Featured Supplier

written in the stars. supplier showcase: Calligraphy For Weddings

Julia Braime

Watercolour calligraphy credit Vickerstaff Photography (12)

This afternoon I’m thrilled to hand these pretty pages over to a very talented lady, lovely Brides Up North Sponsor Claire of Calligraphy For Weddings (and English Wedding Blog fame).

She’s here to put pen to paper and make your wedding stationery and accessories super beautiful and

gorgeously personal

.  She’ll even write your love letters for you, how’s that for service?

Claire is kindly offering Brides Up North readers a 10% discount from her Etsy Shop throughout October. Quote code LOVEBUN when you order! 

Let’s meet her…

Images supplied by Calligraphy For Weddings and as credited where relevant in our gallery.

Calligraphy 4 vintage love letter (4)

Introduce yourself and Calligraphy For Weddings?

I’m Claire, I’m thirty-something and I work full time as a calligrapher, specialising in weddings and gifts for anniversaries and special occasions. I have the best job in the world! I live on the edge of the Lake District in a character apartment by the seaside. I have stained glass and original features, but I still write on the walls. I love my life, my surroundings – walking on the beach is my daily ‘commute’ – and the way my boyfriend calls me his ‘Beach Girl’. Calligraphy for Weddings has been going since 2005, and I’ve written for hundreds of brides and grooms, event organisers and brands. I’m known for my work with Kirstie Allsopp and I’m so lucky to have my own little craft business.

What wedding calligraphy services do you offer for brides to be? 

I offer a full calligraphy service for couples who have their own stationery (whether it’s bought or DIY) and I also sell wedding stationery, from invitation suites and collections through to place names, table plans and mirror calligraphy. Everything is online in my Etsy shop.

The most recent additions to my wedding calligraphy shop are kraft and calligraphy quirky wedding invites with matching stationery, which are all personalised for every client. These are designer invites from an independent calligraphy business – professionally designed and printed, with handwritten calligraphy elements. Your guests will adore them, and you can continue the kraft and calligraphy theme right through to your wedding day with reception stationery to match your invites. Prices start from just £2 for invitations.

I also take on bespoke commissions and I write mirror table plans – this has been a massively successful part of my business in 2014 and I love mirror calligraphy, writing on windows and chalkboards! I also write calligraphy backdrops – the more unusual the better. I love writing song lyrics, poems and larger commissions too.

View More: http://nickrosephotography.pass.us/cliveden-house-styled-shoot

View More: http://nickrosephotography.pass.us/cliveden-house-styled-shoot

View More: http://nickrosephotography.pass.us/cliveden-house-styled-shoot

Tell us about your vintage love letters?

The vintage love letters are an absolute joy to write and make a perfect wedding day gift or – even better – a lovely present and keepsake for your first (paper) wedding anniversary. I use the highest quality writing paper, which is aged and then entirely handwritten in a 19th century script. Every letter is personalised, with the option of adding stamps and wax seals, ribbons and gold twine – they’re a real labour of love and as well as being wonderful gifts they’ve been used on photoshoots around the UK and even in France!

Calligraphy 4 vintage love letter (5)

What if brides want to try calligraphy for themselves?

I love it when brides (and grooms) are keen to try calligraphy, and with modern ‘quirky’ styles being really popular now I’ve launched a range of calligraphy starter kits for absolute beginners. I’ve also written a book which takes beginners through very first steps in modern, quirky calligraphy – from preparing the pen to some really simple exercises with examples – and all aimed at fun styles rather than the traditional formal scripts.

There are two starter kits: the luxe version has more samplers, white ink, gift tags to practice on and is personalised.

Calligraphy 5 modern starter kit (2)

What sets your business apart from your competitors?

Customer service and experience set me apart. I wrap every calligraphy order like a present, so it’s lovely to receive. I answer all of my emails and phone calls personally. I manage my website, write my blog and look after my Facebook page. One of the best things about Calligraphy for Weddings, for me, is getting to know my customers. It’s never a faceless transaction: every customer gets a personal service, every name is written with meticulous attention to detail and the most important thing to me is that my customers are happy with everything I give them – and the same goes for wedding guests! The calligraphy quality has to be exceptional – and I know it is, because I know how many wedding guests take their place cards home!

Who would be a “Calligraphy For Weddings” bride?

Any bride who loves paper, pretty details or special touches should consider adding calligraphy to her special day. DIY brides can add the perfect finishing touch to invites and envelopes with handwritten calligraphy names. Classic weddings can incorporate calligraphy with more formal scripts on envelopes and for reception stationery, and quirky weddings look even more amazing with handwritten signs, mirrors and name tags. Every bride is different, and every wedding has its own style. Calligraphy comes in a rainbow of flavours and there’s one to delight every bride!

Calligraphy 1 kraft wedding collection (3)

Calligraphy 1 kraft wedding collection (1)

Calligraphy 1 kraft wedding collection (4)

Tell us about some of the industry connections you have made and shoots that you have worked on since launching your business?

Through my wedding blog I’ve worked with hundreds of wedding photographers as well as writing calligraphy for many stationery designers and even branding. I designed a logo for Walker & Walker Photographers and have been involved in shoots with the amazing Chris Hanley Photography, lovely Vickerstaff Photography, for Petra Opperman, with Karen Flower Photography, at Aspire Photography Training, and featured on Junebug Weddings, Brides Up North and Love My Dress blogs. There are too many to list – I love being involved in styled shoots as they fire my imagination and inspire new products and designs!

Tell us about some amazing weddings that you have worked on and the lettering and products that you have created?

Most recently I worked on Sophie and Hamish’s Lake District wedding with a 6ft mirror for their table plan – it was incredible, a real challenge and the final product was amazing! I’ve been writing wedding certificates and vows in calligraphy over the summer – all with personalised designs and different every time. I love those. I’ve written thousands of invitations and place name cards as well as quirky wedding signs which I send across the UK, to the US, Australia, across Europe and all over the world. I posted a poem to Dubai this morning… it’s amazing knowing my calligraphy travels so far! Oh, and a highlight of my summer was writing riddles in French for Regis, who was planning the most romantic proposal and asked me to write out riddles on my best Italian card stock which would lead his partner (now fiancee!) to a ring… she said yes!

Calligraphy 4 vintage love letter (2)

What have been your professional highlights to date?

I’ve just come back from teaching calligraphy skills workshops at Kirstie Allsopp’s Handmade Fair in London. My work with Kirstie has been a delight for years: we’ve collaborated on several projects since Kirstie styled a vintage military wedding back in 2012, and I’ve featured in two of her books and TV series. (See “Kirstie Allsopp stroked my calligraphy on the telly!“) I’ve also written for Manchester United, and I was hired to write Steve Gerrard’s wedding place name cards too!

Calligraphy 2 modern kraft invites (3)

Calligraphy 2 modern kraft invites (2)

Calligraphy 2 modern kraft invites (5)

What are your favourite wedding looks for 2014?  What trends do you see emerging?

I have a thing for kraft invitations, which have been ever so popular this year. I like anything quirky so long as it’s beautifully designed: creative stationery packs and peculiar shapes and textures can be really exciting. I also love minimal design, so beautiful type and creative lettering with lots of lovely spacing really excite me. As far as general wedding trends go, I’m a fan of big neon letters, weddings in cinemas and theatres, sperry tents and jumbled up mismatched flowers. I think glitter and sequins will continue to be a big part of weddings in 2015, and the homespun look will be popular with UK brides. I’d love to see large scale backdrops feature in real weddings here as they do in the US – and I’d love to write some!

Can you give Brides Up North an idea on price?

I keep my prices as low as I can and offer plenty of options for couples on a budget. Place cards start from £1.10 each, invitations are from just £2 and table plans start from £75. Calligraphy isn’t as expensive as many people think, and it’s all about the time it takes to write everything for you. Wedding readings and poems are priced from 75p per word, which gives you more flexibility in what you order.

A top tip: if you’d like to order your wedding readings or first dance lyrics in calligraphy, and want to save money, select your favourite extract or paragraph!

Can you do a discount for Brides Up North readers?

I’ll be delighted to offer Brides Up North readers a 10% discount from my Etsy shop throughout October. Quote code LOVEBUN when you order!

Watercolour calligraphy credit Vickerstaff Photography (1)

Where are you located and will you travel?

I’m on the edge of the Lake District and almost all of my calligraphy orders are mailed to my customers. I am a leading world expert on protective packaging, with shares in tissue paper, bubble wrap, Ecoflow and boxes. Your order will arrive safely, wherever you are! Mirrors and glass are the only things I can’t post. I can travel to venues or we can arrange to meet so I can collect your mirrors… get in touch if you’re interested!

How can Brides Up North see examples of your work or find out more? 

I’m all over the internet, with examples of my calligraphy on Facebook, Pinterest, Instagram, YouTube, my website and calligraphy blog, my wedding blog and other wedding blogs… once you find me it’s hard to avoid my calligraphy I’m afraid!

My website | Facebook |Pinterest | Instagram | My Blog | YouTube

Calligraphy 1 kraft wedding collection (7)

Calligraphy 1 kraft wedding collection (6)

Calligraphy 1 kraft wedding collection (1)

Tell us about your blog, English Wedding?

The English Wedding Blog is all about creativity: my dream is to curate an online space for couples to get inspired by real weddings, shoots and the latest in wedding design – with a real focus on English and UK weddings and suppliers. The English Wedding Blog was born in November 2009 to showcase what makes weddings in this country so great. The site is updated daily and is full of inspiration and advice for brides in the UK and for anglophile brides overseas. With a unique perspective from inside the UK wedding industry, English Wedding also focuses on the brightest and best new talents in all aspects of wedding design, with a special focus on real weddings by the UK’s finest wedding photographers.

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