can expect to spend on calligraphy for your wedding, etcetera. The more I read, the more perplexed I am, especially on two counts: price, and what seems to be the widespread perspective on the artwork itself.

According to the points in this article from the Wedding Guide, "the average calligrapher will charge you anywhere from $2-10 per invite." However, some brides-to-be have posted on chat boards and declared my rates of $1.75 per outer envelope or $2.50 per set of inner / outer envelopes pricy. What do you, my readers, think of this? Any opinions?

In addition, you scroll down in the article to read that "you'll also want to show each calligrapher your invitation and ask for a font sample before you make a decision." While I agree with both points - I always ask to see the invitation beforehand, to get an idea of the tone of it, and definitely encourage potential clients to take a look at my portfolio - the message here seems to be that rather than specializing in certain hands, the artist is in the business of doing copywork and if they can't copy the font that the invitation is printed in, move on.  To my knowledge, I don't know any calligraphers who copy computer fonts. Every calligrapher I have met or studied with is an expert in a few unique "hands" (see my previous post on this topic here). Thoughts?

7 envelope etiquette tips

The holidays are coming, so spice up your holiday parties by making them extra-special events. As you work on finalizing your guest list, these few quick tips can help you address your invitations for Thanksgiving / Christmas / New Year's Eve / a wedding or another celebration:

1. Outer envelopes should give only the name and address of the person / people you are inviting (heads of household):

Mr. and Mrs. John Smith
111 Any Street
(Apartment A)
New York, New York 11100

2. If the couple you are inviting does not have children, or if their children are not invited, the inner envelope should read as follows, with the last name of the couple only:

Mr. and Mrs. Smith

3. If the couple you are inviting has children who are also invited, then the inner envelope should read:

Mr. and Mrs. Smith
Jack and Emma

4. If you are inviting two people who are together, but who are not married, both names are listed on the outer envelope, one above the other:

Mr. John Smith
Ms. Mary Jones
111 Any Street
New York, New York 11100

5. The inner envelope for the unmarried couple should read as follows:

Mr. Smith
Ms. Jones

6. If you are inviting a single person, the address goes on the outer envelope as above:

Mr. John Smith
111 Any Street
New York, New York 11100

7. If the single person is invited with a guest, the inner envelope should read:

Mr. Smith and Guest


If you have any specific questions now or when the time comes, be sure to ask me!

calligraphy for a new baby

The other day I was commissioned to do the calligraphy on a photo frame matting for a new baby. Although I usually do stationery for events, rather than many custom gift orders, I decided to take this project on since a friend of mine was requesting. I was able to get a plain white matting and handwrite the baby boy's name, together with a Bible verse, to be framed by the family later. Came out great!

This project is to be a gift for my friend's cousin who gave birth last week, and what an incredible journey the little guy has had already.

Congratulations to Doris and her new baby son- he will be very much loved :)

it's quiet

It's Fall (or it will be in less than a week), and it's quiet so far. It's been like this for several of us, apparently, judging by the fact that many of my colleagues in the wedding industry - calligraphers, wedding planners, etc. - have been advertizing mostly for classes on their trade, and others who have not had to resort to teaching have begun to in recent months. Calligraphy and wedding planning "schools" are popping up all over the place. I'm not saying I'd _never_ teach classes, but luckily to date it hasn't been essential...anyway, here's hoping this recession ends soon, for all of us.

My Fall newsletter will be going out shortly, and will feature my latest promotions along with the opportunity for free gifts. Sign up here to join my inner-circle mailing list!