Save the date: Handmade meets email

When a close friend told me he'd proposed to his longtime girlfriend, my congratulations was immediately followed by an offer to do their custom invitations. This fun-loving, outdoorsy couple wanted something natural to fit their laid back country lifestyle, and a personalized watercolor illustration was the best way to go. And although their save the date was emailed, it was still able to have an organic, handmade feel.

This was my long overdue first attempt at hand lettering (and I think I might be hooked), so it started with a sketch, but not really much else of a plan.  I didn't refer to any specific font, but did use the cover of Louise Fili and Steven Heller's book Scripts as inspiration.

The ruler was key here

The bride had gone wild pinning leafy vines on Pinterest so I knew I wanted to include those as well, but lacked any space for them in the original drawing. I have a hard time staying small and wanted to have as room to experiment with the type so I ran out of paper space. A quick scan and transfer and I was back in business.

Here's the new sketch with leaves sprouting out the sides

The wedding takes place in late October, but since the save the date was going out in late spring, fall colored leaves seemed anachronistic (using SAT words up in here).  Instead, a yellow to green gradient filled in the lines creating a bright and sunny feel, which could naturally transition to fall colors for the invitations.

Another scan...

A good scanner is next on my list of things to buy. Right after eggs.

The remainder of the image was composed in photoshop. The brown paper texture added to the natural style, while the typewriter font added an old-world feel that fit with the country simplicity.  

The invitations are looking like they'll follow this organic trend, and may or may not contain a camo pattern.