The Illustrated Invitation

The Illustrated Invitation offer a unique and bespoke service that will add a completely personalised touch to your wedding day. Their professional artist will sketch your wedding venue by hand and the image can then feature throughout your wedding stationery. There is complete flexibility for you to choose colours, typestyles, and wording, making your stationery totally unique. This is a truly amazing keepsake that is as individual as you are and a beautiful way for you to look back on the most important day of your life. 

Frequently Asked Questions:

When do I need to start thinking about my wedding invitations?

We would probably answer this in the first instance by asking if you wished to send a "Save the Date" card ahead of your invitations, something which we are finding increasing popular as venues/dates are secured well in advance.We have clients who do this as far ahead as 12-15 months to make sure their guests pencil this into their calendars. This is particularly useful if the date is in holiday season and/or near bank holidays.However for your Invitations we find that 3-6 months is the average lead time and we would advise allowing one month from your initial order to final delivery (although if we need to move faster then set us the challenge and we will deliver!).

Is there a required minimum order?

Our smallest order for invitations was for x12. The couple were thrilled when they heard there was no minimum order. Obviously, this is much more cost effective if we already your venue sketched as the original commission will apply otherwise.

How much is postage and packaging for orders?

We charge £7.50 for each delivery. Our stationery is sent via courier and you will receive approximately three business days after sending. Our deliveries can be tracked as it progress on its journey to you and a signature is required upon receipt.

What are the forms of payment?

If we are commissioning a sketch then we will ask for £100 deposit before commencing. We will then ask for the remainder of the balance as and when you are happy with proofs and have approved the final proofs for printing.

What is the charge for national mailing?

National mailing is £7.50 per delivery. For international orders, we will provide a price on application.

Does the invitation cost also cover the printing?

There are three points to consider with regards to pricing. First of all there is the sketch fee. We have a large number of venues already sketched, especially in the counties of Somerset, Devon, Dorset, Wiltshire, Gloucestershire and also Bristol (as us if we have your venue!). If we already have your sketch on file then there is no sketch fee applicable. If we do not have your venue, then you can commission an original sketch at a cost of £125. The original is then yours to retain and we double-mount the sketch for you to keep and treasure - see example in our photo gallery.Secondly, there is the printing cost for each item which is priced per unit (for digital printing).Thirdly, there are various optional extras that you may wish to consider for each item, for example luxury card envelopes, printed guest names/addresses.We have a slightly different approach for our "foil printing" and this is priced on an individual basis. We would be happy to provide a personalised quotation for you.

Is there a limited selection of invitation styles or can they be customised?

As you can probably see we do not offer multiple styles featuring a range of flowers, hearts, doves, ribbon or crystals. Nice that they may be, we offer a classic look of illustrated stationery in a range of different typestyles (from traditional to more modern contemporary) on hand-selected card. Our card is white to cream (ideal for show-casing our pencil illustrations) and with different finishes (from texture to pearlescent).The result is a classic, luxury and unique stationery item like nothing you will find on the high street.

What is the charge for not reaching the minimum number of orders?

We do not have a minimum quantity order. You may have chosen a small, intimate wedding and we would love to play a part in making that day special for you and your guests.

What are your delivery times?

This is more difficult to answer because it depends on whether you are commissioning an original sketch, in which case this depends on our artists availability at the time of ordering. We would advise you contact us to discuss timing in this respect. If we have the sketch then proofs normally take two weeks from initial order to final approval (which allows for revisions and also a hard copy to be posted to you). Thereafter we would advise to allow two weeks for delivery of your order.

Do you do national mailing?

We offer both a national and international service.

What other services do you provide?

Our core offering is illustrated stationery. This is what we love to do and we like to think we are the UK's market leader for this. We would also like to highlight another one of our popular products which is our Alternative Guest Comments Frame - see "Personalised Memorabilia" under categories. This is where we provide cards for your guests to handwrite loving and/or witty comments/anecdotes/memories which we then either scan or type and display in a frame for you. A fantastic keepsake of your special day.

What kind of printing do you offer?

We offer both digital printing and foil printing. Our sketches and the majority of text is digitally printed but you may wish to have titles and certain text printed in gold, rose gold or silver text for that premium feel and traditional look.

Operating hours:

There is no 9-5 culture here. We are a family business so some days we can choose an afternoon walk in the forest or trip to the beach with our daughters and others we work around the clock burning the midnight oil making sure we exceed expectations.

Do you provide a sample pack?

Yes – we would love to send you a sample pack. We have a generic sample pack we can send to you which includes samples of our Invitation Package (Invitation, RSVP Card, Information Card and Printed Envelopes). If there is a particular typestyle that you like the look of (we have a choice of x10 as listed on our website) then please let us know so we can co-ordinate the sample pack accordingly. Likewise, if there is a particular colour theme you have then again we can make sure this is tailored for in our samples. Our samples are sent out each Thursday so that you have for that weekend.

Do you offer same sex stationery?

Of course. We attended the National Gay Wedding Show in 2017 and will be showcasing again at the 2018 show in London. Call us – we would love to hear from you and we can send further details.

Do we have to have an illustration on our stationery?

Illustrated Wedding Stationery has been and always will be the main core of our business. However we are very cognisant that there are many venues that may not lend themselves to a sketch from an external perspective but are stunning inside. Equally, we found ourselves talking to a number of excited couples at shows, and from recommendations that wanted to work with us. For this reason, we created a new brand, “Love and Grace” collection where we provide non-illustrated stationery where we use simple, classic typography in a range of colours and on the finest stock to provide a quality, premium look. Please ask us for further details – this range is available on white or cream stock (digital print) but very bold and contemporary colours (with our foil print range).

Can we come and see you?

If Taunton is convenient, then you are welcome to come and see us. This is by appointment and will be in our home…but you are welcome to a nice coffee, biscuits and home-made cake while we chat through your ideas and explore what we can provide for you. We are available Thurs-Sat for these meetings providing we have enough notice. We will put the kettle on!

What Wedding Shows can we find you at in 2018?

At the moment, we are booked into the following shows:JAN-18: 7th Castle Taunton, Somerset | 7th Clevedon Hall, North Somerset | 14th Bath Racecourse | 28th Rookery Manor, Somerset. FEB-18: 11th Tortworth Court, Gloucester | 25th The National Gay Wedding Show, London. MAR-18: 3rd and 4th, Wedding Showcase, Bath & West Showground | 24th and 25th The Bride Show, Westpoint, Exeter | 25th Love That Wedding Show, Salisbury City Hall, Wiltshire. MAY-18: 20th Love Bristol Wedding Show, Ashton Gate Stadium, Bristol

What are the venues that you already have illustrations for?

This is not an exhaustive list but some of the venues that we have already illustrated include the following: SOMERSET: Brympton House, The Castle at Taunton, Charlton House, Crowcombe Court, Dillington House, Forde Abbey, Haselbury Mill, Hornsbury Mill, Maunsel House, Mount Somerset, North Cadbury Court, Orchardleigh, Rookery Manor, Taunton School, Woodlands Castle.BRISTOL / NORTH SOMERSET: Bristol Grammar School, Clevedon Hall, Coombe Lodge, Walton Castle.BATH: Bailbrook House, Manor House Hotel, Ston Easton Park, Tracy Park Golf & Country Hotel.GLOUCESTERSHIRE: Berkeley Castle, Clearwell Castle, Manor by the Lake, Stonehouse Court, Thornbury Castle, Tortworth Court.OTHER COUNTIES: Deer Park (Devon), Huntsham Court (Devon), The Italian Villa (Dorset), Rhinefield House (Hampshire), Penton Park (Hampshire), The Manor Weston (Oxfordshire).