Thank You!....

To all my clients, past, present and future... thank you for your valuable custom and supporting my business. I really couldn't do this without you!

May you have a wonderful holiday break and I wish you all the very best for the coming year.

Love and Best Wishes....Sue xoxox

Personalised 40th Birthday Concertina Card

I was asked to make a very special 40th Birthday card

From a friend, to a friend,

Containing a personalised poem.

I made it into a simple styled 6 page concertina

Using type for the poem in gorgeous purple 

and hand lettering the Greeting in pink

The balance of subtle type

worked well with the quirky lettering

A Butterfly charm with the words....

hand made especially for you 

matched the Butterfly on the cover

I attached a swing tag to the front...

omitting the '40th' bit!

People love receiving these cards. When recipients untie the bow at the side, the concertina pops open to reveal the secret contents inside. They are just loved by everyone! :-)

Personalised Made To Order, Wedding Concertina Card, In Champagne, Silver and Royal Blue

Personalised Made To Order, Wedding Concertina Card, In Champagne, Silver and Royal Blue

I was approached by Kat to make a special wedding card for her sister and future Brother-In-Law.... but as the wedding is in 2 weeks there was a bit of a sense of urgency about this one. 

I really didn't want to panic, but sometimes when I get asked to do something at such short notice. I'm quick to answer... 'Yeah no problem' then find out that the customer wants a ton of extras and makes almost impossible suggestions that are really not possible in a short space of time.... if at all. 

I must admit that I cautiously asked questions first BEFORE I said I could... It's took me a long time, but I'm finally getting ALL the information before I jump in with my big mouth.

I didn't have to worry... the brief was easy:

Champagne Wedding Dress, Royal Blue Bridesmaid Dress and a hint of Silver... Oh and Butterflies too.... and 'Do it however you think best'

The card was for Rosemary and Michael

From Kathleen-Ann, Rob, Chloe and Jude,

Who is not yet born, but as he is due sometime around the Wedding Day... he will be in attendance one way or another I expect, so I added him too :-)

For the covers I decided to try something a little different, seen as I was given a free reign and made a little tag with their names and Wedding Date on it, rounding the corners to soften it slightly...

I knew I had some gorgeous Champagne Japanese Silk Paper somewhere.... saved for a something special kind of moment and this was it! I wasn't sure how it was going to work with Blue.... but had to give it a try.

Mow, 'normally' I use thin 3 mm ribbon to wrap around and close the book, but this time I wanted to try something totally different. I used 1" Organza ribbon.....The tag is tie and fixed onto the front cover, with the longer piece of ribbon glued and threaded through the back cover. This forms a bow at the right hand side when tied. 

Here's the fully opened out book... all 10 pages of it.

The inside verse is The Apache Wedding Blessing....

suitably perfect for ANY wedding.

I had almost come to the conclusion, that I would not be making any more concertina cards. They are a lot of work for little return. Many clients want you as an artist to create something for them, they like your work, but then when you agree, put forth ideas that are totally unrealistic.

Working on this commission, I realised that if the artist is left to get on with creating something in a free and trusted manner and with only a small outlying brief, they can come up with something that's truly from the heart.... something they are proud to hand over and say... "I made that and it represents the work I do best". Put handcuffs and restraints and give too much input and the artist is not really creating something of themselves. Not only that, it puts an awful lot of pressure on them to interpret exactly WHAT the client wants.

I'm hoping Kat is please with what I come up with and I hope her Sister and future Brother-In-Law love it even more. If they do... then it's a job well done.... I will let you know.

COMMENT FROM KAT:
Oh my word Sue!!! The card is absolutely beautiful. It's just perfect, I can't begin to tell you how much I love it and appreciate what you've done.

I left a comment on the blog page, however, it needs to be approved by you. 

I cried for ages this morning when I saw it. Even Rob had a tear in his eye, when he saw Jude's name

If you want to see more Concertina Books

 I have made click here

Hand Made Personalised Sign

Personalised Vinyl Sign

As I explained in my last blog post here my work can be wide and varied. At the end of last week I was asked to do a sign for a Wedding Photographer friend Mark Johnston, to put on his stand when at Wedding Fairs.

The board will stand on his table and greatly enhances branding. I can't claim the design of the graphic as this was already done by a friend of his.

I make lots of signs for all sorts of reasons. From children's bedroom signs to quirky quotations and even Wedding Signs.... I sometimes think I should have called my business

I LOVE LETTERS!

You can see Marks work at:

http://mark-johnston-photography.co.uk/

And keep up to date with his latest work

by following his BLOG

http://markjohnstonphotography.blogspot.co.uk/

What Mark said about this:

Thanks for the sign Sue, I could not have asked for anything better. It's awesome!

To all prospective clients you will receive OUTSTANDING service, true quality and the unique creative vision of Sue's work. I recommend her to you all!

Personalised Save The Date Fridge Magnets

Personalised Save The Date Fridge Magnets

I've worked 3 weeks solid over the last 3 weeks... both Sundays I've been to 2 Wedding Fairs... which sort of takes it out of you.

At the latest one however I was approached by Sam and Steve to make some Save The Date, Magnetic fridge magnets as their wedding is some way away yet. 

People love this idea for Save the Dates as Magnets seem to be so collectable these days. Also, by sticking it to your fridge there's less chance of it getting lost as there is with a conventional Save the Date Card.

The magnets are available direct off my Wedding Stationery Website at this link here. At the moment there are 9 designs to choose from... but I am working on more :-)

I've also considered making these for Baby Birth Announcements as I have the facilities to fully personalise them and I think that adding a photo of the new born, would look quite cute..... and there are probably tons of other ideas I can come up with too.

Have you any wild suggestions you think could take off?
I'm offering 10 personalised magnets to the one who can come up with the best idea! Just email me at: inspiredbyscript@yahoo.co.uk  or alternatively, leave a comment below.

Post by Sue Simpson (c) 2012

Personalised Baby Christening Announcements

Personalised Baby Christening Announcements 

My work is wide and varied. Coming from a Calligraphy background, my commissions can range from large pieces of work like full song lyrics to small and personal invitations and social stationery.  This week a lovely change from Wedding Invitations... this time, Baby Christening Invites for

'Anna Sofia Davies'

I was asked to design, print and make, just 30 little invitations.

Just 10 cm x 10 cm

in soft Baby Pink foil.

A little butterfly on the top right hand corner seemed 

to fit just perfectly.....

Small, simple and although not the largest order I've ever done....a nice, relaxing commission and something a little different :-)

Post by: Sue Simpson 

Email: inspiredbyscript@yahoo.co.uk 

Personalised Concertina Cards

A rare rest from Wedding Stationery this week, when Mildred from Northern Ireland asked me to make 2 concertina books. One for her mum's 90th Birthday, One for her Brother and one for her sister.

Bill was a keen petrol head.... loving cars, Bikes and Planes....

Her sister Ohyllis's favourite colour was lavender

And her mums was Burgundy and hot pink

And here they are all wrapped up and ready to go....

What Mildred said about her commission...

Hi Sue,

With mum and your great works of art are here!

 Bill with absolutely love his

and mum did too!

You are just brilliant!

Thank you friend! Love Mildred.

To see more Concertina Cards
CLICK ON THIS LINK HERE

Personalised Signs for Wishing Wells, Wishing Trees and Wedding Post Boxes

I've now lost count of the number 

of these signs I have made over the last year.

They can be used for Wishing Wells, 

Post Boxes and Wishing Trees

I love making them as they give me chance to write out the Bride and Grooms names in beautiful calligraphy

and in colour schemes to match their Wedding Theme!

This one is in Teal.... a glowingly 

popular colour and my very first order in this colour...

It looks great! The Bride and Groom chose

 gold foil lettering on a white background.

 Jonathan and Danielle's 

wishing well sign was made

 in Cadbury's purple... stunning!

 Martin and Isla also chose this colour...

Laura and Gavin chose this gorgeous Rich Red

almost scarlet colour.... Hot, Hot ,Hot!

Karan and Andy's was more subtle 

in pale pastel pink and baby pink foil

Darren and Fiona went for Hot Pink

for both Foil and Card. Hot pink 

looks stunning with black too!

If you are getting married....

what's your colour scheme?

I'd love to know!

Either leave a comment below...

or on our Facebook page. 

See the link in the side bar to the right!
All pictures (c) Sue Simpson
inspiredbyscript@yahoo.co.uk

BRIDES ON A BUDGET - CHEAP or GOOD

I should have titled my this post 'How saving money can cost you more!'. If you haven't already read it, I suggest you pop over there and do so now. It really is a case of Buyer BEWARE!.

I've got a bee in my bonnet and I'm out to save the world, although that's how it seems right now! I joined the Bridal Forum to find out, what Brides of today are looking for in their suppliers as well as getting an insight into my own industry.
As I stated in my last post, nearly ALL the Brides start their question off with

"I'm on a very tight budget, can anyone tell me where is the cheapest I can get (insert Brides particular need here)"

I've seen them ask for everything, 

Can anyone recommend a cheap photographer?...

Does anyone know anyone 

who can supply cheap wedding stationery?

Where can I get cheap Wedding Cakes made?

What more than worries me slightly here is the fact that they are not asking for 'good' or 'Quality'. Does this mean that any photographer will do? If so.... you could ask your uncle George.... he's just bought a new camera and he's took some lovely pictures of his holiday in Cornwall...Now I'm not saying Uncle Jack wouldn't take a few good snaps, but if he falls short of capturing your 'Special Day', there's no resitting and certainly no room for error. This is one area I wouldn't scrimp on. BTW - If you live in North Yorkshire I can highly recommend Mark Johnson Photography he's both affordable and good! 

Anyone know of anywhere I can get cheap Wedding Stationery?...... Well my stationery starts at 75p per invite. I use only quality products and I wouldn't say that that was out of this world. However if you wanted folded cards as opposed to postcard type we are looking at around £2 each. 

The advantage I can offer over others, apart from the quality of card stock and materials is that you get a personal one-to-one service and we can design something around you and your colour scheme... oh yes and all our stationery is personalised and foiled. Could I do them cheaper? Yes.... of course.... I could print them out on photocopying paper in plain black ink and using computer font not calligraphy.... I 'could' but I won't! I want to be happy to put my name on my work and I want you to be happy too.

And what about cakes (or any other product or service) Do you really want CHEAP.... or do you want GOOD. Good can still be affordable, you just have to compromise a little.

At the same time... paying a fortune doesn't always mean good either. Advertising in some of the larger branded products is designed to make you 'exclusive' club. The one where you believe that if you don't have it then you are not worth the air that you breathe and are just not up to speed.

There really has to be a happy medium here. You can buy good, quality, items and services, but go for CHEAP at your peril. There are bargains to be had out there, but go off recommendations.... better still SHOP LOCAL. This way you can be sure of meeting the person face to face, seeing if you actually 'like them', asking any questions and having time to think about your choice before making a decision and potentially loosing money. 

Can I just say..... that 99% of the email request I get start with...

"How much"

It's  sometimes a really hard question to answer as it depends on so many things. Mostly I have to email back with a list of questions, so that I can establish what my client actually NEEDS from me. It's all part of the job! And never forget... YOU are the one in charge.  It's your hard earned cash! Be careful when ordering ANYTHING off the internet or Facebook.

Meet the supplier a few times if you are unsure... better to be safe than sorry and a professional supplier would not mind how many times you have to meet and what questions they need to answer. YOU pay our wages :-) 

I'll write another blog soon about this with some helpful guidelines to help you along the way.

What would the first question be, 

when you approach as supplier 

about their gods or services? 

BRIDES ON A BUDGET - BEWARE!

 I belong to a few Bridal Forums. They're a great to see what the Brides and Grooms of today are looking for and stay 'current'.

It's a place where we (as suppliers) can offer our gods and services and also a place where Brides can come for questions they may need help with.

There's a huge range of questions but most of all the Bride starts their request off with 

"I'm on a very tight budget.........

(Followed by what they are looking for) 

This really plays on my mind, because I have known so many Brides ripped off by unscrupulous traders 

offering a so called "Bargain". 

Here's one example.....

Kayleigh happened to mention in a Facebook Bridal group that she had been ripped off by someone in Scotland offering her 

a Bargain Priced Crystal Bouquet!

Kayleigh liked what she saw on the sellers page and ordered a few! Of course, the supplier wanted paying 'up front'. The Bouquets arrived and were found to be plastic, not crustal and of a very poor quality. 

Kayleigh complained, by writing numerous email s and leaving messages on Facebook. It didn't help. The supplier did not answer and when she did, she said that she had never had any complaints before. I got on her case, put Kayleigh in touch with Trading Standards... but the woman simply closed her page down.... Gone.... just like that.... and overnight. Taking Kayleighs and probably lots of other peoples money with them.

Then there was a on-line shop, offering very cheap, branded Wedding Dresses at a fraction of the original  price. The Brides could secure their dress of their dreams by paying just £100 deposit... of course, word got round and Brides flocked to pay their hard earned cash. This went on for a few months. The company opened new websites, with new names and still the money poured in... with expectant Brides anxiously awaiting their dresses. You can imagine what happened next. 

Yes.... once again... the websites closed and the companies vanished without a trace. Some Brides had paid in full

The Police are involved and Brides have been hit all around the country. Some loosing hundreds of pounds. And I could tell you so many stories like this..... but I'll leave that until another time. 

Let's get back to Kayleigh. She was a little embarrassed to tell me she had also been ripped of by a pretty well known company. Their website looks pretty good and you wouldn't know if from the web address.... but this company is based in China! Her cards arrived, the glossy mustard coloured card is pretty awful, you can't write on them so the company have to supply a pen with each order.... and even worse, when they came they were English one side which said Happy Wedding and on the other it was Portuguese!  No kidding!

She could have returned them, but I expect the chance of a refund would have been VERY slim and the postage would have cost a fortune. So the cards she bought at a very good price, were in fact unusable. 

I offered to rescue them as best I could.... 

but there was nothing for it but to make a whole new insert.

A bit of a pain in the bum, because the size was a really awkward size. The picture below shows the company's 

on the left from http://lightinthebox.com

And my newly designed on on the right.....

Kayleigh has just returned to me for her 

Evening Invitations....

And 50 Wedding Scrolls to be used as little favours.

I try and do my best to advise Brides when buying their Wedding stuff. I'm planning on writing some posts in the near future about this exact subject.... in the hopes that it at least saves some Brides a great deal of money.

In my opinion, if a deal sounds too good to be true....

 it very usually is! BUYER BEWARE!

What advice would you give a Bride 
to save her from getting ripped off?

Please leave a comment below,
or on our Facebook page

Personalised Peacock Inspired Wedding Invitations

I've been asked by a fellow Wedding Supplier

and Planner to come up with some ideas 

with the Brides Theme being... Peacock Feathers...

First off a Turquoise and Royal Blue....

Lovely Lime Green and light turquoise blue..

And Turquoise and Lime Green.....

Personally I love the lime green card 

and light turquoise ribbon.

Which is your favourite?

 I'll let  you know which one the Bride goes for

Personalised Wedding Seating Plan, Brown, Ivory and gold

I have to admit.... I don't like Brown butterflies.

But as a Wedding Stationery I do as I am asked.

This one was for Neil & Alison 

from London.

The colour scheme asked for was,

Brown, Ivory and Gold.

Unfortunately, the deadline was tight,

so these are some rather rushed photos

so I could get it in the post. 

to be fair.... although it's not to my taste, it did make quite a change from the Fuchsia Pink that keeps cropping up at the moment. And the Gold on Ivory was really nice!

Pictures (c) Sue Simpson - inspiredbyscript.co.uk

Filigree Tendril Heart Design Wedding Invitation

I've been working on some new designs.

Here's the Tendril Hearts Design.

A Filigree and tendril filled heart design.

Perfect for those who want something a little different. 

Remember we have over 15 colours of foil to choose from,

 so we can match your colour scheme to give you something truly unique!

See our main website side bar to select your colour at

http://northyorkshireweddings.co.uk

Purple and Fuchsia Pink wedding Post Box.

Purple and Fuchsia Pink wedding Post Box.

I'm increasingly getting asked to make Wedding Stationery

and accessories in two tone colours. 

Purple goes well with Lime Green, Silver

and as in the picture below  Fuchsia  Pink.

Purple on it's own can look a little cold. 

Introducing a second colour can lift it no end.

Brides are getting braver. Everyone's looking for something a little different. Colour clash is definitely the 'In Thing' for 2013, some brides are using this for 2012.

What's you colour scheme?

Our wedding Post Boxes are available mail order. Contact me at inspiredbyscript@yahoo.co.uk or visit our dedicated website http://northyorkshireweddings.co.uk

Rainbow Coloured Butterfly Wedding Post Box

To add to my portfolio of

Wedding Post Boxes

It give me great pleasure to share with you this

Rainbow Post Box!

Multi-coloured butterflies 

in rainbow colours,

fly all over and around the box.

Of course..... we make boxes in any colour under the sun (well almost) You can buy these from our website link here.

We'll do our very best to match your colour theme... but if you are in any doubt.... email us at inspiredbyscript@yahoo.co.uk first, to make sure :-)

Hot Stuff! Red Orange and Yellow Wedding Post Box, Perfect for Summer or Autumn weddings,

Hot Stuff! Red Orange and Yellow Wedding Post Box

Perfect for Summer or Autumn weddings,

For Autumn weddings add a little Brown :-)

Available in any colour conbination

from http://northyorkshireweddings.co.uk

You can order direct from 

this link here!