Classic Wedding Invitations - Wedding Seating Chart

Wedding Seating Chart - a unique idea!

A Unique Wedding Seating Chart!

Are you looking for a distinctive wedding seating chart that is suited to your wedding theme? This is one we created for one of our lovely client’s wedding who requested for their chart to incorporate elements of their wedding theme! We digitally printed the wedding list onto fabric which was based on their country landscape invite. The finished result was absolutely incredible as the wedding seating chart perfectly complimented the overall wedding theme.

As we all know, wedding seating charts can be a very tedious task and probably the most stressful part to the wedding. Just keep in mind that this is your special day, your wedding guests are there to celebrate this occasion with you and will be happy regardless of their allocated seats.

At Classic Wedding Invitation, we create many similar products, for more ideas click here and for any enquiries you can send us a message here or call us on 03 9939 4796.

Traditional Wedding Vows and A Day Filled with Joy, Remembrance and Love

Michael and Panagiota Andreadakis celebrated their special day with close family, friends and a cultural connection that was beautifully highlight in the day from the traditional wedding vows to the religious rituals and other wedding traditions that followed. This traditional Cretan wedding was nothing short of incredible with the rich cultural influence and lively atmosphere that was evident throughout the day!

With less than 9 months to organise an engagement and wedding, the couple did an astonishing job at putting together a traditional Cretan wedding! Their special day, September 6 2014, celebrated all aspects of their life, including their cultural background and traditional ceremonies. Their Cretan culture and traditions were a prominent theme through out the day from the lively music and dancing, to the the delectable cuisine . The night was full of joy and happiness, and we wish them many more in the future!

THE PROPOSAL

The proposal and the lead up to it was a very sweet and bitter story. Michael had proposed just soon after he had lost his dad. It was a moment of joy and happiness and a moment of sadness and emptiness to know that both your parents could not be there to share your experience and the beginning of your new life. The day of the proposal we were meant to just hang out and watch DVDs but Michael wanted to take me to dinner. I thought something strange was going on so I quickly did my hair and makeup to look half decent and my nails in the car – just in case. We had decided on Othellos Restaurant at South Bank. As we walked towards the restaurant it was raining but Michael continued to walk towards the river. I thought to myself with fustration – its raining, I have a cold, im completely freezing, and all I want to do is eat, so where is he going??). He took me to where I took him to sit on his birthday just before dinner when we first started dating. It then dawned on me and immediately yelled out with excitement ‘OMG you are going to do it aren’t you?” and surely enough he proposed to me with a Cretan Mandinada (Cretan poem).

LEAD UP TO THE WEDDING

The lead up to the wedding was very intense as we had only 9 months to organise an Engagement and Wedding.

INSPIRATION OF WEDDING THEME & TRADITIONS

The inspiration and theme of our wedding derived from our culture and traditions. Both been half Cretan/Cypriot we wanted to incorporate as much as we could. We had traditional wedding vows along with many cultural traditions, food, music etc…

Traditions leading up to the wedding included:

The week before the wedding we did our Krevati which translates to ‘the dressing of the bed’. This was done by the single bridesmaids and cousins. Each girls sews a red ribbon cross at each corner of the bed, the sheets are layed, money and Newborns/young children are also thrown and rolled on the bed to symbolise wealth and fertility.

Traditions on the wedding day included:

All of my bridesmaids, flower girl and single ladies wrote their name on the bottom of my shoe. The one that rubbed off by the end of the night was said to be wedded next.
The boys wore Sarikia (traditional Cretan scarf) over their shoulders symbolising Michaels parents, my love for Cretan dancing and most importantly where we are both from – Crete.
Red scarf – is wrapped around the bride and groom by relatives to symbolise luck and fertility
As part of our wedding entrance we offered our guests shots of Commandaria and Raki, traditional drinks of Cyprus and Crete symbolising the welcoming to our event and the beginning of our festivities for the evening
At the reception we also had traditional Cretan dancing from Panagiota’s dance group – Pancretan Association of Melbourne and a Cypriot wine floor show performed by one of our dear friend.

DETAIL/MOMENT

Some of our special wedding details included:

I had made a photo pendant of Michaels parents which I had on my bouquet – in loving memory
Our bonbonierre was a Briki (traditional greek coffee perculator) to complement this Michael godmother arranged traditional wedding biscuits from Cyprus. For us this symbolised the offering of a drink and sweet to our guests, as this would be the first two things you offer guests when they come to visit you at your house.
Framed family photos from our parents, grandparents and greatgrandparents were placed in the foyer of the reception symbolising the generations.
I had ordered personalised letter cut outs ‘Mr & Mrs Andreadakis’ for our bridal table
I had ordered personalised hangers for the mum, girls and myself
During the lead up to the wedding I had organised a pre wedding shoot with our photographer and reception as a surprise for Michael. I had arranged to dress in full traditional Cretan Costumes. Little to his knowledge I had organised to have this professionally framed and a plaque of Crete engraved with the Mantinada (Cretan poem) he had proposed to me with. I surprised him with this on the day of the wedding where he had proposed and later displayed at the reception
In the morning we had musicians playing at both houses to kick off the celebrations and also at the church as panagiota arrived and walked into the church. At the brides home the traditional Cypriot band played and at the grooms home the traditional Cretan band.
I had personalised ‘Mrs Andreadakis Est. 6.9.14’ stickers made and stuck to the inside of my shoes.

DIY PROJECTS

I spent endless hours creating things to personalise our wedding.

I designed and created my own wedding cake, candy buffet and candy thank you boxes.
As family is a big part of who we both are I had found old photos of our parents, grandparents and great-grandparents and framed them to be displayed at the reception.
I handmade our bridal party invites asking them to be part of our bridal party
I had made and put together all our table numbers and wishing well suitcase
I made my own garter
We had put together bridal party and parent thank you gift boxes for the wedding day

Girls – mirrored jewellery box which included a perfume, earrings, bracelet, ring, personalised named hanger, silk robe and blingy flats (for throughout the day)

Boys – wooden box which included their bow tie, cologne, cigar, and Sariki (Cretan traditional scarf)

A family friend had helped us put together our church candles and bonbonierres
We had a personalised engraved lock to place on the lock bridge just where Michael had proposed along South Bank

DRESS

Been a girl you always dream of what your dress would look like. I spent endless hours looking on social media, wedding dress shops and bridal magazines for ideas.

I tried on only 2 dresses which I decided to cut and paste different aspect of to make my dress.

FUNNY STORIES

Michael and I had booked our church and reception before he proposed. The week before he proposed his cousin got engaged and booked their church. Turns out we both booked the same church on the same day just different times! As the saying goes, great minds think alike!
Our bed was delivered at 5pm the night before our wedding and left on our floor in slats and bubble wrap…….. At the time this definitely was not funny, but now that we look back all we can do is laugh.
My sister caught the bouquet and out of pure excitement opened her ‘winners champagne’ which showered most of our guests and completely drenched the MC – which is my boss’ husband!

ADVICE

Dedicate at least one day a week ‘date nigtht’ where you do not talk about the wedding otherwise you will go crazy.
Make your wedding about you as a couple and not of other peoples expectations. Do not allow others to get involved!
Be prepared and always have a Plan A, B and C for when things don’t go to plan or fall through. Remember to breathe as what is meant to be will be.
Evaluate what are the most important things to spend your money on

And last but not least

Enjoy your day to the fullest as you will not have the opportunity to feel those emotions, or have those moments again.

VENDOR CREDITS

CHURCH: St Eustathios Greek Orthodox Church

RECEPTION : Normanby House

PHOTOGRAPHER: Dana Tsokas

VIDEOGRAPHER: Cine Style Studio

BRIDAL ACCESSORIES: Imposters Bridal Jewellery

FLOWERS: Balwyn Events

HAIR: Emmanuel Ammo Hairdressing

CARS: Image Limousines

Garden Wedding- Be inspired by love and happiness

Garden Wedding of Jordyn and Mike

Jordyn and Mike might just have you swooning as much as we did when reading their submission about their garden wedding. Their story is absolutely beautiful and inspirational. They say a picture says a thousand words, this couldn’t be more accurate as these photos radiate love, happiness and joy.

What do you do for work?

Mike is a Transport Manager for Siteworx Northland LTD which is an earth moving company. I do work at schools and preschools, teach swimming and work with a health and wellness company called Usana Health Sciences.

Tell us a little about the proposal and the lead up to the wedding?

Mike proposed after 5 months of dating. Mike had a few ideas of how he could propose but I kept guessing them or our friends would ruin them. E.G one of our friends – “Wouldn’t it be so funny if you proposed on the Grand Canyon!” We had a randomly planned beach day with our best friends and their children as well as Mikes daughter. Philippa’s excuse to not walk up Tapeka Point was that she was sick so she will stay with the kids. Tony was walking up the hill with his one year old on his shoulders until he said “Rome just pooped his nappy I’ll have to go back.” Close to the top I said I’ll race you. He ran up and I mostly still walked after I was tired. When I got to the top I could see a beautiful view of the Bay Of Islands and him on one knee. He had an apple in his hand with a hole in it. It was a reference to when I had sent him a joke video from Collage Humor about how engagement rings scam made by jewellers and all you needed to show your love was a simple gesture like an apple. I put my finger through the hole and when the apple opened it was a beautiful diamond ring which I loved. The lead up to the wedding was 6 months and pretty low stress, at the beginning! We both chose 5 bridesmaids and groomsmen. I realised how much time it actually took to plan a wedding however I had a lot of help from my mum and other friends and family.

What was the inspiration behind your wedding theme / vibe?

The theme was like a garden wedding because I found a beautiful venue with a big pond, ducks and a secret garden we took photos in. Then we choose blue and purple as our colours because my favourite colour is purple and Mikes is blue. Mainly what ever we saw and liked I used and it all came together nicely.

Favourite detail and/or moment of the day!

When Vestam, Mikes daughter, came to give me a hug when I met Mike at the alter. That was special as it’s must be pretty different for a child when your dad gets married.

Did you undertake any DIY projects, if so what?

I found a lot on the internet and used the ideas. I did the finger print tree and signs. I also had a friend that for our present she designed our programs and table seating numbers etc.

Any family or religious traditions incorporated into your day?

We are both Christians so we had a pastor marry us. It was special because was my youth group leader when I was at high school and baptized me when I was 18. The ceremony wasn’t super religious we wanted it more relaxed. We wanted the cermony to be short and sweet there was one bible verse read out and prayer before dinner and when we met at the alter..

What does marriage mean to you?

Two people becoming one. Two people committing to work on the relationship for the rest of their life. That you are in a safe place to be your self, share your fears and grow together as much as possible. We also didn’t live together before we got married so it meant I moved in and got used to his snoring.

Talk to us about your dress, where is it from? How long did it take to find?

I first looked around shops and found some that were ok but pretty expensive. I found the style that I liked so then I looked on line. I found one I liked where I could put in my measurements and height and that wasn’t too expensive. I cant remember the website; I’ve even looked to recommend it. I didn’t have my hopes up that I would fit it or that I would like it because I got it online but it fit perfectly and I loved it. I did go to a dressmaker to change the top and the front beading and also the straps. She also made me a veil and added places for me to hold it up. I love it so much it was perfect.

Advice for other couples planning a wedding?

Advice, yes! Have a list of people you want to take photos with and show the photographer and make sure you get them done. EAT FOOD! I didn’t and it made me feel ill until I ate again. Have make up/hair trials. Bring flats to wear for part of the wedding; I wore them at the ceremony so that I wasn’t taller than Mike. Savor every moment and treasure it because the day goes fast. Don’t feel guilty you didn’t get to speak in depth with everyone, they understand. Spend money on a good photographer. Have the best day ever!

Photos: Cameron Thorp – Little Village Co

Cake: Nicky Gabriels, Whangarei

Stationery designer: Trudi Hewitt, Auckland

Hair and Make up: Pip Hagar, Auckland and Dixie Smit, Whangarei

Personalised stationery for Paula’s Hawaii Wedding

Order personalised stationery for you special day!

We created personalised stationery including wedding invites, place cards, menus and signage for Paula’s recent wedding at Halekulani, in gorgeous sunny Hawaii. And we all love a destination wedding, don’t we!

The laser cut wedding invitation cards and menu cards perfectly complemented the exotic pink tone chosen by the bridal couple. The intricate sea shell inspired design for the seating chart and place cards embodied the overall beach theme. We wanted to make sure the couple and their guests got the true beach vibe of Hawaii!

The Aloha islands are renowned for their diverse surf, beautiful beaches, romantic sunsets and scenic natural landscape. Here are a some stunning shots from their destination beach wedding.

Start creating your destination themed wedding stationery by contacting us here.

Peacock Wedding Invitations- Photo Shoot by Pretty My Love

Order custom Peacock wedding invitations!

There’s nothing prettier and more elegant than peacock wedding invitations! We have featured here our Peacock Laced Doily Invitation. We were super excited to have our invitations featured in a Boho Inspiration style shoot by Aleisha from event planning company Pretty My Love.

The Peacock Doily invitation is delicate with an intricate lace themed laser cut design. It works wonderfully with dream catchers and whimsical touches. For more wedding card invitation inspiration, please do get in touch with us.

Check out some photos from this boho style beach wedding which featured plenty of free-spiritedness, rustic simplicity, beautiful flowing bridal dresses- and most importantly, love!

Heart Cards- Love Heart Invitation

Order your own custom heart cards!

Love is in the air- with these heart cards! Fortunately, the love can be shared with our newly designed love heart laser cut invitations. This gold heart shaped card features intricate trinkets around the edges to get your guests into the wedding swing! All the fun and romantic elements of a wedding are captured intricately around the heart card! These include the ring, the bride’s shoes, cocktails, and of course the wedding couple! This wedding invitation comes with some gorgeous rsvp and gift registry cards to match!

Proposal ideas? Just read what this groom did.

Romantic and unique wedding proposal ideas!

There is nothing more romantic than the well thought out and perfectly executed proposal! We were lucky to interview a very creative groom-to-be Aaron who had a unique idea when it came to popping the big question. Read his heart-melting story here!

1. How long before the actual proposal did you begin your planning?

Originally I wanted to do it a year earlier, however Lisa was in her final year of her masters. I didn’t want the celebrations & planning preparations to distract her so I had to patiently wait… it wasn’t easy!

2. How did you decide the perfect moment and place to propose?

Lisa and I, as well as Lisa’s family, live in Melbourne, but my family live in Perth and I really wanted all our loved ones together so they could celebrate with us.

Christmas 2013, both our families were planning to be in Perth and I thought what better time of the year and place to do it! I organised a family dinner on Christmas night. Amid the festivities, I snuck out to the beach with Lisa so we could give each other our Christmas presents. I was so nervous as I was unwrapping my gifts I was not concentrating on what I was doing at all!

The final present I gave Lisa was a professionally made children’s book that I had written, and was illustrated by my good friend. The story was about us, from the time we met up until that very moment. On the last page there was an illustration of Lisa and I sitting on the beach and it was then I asked the question with ring in hand.

As you can probably guess, she said yes. We then floated home on cloud 9, announced the good news to our families, popped the champagne and continued on the celebrations!

3. How did you choose the ring?

I bought a ‘place holder’ ring for the proposal as I wanted her to choose one. It was then months later we found the perfect 1920s inspired vintage ring in Melbourne.

4. What inspired you to create the storybook?

In terms of creating a kids book I thought it would be fitting as she is amazing with kids and a teacher! I based the characters around two otters because Lisa and I both have a fascination for them. Lisa found it especially cute that otters sleep holding hands in the water so they don’t drift away, which was very fitting for the tone of the story.

5. Were you nervous before you popped the big question?

Although I was planning the day for a while there were a few nerves that crept up closer to the time. I may have fumbled a bit with my words.

6. Do you think your fiancé had an idea you were going to propose?

I think she knew I would, but not at that time and in that way.

New Wedding Card Designs

Check out our new wedding card designs!

We have been working on a new range of simpler wedding card designs that include laser cutting but are still easily accessible for brides on a budget.

We have an array of new wedding card designs to suit any theme and style including: “Great Gatsby”, “Classical- DL Range, “Art Deco Glamour”, “Love Birds” (on acrylic), and “French Vintage”.

GREAT GATSBY

These 1920s influenced designs are printed on pearl paper and features laser cutting.

CLASSICAL - DL Range

The invitation design is simple and delicate and would suit a range of wedding themes. The invitation is printed on pearl paper and is an affordable option for any bride.

ART DECO GLAMOUR

These clear acrylic designs are detailed with an intricate white etched invite. They are packaged individually in a box with a gold paper backing. Give your guests a high end experience with this luxurious touch to your wedding. RSVP and Gift registry are also available for this option.

LOVE BIRDS ON ACRYLIC

The love birds design features two hand drawn birds on a branch. This invitation is engraved into clear acrylic, leaving the crisp white detail. These come packaged in a black box including a romantic pink pearl backing. RSVP and Gift Registry cards are included.

FRENCH VINTAGE

This colour printed design leaves a fine detailed finish on clear acrylic and can embody a number of different themes for your wedding with various colour options. It is inspired from the 1920s art deco era, and would suit a sophisticated wedding occasion.

Please visit our website www.classicweddinginvitations.com.au for more information on these and other wedding card designs or contact us here for enquiries.

Gatsby Wedding Invitations

Order Gatsby Wedding Invitations for your vintage wedding!

You can expect lots of classic class and a touch of glam and sparkle at a Gatsby themed wedding. So make sure to order our Gatsby wedding invitations to perfectly match your wedding theme! Our Gatsby wedding cards with their distinct designs perfectly set the romantic 1920s tone. We offer a variety of styles to suit your budget so you can select from the laser cut or digital printed range. Here we have created mood boards with some of our wedding invitations to get you excited and inspired about your Gatsby themed wedding planning. You can also check us out on Pinterest for more inspiration on your wedding cards.

Custom Fabric Printing For Your Wedding

Custom fabric printing for your wedding day!

We recently introduced custom fabric printing services to the Classic Wedding Invitation repertoire. Fabric printing gives you an opportunity to get creative and customise your wedding day with a special theme, look or feel to set the tone for the occasion. We can make custom print wedding signage, napkins with your initials, tablecloths, cushions, banners, flags, Mr and Mrs signs, etc. We can even create fabric printed wedding invitations to create a beautiful textural experience. Fabric printed decorations are a wonderful way to tie every aspect of your event together. You can create designs matching your invitation themes or compliment flower arraignments or bridesmaid dresses with fabric printed banners, signs or backdrops - the possibilities are truly endless.

Not only do we do fabric printing, but we also print on metal and wood too! Here are a few unique creations to inspire custom fabric printing for your wedding day.