Every year there is an invitation design that is our most popular! I can officially call 2018 "The Year of the Mussel Shell"! Elissa got in touch with me in autumn of 2017 about her September 2018 wedding. She loved the mussel shell design and was very excited about including our stationery as part of her Kennebunkport wedding. I knew the location of the wedding reception since I grew up in Kennebunk myself, and knew it would be the perfect location for a wedding!
We are so glad you found us! We would like to share some kind words from the lovely bride, Elissa:
We had the pleasure of working with Ellen for invitations and day-of paper goods for our September 2018 Kennebunkport, Maine wedding and couldn’t have been happier with our choice!
We were referred to El’s from our florist – Michelle Rose from Minka Flowers – when we told her that we had the idea of using mussel shells as a décor item for our wedding. We found the mussel shell invitations on her website and knew they would be perfect. From there, I worked with El over the phone to create a custom invitation suite which included a rehearsal dinner invitation and a weekend events card. She was even able to create two versions of our RSVP card for rehearsal dinner guests! We loved the invitations so much we decided to use El for all of our day-of goods including a large framed menu, escort cards, table numbers, and signature cocktails & cake flavor signs. Everything turned out more perfect that we can imagine and we received countless complements from our guests!
In addition to creating beautiful works of art, El was an absolute pleasure to work with. Having decided to forego a wedding planner, El worked with me to figure out appropriate wording, timelines, and logistics for invitation mailing and RSVPs. She was also flexible and understanding around requested changes when I inevitably made some mistakes. She always responded with warmth, kindness, and professionalism which were the perfect recipe to calm my wedding planning nerves!
Overall, I am so thankful that we chose El’s Cards for our wedding and would highly recommend her to any bride and groom!
We started off with the Mussel Shell invitation. Elissa and Sam opted for the mussel and oyster shell liner as a sweet extra detail. They also had a schedule of weekend events and a rehearsal dinner invitation with various mussel shell designs.
I was so happy that Elissa opted for the hand calligraphy option. That detail just adds such an extra special touch when the guests receive the invitation in the mail. Our signature artwork on the envelope was a mussel shell at the bottom center, and of course there was a custom oyster shell stamp for mailing.
We had a couple of phone calls to work out the details of the invitation and other pieces. Elissa was in California, but we were able to coordinate times to talk everything over. As it came closer to the wedding time, we worked out the special items that would be included for the wedding day.
The couple had me create escort cards with hand calligraphy to guide the guests to the table. We also did some signage, including dessert signs, drink signs, table signs and a large printed menu. Elissa and Sam also found our buoy notes when shopping at Minka in Kennebunkport, so we created these for them too! I created those cards exclusively for this shop to carry. So happy to work with Minka! Pickup day arrived and I was able to meet the couple in person on their way up to Kennebunkport for their wedding weekend. Often, we don't get to meet our couples if they live far away, so this was really great. Such a lovely couple.
The day was absolutely stunning. Thank you Elissa and Sam for letting us be part of it all! We wish you all the happiness in the world. I love how it all came together for you. A picture perfect day!
This wedding was featured in Real Maine Weddings.
Photography by Brea McDonald
Venue: The Breakwater Inn
Flowers and Decor: Minka Flowers
Cake: Beach Pea
