Jun 2, 20233 min read

A love story in French

This is a wedding styling for couples who value exquisite details.

In this blog post, I will take you behind the scenes of this design - a story of 40 butterflies

The request from Marie-Adeline & Elena of Your Loving Moments reached me on March 29, 2023. They invited me to participate in a photo shoot with wedding vendors from Romandie - a project set in the stunning Parc des Eaux Vives in Geneva.

Design Development - A Different Approach

The moodboard, the park, and the venue were beautifully chosen, and I was captivated. After a brief phone call with Marie-Adeline & Elena, it was clear that I wanted to be a part of it. The two wedding planners gave me creative freedom, which I particularly love for styled shoots as it allows me to try new things for my couples. The only requirements they had were the color (viva magenta) and that the stationery should include both calligraphic and hand-drawn elements.

My specialties... :)

Drawing inspiration from the moodboard and my previous designs, I found myself initially lacking ideas. Perhaps it was because I was juggling five other projects at the time, including three weddings and two styled shoots (one of which involved 600 peonies). All these projects demanded my full attention.

" B u t t e r f l i e s a s P l a c e C a r d s"

Then, while working on the day-of stationery for one of my couples, inspiration struck. I built everything around a central element: butterfly place cards. Each one was hand-drawn, cut with precision, and lovingly handwritten.

Image by Geistreich (not from the photo shoot)

Since the place cards already had an exceptional shape, I wanted to create something special for the wedding invitations as well. Thus, the idea of an extendable invitation, surrounded by intricate hand-painted illustrations and wrapped in beautiful handmade paper, came to life.

Image by Geistreich (not from the photo shoot)

For the menu cards, I designed something simple, allowing the extraordinary butterfly place cards to take center stage.

Down to the Wire

The concept for the stationery came to me relatively last-minute, just before the shoot. On a Monday, right before the shoot, I sent everything via priority mail, hoping it would arrive a day before. However, as luck would have it, the postal service decided to take a detour, ensuring it wouldn't arrive on time. Normally, the package for the stationery is sent weeks ahead of the actual mailing date. But well... :)

So, I redid everything, die-cutted another 20 place cards, created another set of 20 menu cards, redesigned the invitation cards, and sent everything overnight to the two of them. Fortunately, it arrived in time, and I'm very grateful for that!

Now, I wish you great joy as you browse through the beautiful photos captured by Kate Villa.

Kosten

As usual, I asked the two wedding planners about the cost of such an intimate wedding in Geneva with the entire team. Marie-Adeline & Elena responded: "For example, this setup was for about 20 people. If you'd like to have this setup as a real wedding you should expect the budget between CHF 25,000 and 40,000. The cost will depend on various factors, such as guest accommodations, catering, attire, etc."