Bride of the Month: Elizabeth Duffy

Here at Art Paper Scissors, we absolutely love bringing a couples’ wedding theme to life. From save-the-dates to invitations to thank you cards and everything in between, Art Paper Scissors is a couple's one-stop-shop for all things wedding stationery.

Today we are chatting with our December bride of the month, Elizabeth Duffy. Elizabeth and her husband Josh tied the knot in July at the beautiful St. Elizabeth of Hungary Church, with a celebration filled with love and laughter following at Eagle Oaks Golf and Country Club. We so enjoyed designing this couple’s gorgeous invitations featuring a custom illustration of the ceremony site, a personalized wax seal, a vellum paper enclosure and a bold floral envelope liner.

Elizabeth is sharing all of the details of their wedding day - read on and enjoy these beautiful photos, captured by Rosemary Green Photography.

Art Paper Scissors: Tell us about your wedding day. The date, place and any extra fun details you would like to share.

Elizabeth: Our ceremony was at Saint Elizabeth’s in Avon by the Sea and ceremony was at Eagle Oaks Golf and Country Club. Our date was July 3, which was a Wednesday! This wasn’t necessarily by design, but we had difficulty finding summer availability at the venue of our choice. Once we went with it, we really loved the idea of it being a Fourth of July kickoff.

We were fortunate to have beautiful weather on the day of our wedding. We took a trolley to our reception along with our bridal party and families. It was such a nice summer day at the Jersey Shore.

Art Paper Scissors: How do you remember that special day? Any great memory that stands out?

Elizabeth: Most of all, we remember it as a day filled with everyone we love in one room. We LOVED our band and they were wonderful at getting everyone up and dancing. The feel in the room was relaxed, fun, and easy and that helped make it so enjoyable for us.

Art Paper Scissors: What is your favorite part about being married?

Elizabeth: My favorite part about being married is knowing you have someone to share your life with.

Art Paper Scissors: Describe your wedding theme and feel in 3 words. Why did you choose this theme?

Elizabeth: Classic, timeless, and elegant. I used those words to describe my invitation ideas to Lisa, when discussing florals, and my look on the day of the wedding. I felt like I wanted to be able to look back on my wedding in twenty years and feel like the look/vibe could still fit. I love some trendy looks that people go for in their wedding style, but it just wasn’t for me.

Art Paper Scissors: How did you decide on your wedding invitation design?

Elizabeth: I am super indecisive so it was tough for me! I think it began with Lisa asking me to describe the theme I was going for. From there, she showed me sample invitation suites. I was able to say “I like this about that one, but I don’t like that about this one.” It helped narrow down my choices. Deciding on those words to describe your theme and letting that steer your decision-making was helpful. I hadn’t yet chose bridesmaid colors or done florals, but I know I wanted shades of lights blues or navy. Once I narrowed that down I agonized for about 4 weeks before finally approving a mockup.

Art Paper Scissors: What design element or feature was a “must have” for your wedding invitations?

Elizabeth: I loved the idea of incorporating a sketch of the church into our invitation suite. This small detail really helped make our invitation unique. I also knew I wanted some way to neatly stack all parts of the invitation behind each other since I felt this helped achieve that classic look. Lisa did such a wonderful job making that come to life with the vellum band and wax seal. Personally, it’s the first thing I notice when I look at our invitations. Another favorite feature was the lined envelope. It was another unique and simple element that completed the look. Can you tell we loved these invitations?

Art Paper Scissors: What advice do you have for other brides and grooms looking to incorporate their theme or personal elements into their wedding invitations?

Elizabeth: This is probably an unpopular opinion, but I say stay off Pinterest! I felt like it pulled me in a million different directions when I was trying to design certain aspects of my day. Perhaps use it to steer your thinking in the beginning, but try to stay away once you’ve narrowed down some of your choices. Make a plan, give yourself some inspiration, and trust your gut!

Overall, I’d stay stick with a style. Don’t make yourself too limited by saying “I’m only using nautical elements” but instead use a color scheme or feel and incorporate a few nautical touches. Find small ways to incorporate your theme rather than inundating your guests with everything on theme.