Wedding Invitation Designs

At the onset of planning a wedding, the wedding invitation designs that are chosen can reflect a couple’s quirky, colorful personality and style. At Vigilante Paper, our wedding invitation designs offer original, hand-illustrated motifs that cannot be found elsewhere. We offer couples a unique aesthetic in finely illustrated wedding invitation designs. Our designs are original in theme, outrageously colorful, and steer away from cliché. Of the numerous designs available, we set ourselves apart by offering indie wedding invitation designs with the addition of text that can be personalized, proofed and ordered online in a single streamlined process.

Illustrator Olivia Suchman Joffrey founded Vigilante Paper’s wedding invitation design company to unify her passion for design, hand-made love note writing and breaking rules.

While our wedding invitation designs form a capsule collection that offer couples offbeat and original motifs not found in traditional wedding stationery, our printing methods are extraordinarily high tech. We print using the highest-quality digital printing methodology (an Indigo Press) which significantly reduces the cost per print and dramatically increases the speed of production. By contrast, letterpress, engraving or custom-illustrated invitations can easily cost twice as much as Vigilante Paper’s wedding stationery.

Our wedding invitation designs set themselves apart by being an island of originality and eccentricity in a sea of predictable, cliché wedding paper stationery. We offer an alternative to mainstream wedding invitation designs for couples that seek unique, original, affordable wedding invitations. For couples looking for a low-key and hip design for their wedding stationery, our products are without parallel. And beyond that, our wedding invitation designs can be mocked up and proofed online in one sitting. Our products arrive in just 1 -2 weeks after purchase.

We named our wedding invitation design company Vigilante Paper because we are rebels: we serve couples who seek to create a love-centered, rather than hoopla-centered wedding day. Our goal is to rebel against the present day wedding mono-culture that suggests that couples overspend & overdo their weddings to a point of extraordinary excess. It is unnecessary and in many cases burdens a young couple with debt that does not need to be incurred. Our products offer couples a beautiful, simple, colorful alternative to mainstream wedding invitation designs that feel and look handmade.: Many of our competitors offer either beauty or affordability in wedding invitation design: our products, however, look killer AND are on budget! Our tagline “custom…ish” refers to one of the most unique features of our brand. While our wedding invitation designs have the appearance of expensive hand-illustrated custom artwork, such as hand-drawn illustrations and lettering (fonts), the layouts are actually a simple design template that just requires online text entry. We have harnessed technology to provide online text entry and proofing combined with state of the art digital printing technology that allows our products to you faster and more affordably.

All the wedding invitation designs offered at Vigilante Paper are environmentally conscious too. Our paper stock is comprised entirely of Forest Sustainability Council (FSC) certified paper. FSC paper signifies that with every tree that is cut down to make paper, one is replanted in its place.

We at Vigilante Paper appreciate all fine printing methods for wedding invitation designs. Our focus, however, is providing the lowest possible cost, highest possible quality hand-illustrated wedding stationery. It is in this respect that we do not offer letterpress or engraved designs in our collection. If we offered these other printing methods, we'd have to charge couples more. In addition, we are advocates of the mantra “low key is cooler.” For couples planning a extraordinarily fancy, elite wedding, there are numerous exquisite stationery choices available to serve their needs.

All the wedding invitation designs in our collection are printed on an Indigo Press -- the state of the art in digital printing technology. Colors register on the Indigo with as much vibrancy as other printing methods, but can be produced at a lower price point per print and in a much shorter turnaround timeframe.

How to order your wedding invitation designs from Vigilante Paper’s online shop:

  1. Select a design from the collection and specify the quantities you need.
  2. Personalize the invitation text using your own words.
  3. Preview your free PDF instantly.
  4. Approve & checkout, or save a draft to return to later.

 

Our online shop’s proofing capability is the perfect way to try on different wedding invitation designs prior committing to one particular motif. We encourage you to mock up as many different motifs as you like – for free! Our PDF proofing capability allows you to preview your invitation on-screen just as it will appear on paper (with the exception of a watermark). You can print it to show your fiancee (or mother!) prior to purchase. Remember, with online proofing, you are responsible as the sole editor of your content. However, we do look over each order in general before it's sent to the printer to try to catch any glaring errors. Once you like how your wording on the PDF proof looks on screen and in your PDF proof, you can begin checkout.

Additionally, Vigilante Paper offers the “Surf & Turf” wedding invitation design option for couples that would like to send one design motif to half their guests, and another motif to the remainder from their invite list. If your wedding guests run the gamut from prim to punk, the Surf & Turf is a great solution to assure everybody feels welcome. Split your invitation order between two different designs - say, 50 invites in one design, 50 in another. Because we print digitally, you're not paying for letterpress or engraving plate fees. The cost is the same as if you’d ordered 100 invites of the same design.

Ordering Specifics

Please allow 1-2 weeks for delivery after placing your order. We can FedEx a rush order to you. Email us to discuss the specifics of your timing on rush orders.
Couples often order 10-20% more wedding invitations than they have people to invite. The extras sets are good for: guests you decide to invite at the last minute, post office or addressing mishaps, grandma's scrapbook, and as your own wedding treasure box keepsake.

Our wedding invitation designs cannot be customized, except for text entry. Each suite in our collection is designed in a singular color motif with a corresponding hand-lettered type. The philosophy behind our wedding invitation designs is based upon streamlining the ordering process  for couples. With fewer options in terms of text color, fonts, and layout, the online text-entry and proofing capability on our website keep things looking hand-made, despite quickness and affordability of our high-tech printing method. If you have ideas for more wedding invitation designs to add to our collection, please do email us with your motif suggestions! We'd love to hear from you. We regularly add new wedding invitation designs to the collection.

We offer two shipping options. We ship anywhere in the world. USPS or FedEx.

The Rebel Bride Guide from Vigilante Paper:

A Plain-Spoken Guide to your Unconventional and Affordable Wedding

Perfect is Boring

Chances are your wedding day will not be perfect. Which is a good thing; perfect is boring. If the cake falls over, oh well! If the band shows up late, it’s OK! People are coming to your wedding to celebrate the love between you and your fiancé, not to judge your party-giving skills. Like a beautiful woman with a big gap between her front teeth, imperfections make for something more memorable and real.

Vigilantes Don’t Fake it

There is nothing attractive about publicly trying to be someone you aren’t. Are you and your future spouse proudly blue collar? Then don’t allow the wedding magazines talk you into believing you need a Dynasty wedding at The Ritz. Have your wedding at the outdoor picnic tables of your favorite local pub, celebrating who you are as a couple. Likewise, if you’re a super-glam city couple, why force a “rustic” wedding at a barn that has nothing to do with your cosmopolitan life? Who cares if barn weddings are trendy. Have the wedding at a place that holds meaning for you both. Your wedding guests already love who you are. So don’t try to be someone you’re not for your wedding. The authenticity and love felt at the event is what people will remember.

Love, not Sex for Public Consumption

For goodness sake bridey, don’t wear a pornographic see- through wedding dress. Your wedding day is about the LOVE between you and your partner, not about guests enviously checking out your ass as you walk down the aisle. (Besides, many people are capable of doing this regardless of what you are wearing.) The most stunning brides ARE THE ONES WHO ARE IN LOVE. Period. You’re going to look gorgeous just because you have a flushed glow of happiness. There is no need to distract the guests with too much T&A. If you’re having a good time and your eyes are twinkling, you will look magnificent.

Go for Clarity

Like a good writer throwing out adjectives, Vigilante couples refrain from too many gimmicks at their wedding. It’s a wedding, not a Cirque du Soleil show. If you have plans for a seating-chart piñata display, a photo booth, a sundae-making station, pony rides, and rotating clown DJs, you are probably going to dilute your guests’ memory of the event. If you have a thematic gimmick, go for one awesome idea & ROCK IT. Going big on one idea is more powerful than trying to make multiple ideas coalesce. And remember, if you’re feeding people, that, in itself, is a legitimate form of entertainment. So just chill out. The fewer details you have to manage, the more you’ll enjoy your wedding.

Stylistically, There are No Rules

The “you must have wedding colors” notion is so limiting & dated. You can display a whole rainbow of colors on at your wedding, or none at all. It is still a wedding if you do not have a theme, a matchy-matchy color palette commencing with the arrival of the wedding invitation designs, or even wedding attendants. Just insert your two personalities into the day’s event, and you will achieve something special.

Other traditions a couple should feel free to reconsider (or bail on):

The Meal

Nowhere is it written that you have to serve a full meal. Your wedding could be followed by an afternoon cake-and-tea reception, a wine-and-cheese party, a dance party, or anything that involves celebrating your fabulous union. In the 1950s, ritzy urbane nuptials often took place at the couple’s church, followed by a modest cake reception in the adjacent hall. Understated gestures can be exceptionally charming. Low-key is cooler.

Formality

It doesn’t have to be dressy. If you and your spouse are surfers, perhaps you’d prefer to exchange vows near your favorite break in your wetsuits, followed by a sunset beach bonfire. If you’re hikers, lead your guests and the officiant to a favorite trailside spot for the ceremony, followed by gorp & champagne. A great wedding could be as simple as a big family spaghetti dinner -- with stories, wine, laughter and a sense of community.

A Bridal Party

There are no rules about bridesmaids and groomsmen. Even if all your girlfriends have had you in their weddings, you don’t have to follow suit. In England, it’s common for children to be the bride’s attendants. In other circles, one’s siblings make up the bridal party. You can still honor your best friends in a champagne toast if you want to give them some special acknowledgement. Just do what feels right. But don’t get bullied into a bridal party that feels like a tit-for-tat gesture. The insincerity could make you feel less like yourself on your wedding day.

But There Are Some Rules

  • •  Please, oh please. Be marrying someone you love. Otherwise, what’s the point?
  • •  Breaking the bank on wedding vendors and decorations is a lousy way to start your marriage. Simplify your event if it’s going over budget. You may find that the financial constraints yield creative, unique solutions.
  • •  Guests who traveled a great distance to be at your wed- ding appreciate being acknowledged. Give them a little secret note, or include them in a toast.
  • •  Don’t get drunk. You’ll regret the lost memories. And you will look sweaty and dumb in the pictures.
  • •  Don’t wig on the details and family drama. If you are having a good time, your mood will be infectious.
  • •  If you receive a wedding gift, do write a thank you note promptly after opening it. Email doesn’t cut it.

 

  • Venues Outside the Box

Some of the most original and meaningful ideas in wedding venues also happen to be the most affordable:

  • •  Outdoor barbeque pit at a shady picnic area of a public beach in the couple’s hometown.
  • •  Wedding ceremony on a municipal bus (the same line the couple met on!), followed by disembarking at a park for a picnic and champagne.
  • •  In the huge back yard of your good friend.
  • •  At your favorite pizza parlor.
  • •  At the groom’s childhood summer camp -- in winter.

 

For many, it cannot get more intimate than you and your partner, and a judge at City Hall

Ways to Trim Your Wedding Budget

Ask friends to bring potluck flowers. Tell them that all tulips, or all yellow flowers are welcome. Alternatively, ask your friends to bring teapots filled with carnations. Ask a local band to play for a reduced fee, if they’re provided free dinner, drinks and publicity. If grandpa is a great banjo player, get him in on the act. Or create an iPod mix and bor- row some decent speakers instead of hiring a fancy DJ. Wear your mom’s, sister’s, or friend’s dress. Find a white vintage dress online. Wear a fine white sheet tailored like a toga, and spend a little money instead on a magnificent floral head- dress. Skip table decor and use strobe lights, or employ your fiancé’s collection of Star Wars action figures as centerpieces. Ask a handful of friends with nice cameras to take as many pictures at the ceremony and reception as possible. Suggest that a disc of digital images serve as their wedding gift.

It’s Not Just Your Day

A wedding celebrates a couple, not just the bride. Whose stomach doesn’t turn when a bride says: “this is my special day”? It is not YOUR special day, bridey. Both partners make the union, so find a way to both be involved in the planning process to discourage feelings of resentment. Sit down together and dream up how you want the wedding day to roll. For many couples, it’s your first big creative collaboration. Make some mischief, and have fun with it.

Chill Out In the Name of Love

Planning a momentous life event like a wedding can be completely overwhelming. So be good to yourself. Instead of aiming for perfection, aim for laid back and happy. Try to remember that the reason you are getting married is because you two love each other, not because you wanted to throw a big showy party. You could have done that last Christmas.The love in the air is what’s paramount. All the other details are just peripheral to the riveting couple at the center of it all.

Wedding invitation designs set the tone

For many indie couples, low-key and original trumps flamboyant and expensive. This hold true for the details of your wedding, including the wedding invitation designs, food served, venue, music, décor and all the other aspects of the event that will communicate who you are as a couple.

Our wedding invitation designs are about celebrating the vibrancy, color and love between two people. Not about impressing guests with the expense and grandeur of their production. In our eyes, the most important detail for your wedding should be this: when you’re eighty years old, holding your spouse’s wrinkled hand, may you look back at your wedding day and say: “DAMN we had fun, didn’t we, Sweetie?” So relax, enjoy planning this momentous life event, but also know there are vendors who have your back both in style and affordability, and we at Vigilante Paper suggest that the path you choose in fulfilling your low-key, beautiful, soulful wedding day begins with the selection of your (hand-illustrated, fun, colorful, original) wedding invitation designs!