It’s a Girl! Miss Shortcake Gives Birth to Invitations!
July 31st, 2008 @ 6:12 pm by Mrs. Shortcake
Well, we pooled our collective pocket change, emptied our emergency fund and bought a new printer. In the end, Mr. Shortcake wouldn’t let me drop his old printer out of the window, or even give it a few gentle taps with a baseball bat a la Office Space, claiming that he wanted to keep it for sentimental reasons. What those reasons are, I’m not so sure of, but I think it involves framing the beast and hanging it on the office wall like a mounted deer head. 
Thanks to our new Epson RX595 (which works like a dream, thankyouverymuch), our invitations are printed and ready to go. I must admit that I was shocked speechless when I pressed “print 20 copies”…and the Epson printed twenty copies - twenty copies that were the same size, colour, font, species, etc. Hallelujah!
SUPPLIES:
- white Arturo paper from White Aisle moving sale
- blossom card stock from White Aisle moving sale (from paper source)
- blush paper from cards and pockets
- gold leaf rectangolo pocket folds from cards and pockets
- cricut paper cutter
- cricut corner rounder
- double sided tape
- glue stick
- light pink ribbon from paper mart
- Speedball India black ink
- silver ink
- nibs and pen(will explain further in a calligraphy post)
- Fonts: feel script, ff_tsuj, Love Ya Like a Sister
- Adobe Photoshop CS3 Extended
- Adobe Illustrator CS3
- wacom graphire 2 tablet and stylus
This was the ninth design that I went through, and the illustrations are completely drawn by hand (with India ink and a old-fashioned nib). My father, being a graphic designer and photographer himself, and a generous man who supports my artistic inclinations, gifted me with a tablet and stylus, feel script, as well as adobe illustrator, which came in very handy for font manipulation. Illustrator was handy, that is. I still really haven’t figured out how to use the stylus! 
Before we had to buy the printer, the cost was approximately $3.86 per invite (the white aisle moving sale helped a lot), after the printer…well, I just won’t think about it! 
They’re based on our very 1950s feminine colour scheme (blush, gold, charcoal, mustard, cream, buttercream yellow), which reminds me a lot of a starlet’s boudoir. Kind of glam, very feminine, very cute, and very vintage. Very “hel-lo dah-ling.”
I wanted the birds and banners to evoke a kind of romantic Cinderella feeling (you know, where they’re helping make her dress), and I wanted the font to be whimsical and vintage-inspired at the same time.
So, without further ado, I’d like to present our invitations.
Sacrilege! I hate blurring out our information.
THE INSERTS
…were hand drawn with India ink and a nib. You probably can’t read it, but the little banner says “An Old-Fashioned Kind of Love” - the theme of our vintage wedding! For fonts, I used feel script, ff_tsuj, and Love Ya Like a Sister. For colours, the grey type is 66,66,66, the pink is 241, 153, 153.
I love the look of the Couture Maps, but wasn’t a fan of the price, so in less than half an hour, I whipped up my own version!
THE CALLIGRAPHY
…was based on Veer’s feel script, with my own personal touch for letters that I didn’t like as much. I blended black India ink with a metallic silver to get a custom dark silver blend that was pleasantly sparkly, but still very readable.
Because I couldn’t figure out what to call ourselves on the RSVP envelope (Mr. Firstname Lastname and Miss Firstname Different Lastname took up too much room), I just put down the rather quirky title of “the happy couple.” I figure if the post man is lost, he can just knock on doors until he finds residents with the hugest, dorky smiles ever. 
So, there you have it. By the end, our invitations were not so much a labour of love so much as omgpushpushhooohooheeee kind of affair. Nevertheless, I adore them.
Did anyone else make their invitations?
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94 Responses to “It’s a Girl! Miss Shortcake Gives Birth to Invitations!”
your map is AMAZING!
Everything else is fantastic too (obviously!), but that map is to die for! In a half hour…come on?!
How, how, how?????
Beauty!! We made our invitations … and baby, I feel your PAIN about the printers! It was an exercise in self-control of the highest regard!
Thank the lord it’s over! You must be so relieved to have those outta the house!
Oh my goodness! That is way too much talent to be crammed into one little body! I’m so jealous and I’m not even a girly-girl! (Ok, so I’m a sucker for most things vintage…)
Look what you’ve done! I’m so blown away by your invitations I’m babbling! They are beautiful! Your guests will be absolutely amazed. Congratulations!
Ok, if I send you my envelopes, a list of names and addresses and a couple of red bills — you know which ones i’m talkin’ aboot
can you do some calligraphy for me
jeez loouise that’s some talent!
oh, the invitations look great too!
OK I have to say it, I just read the names and addresses used on your sample… and I love you even more.
I’m inviting the Brandon’s to my wedding too
I’m hoping that she will give me a Denny and George scarf.
wow. i think i would faint from the attack of sheer beauty if i were to receive one of these in the mail. you’re amazing, shortcake.
As a designer myself, i have to say — OMGthatIStoDIEforGORGEOUS!!!!!!!!!!!!! I’m in LOVE
how pretty. i love them! esp the color scheme. and great job on the illustrations
hooray! a new printer! that’s great and i love the invitations. and you are very talented! “so in less than half an hour, I whipped up my own version!” half-hour!!! that looks like it took a long time to draw. you are indeed very talented.
Everything looks beautiful, but I am such a fan of the ribbon. I was wondering if you would have a tutorial on it, or if not, can you please PM me with how you did that?
Beautiful!
Gorgeous! I love the bow on the front!
Simple Gorgeous! I love them! WOW!
Cute!!!!
Everything is gorgeous - the calligraphy, the illustrations, and that bow!! I love the shopaholic reference!
That’s the prettiest map I’ve ever seen — I like it way better than supposed “couture” maps . . . .
Way to go Shortie!
LOL, that’s a shout out to the Shopaholic series on the first envelope, right?
Those invitations are soo beautiful!
I got so excited when I saw the cricut! My fiance just got me one and I am trying to figure out new projects. How did it work with invitations? Did it cut all the pieces for your invitations? I love the look of the rounded corners.
The maps are also amazing. I think we are designing/printing our own invitations as well so all your information really helps!
so pretty! you did a great job and i am HIGHLY impressed with the calligraphy.
i love that you used the shopaholic and her husband as your practice guests!
Shortie, these may be my favorite Bee invites yet! I’m in the middle of my own labor of love with handmade invites right now (and it is LABOR), so seeing your finished product was just the boost I needed to make my final push! They look gorgeous, well done!
very very nice
fort langley!?no way! i live in fort langley…
Ha! Luke Brandon! from Brandon Communications? Is he coming with Becky?
a-MAZING!!! and i love the shout out to becky and luke!
omg! awesome!
wow! I cannot believe you hand-designed so many of the elements!!! It is truly stunning! All of the touches are just so adorable. And the icing on the shortcake is definitely your addressed envelop to the Brandons. cute.cute.cute.
great job!!
these are so beautiful i want to eat them.
Ridiculously amazing…simply ridiculous!
Cute invitations!
The Redwoods is a beautiful location. My sister got married there last September and it was amazing!! We had nothing but rave reviews.
wow…thanks guys! The map did only take half an hour, believe it or not It’s mostly just doodling. The birds and the banner (on the main invite) took almost an hour in comparison. You can kind of see the map bigger here (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mshortcake/2719616115/)….the little choo choo train says “it’s a love train baby yeah!” on the cars!
@furelysse: Mr. Shortcake actually cute and assembled all of the ribbons! There’s a tutorial on how to do it here: http://www.weddingbee.com/2007/03/29/its-all-about-the-packaging/
I am in awe. Those things are GORGEOUS. Like….amazing. I now feel that my invitations are unfit for sending.
WOWOWEE!! I am so envious, Your invites are stationary porn I swear!! I love how you used the shopaholic names!! I love your invites I don’t think I have ever seen any invites that beautiful!!!
@Dawn: Dawn, I’m sure that yours are lovely. If it’s any consolation, my invites still are only 85% of how I wanted them too look like ….:)
Yet another reason I want to come to your wedding! I really feel like you are my twin - I am genuinely so happy for you and I hope you are enjoying every blissful minute of post-invitation bliss. They turned out lovely and you should be very proud.
Ohmigawsh, so lovely! If I come up with something half as wonderful, I will be ecstatic!
WOW these are A MAZING!!!! Very classy and oh so romantic.
They look lovely! I’m so glad you got the new printer. It probably makes you more mad at the other printer and makes you want to tell it “See? This is what a printer is supposed to do”.
Bowing at your extremely creative feet! The whole package is amazing and so romantic. The map is wonderful!
Can I ask…did you find a free download of the Free script? I’ve been looking EVERYWHERE for that because I have a big problem paying $99 for a font.
you are amazing. i love reading your blogs. i wish i had even a little bit of the creativity and talent (and patience!) that you have. congratulations on beautiful invitations!
Those are absolutely breathtaking! I’ve always been one to make my own invites, scrapbooks, shadow boxes, etc but these are just amazing!!
I love your invites, they’re gorgeous!!! Plus, I love that your example invite is going to Becky and Luke Brandon!! Reading Shopaholic Ties the Knot makes me feel a lot better about my own wedding plans, and my own mother-in-law for that matter!
These are BY FAR the best invites I have ever seen on this site!
They are goregous!
These are UH-MAZ-ING. Seriously. Every aspect — from the map, to the illustrations, to the professional calligraphy — is stunning. I hope your guests know how much work and talent and creativity went into this!!!!
this is wow amazing!!!!! thats honeslty all that I can say wow!!!!
Those are simply scrumptious– I just want to eat them up! You did an amazing job– your guests are going to love them!
Fantastic job! I bow down to your map skills and your calligraphy…so well done!!
*sigh* sooo lovely… makes me want to go back in time and have a do-over! But I’m glad to take a weeee bit of credit for your bow-inspiration, hehe =)
OK. so you are my inspiration. I’ve been back and forth with making the decision to create my own invitations. I can design on Adobe — I just didn’t know where to start to print and paste…
You are AMAZING and I desperately need your help! any advice would be great. Miss shortcake, please make my day and email me: nada122@gmail.com.
If I can come even close to creating an invitation like that, I think I would be the happiest bride ever!! =)
WOW, WOW, WOW!! You are amazing!!
You did an awesome job I love it. And the bow is so 1950s Amazing Work Mr. and Miss Shortcake
amazing. Absolutely, incredible.
How did you do the bow? And why aren’t you making these and selling them for other brides?!?!?!
I propose the death to printers that don’t work on odd sized paper! I bought pre-cut inserts and invitations from Cards and Pockets, along with their Espresso signature pocketfolds. Paper and pockets were beautiful. When we tried to print them on my parents HP, it wouldn’t work! I ended up having to tape them to a sheet of paper and run them through. God what a pain, but they came out beautiful. It was well worth it to go through the process. Saved alot of money.
[...] usual response to anything pretty that I see (like Shortcake’s invites) is ‘I wanna eat it!’ Though most people realize it’s metaphoric, I can’t help but [...]
Oh my gosh these are so wonderful. I feel embarrassed for sending my invites out with my terrible calligraphy now after seeing yours! I can’t believe how fast you drew the map, you are insanely talented girl! These are my favorite bee invites to date
they’re spectacular! congrats… i love that you’re having a vintage style wedding. I am as well, but on a smaller, yet louder note. We are nto rockabilly and hot rod Kulture and are doing our vintage invites on old 45 LP records… yours are toofreakincuteforwords!!! I have to show my Mr.
HAND DRAWN with INDIA INK!? Honey, you are too too talented! Those turned out so sweet, so romantic, so gorgeous - they will truly set the tone for your amazing wedding! Your guests are going to FLIP!
these are gorgeous! I am very impressed with your drawing skills! That’s some talent you’ve got Miss Shorty!
[...] you everyone for your kind comments on yesterday’s post! After going through the flames of one certain very hot place in order to get them finished, it [...]
spectacular! those are spit-spot perfect! Thank you for sharing so much details (fonts, etc)–now if I could just be able to draw freehand 50 percent as well as you… Impressed!
Holy moly, they’re gorgeous! Talented lady!
I want one!
I too am kinda embarrassed by our invitations after seeing yours!
[...] It’s a Girl! Miss Shortcake Gives Birth to Invitations! by Miss Shortcake [...]
just curious - how much did you have to pay in postage? I have a folding invite that fits in an A7 envelope, and because of the ribbon, they’re costing me 76 cents a piece! Also, how did you purchase the postage? What type of stamp options did you have?
@Krys: omg. we mailed them this weekend and they were $1.92 each (the international ones were $3.75each !). They weighed 56 grams, if they had been just 50 grams, they would have only cost $0.55 each! We just had canada post mail them (they don’t have a big assortment of stamps, just red flowers for domestic, yellow for international)
@Peonies and Polaroids: ridiculous! Yours are breathtaking and I’ve seen them featured everywhere, so it’s not just me who thinks they’re beyond fabulous!!
[...] has decreased the number of tachycardiac episodes I experience every week. Hooray! Now that all my invitation drama has subsided, I’m looking forward to spending the next two months working on toning up my body [...]
Lovely! I have what might be a stupid question… How did you get your handrawn illustrations into the computer to use for actual printing? Did you just scan them?
[...] the calligraphy the invitation envelopes was no easy feat. In all, it took over 50 hours to complete the calligraphy - and that’s not [...]
[...] seasoned Weddingbee reader, one who has seen gorgeous DIY invites come from the likes of Miss Shortcake, Mrs. Cupcake, and Miss Pomegranate comes to the computer [...]
[...] seasoned Weddingbee reader, one who has seen gorgeous DIY invites come from the likes of Miss Shortcake, Mrs. Cupcake, and Miss Pomegranate comes to the computer [...]
[...] seasoned Weddingbee reader, one who has seen gorgeous DIY invites come from the likes of Miss Shortcake, Mrs. Cupcake, and Miss Pomegranate comes to the computer [...]
[...] seasoned Weddingbee reader, one who has seen gorgeous DIY invites come from the likes of Miss Shortcake, Mrs. Cupcake, and Miss Pomegranate comes to the computer [...]
[...] seasoned Weddingbee reader, one who has seen gorgeous DIY invites come from the likes of Miss Shortcake, Mrs. Cupcake, and Miss Pomegranate comes to the computer [...]
[...] seasoned Weddingbee reader, one who has seen gorgeous DIY invites come from the likes of Miss Shortcake, Mrs. Cupcake, and Miss Pomegranate comes to the computer [...]
[...] seasoned Weddingbee reader, one who has seen gorgeous DIY invites come from the likes of Miss Shortcake, Mrs. Cupcake, and Miss Pomegranate comes to the computer [...]
[...] seasoned Weddingbee reader, one who has seen gorgeous DIY invites come from the likes of Miss Shortcake, Mrs. Cupcake, and Miss Pomegranate comes to the computer [...]
[...] seasoned Weddingbee reader, one who has seen gorgeous DIY invites come from the likes of Miss Shortcake, Mrs. Cupcake, and Miss Pomegranate comes to the computer [...]
[...] seasoned Weddingbee reader, one who has seen gorgeous DIY invites come from the likes of Miss Shortcake, Mrs. Cupcake, and Miss Pomegranate comes to the computer [...]
[...] seasoned Weddingbee reader, one who has seen gorgeous DIY invites come from the likes of Miss Shortcake, Mrs. Cupcake, and Miss Pomegranate comes to the computer [...]
[...] seasoned Weddingbee reader, one who has seen gorgeous DIY invites come from the likes of Miss Shortcake, Mrs. Cupcake, and Miss Pomegranate comes to the computer [...]
why dont you invite me because im always online please i want to talk to can you give your number or email adress
Mrs. Shortcake, Vancouver
Age and Occupation: 24, Marketing Manager/Children's Lit Writer
Fiance's Age and Occupation: 24, Master's Student/Personal Trainer
Engagement Date: August 7, 2007
Wedding Date: October 2008
Blogging Since:
Venue: Ceremony in a historic church, tented lawn reception at a golf and country club
About Me: 1950's housewife sent to the future, reborn as crafting-obsessed, jill of all trades. I enjoy decorating, writing, baking sweet things, singing show tunes/dancing in public, wearing pearls, and knitting sweaters for my furbaby, Harvey, to chew upon. I heart pink, and believe that sparkles are the new black.
FREAKING AMAZING!
from the colors to the birds to the map… holy crap look at that map!!
SO PURDEE I (as usual) WANNA EAT IT!