From the moment your guests unseal your wedding invitation, they will know what kind of wedding you are planning – formal or relaxed, day or evening, inside or outside. From the colors, paper, design, to your stamps, your guests will also know the seasonal time of year. Using seasons as inspiration can help you get in touch with the creative “atmosphere” that your invitation will provoke for your guests. Each season has a different feeling, guided by colors found in nature, such as blossoming flowers.

Each of these four brides, who wed in four different seasons, used seasonal inspirations to create a truly unique wedding invitation.

As Sarojini began working with the custom invitation designer for her Indian wedding to her English fiancee, she thought of the vibrant spring colors from the Indian and English palette. The feeling of the wedding was a walk through a sensual garden, full of flowers and color. She combined vibrant colors of red and hot fuchsia, with soft colors, of pale pink and creamy white. Using the same range of colors in different shades gave a harmonious and lively feeling to the invitation. Each part – from the invitation, response, direction card, to the envelopes – had a different color base and accent. Together, the invitation told a story. Sarojini’s guest opened her invitations with a smile – knowing that she had created a story about their home countries and the spring season.

Jennifer and her custom invitation designer gathered inspiration from her site and time of day – entering a Japanese garden filled with bamboo on an early summer evening. Jennifer fell in love with a japanese paper in a chartreuse green. The japanese paper wraps around the invite in a gate fold, opening from the center to reveal the invitation. Jennifer also had a very modern sensibility and wanted square invitations on clean white card stock with a contemporary printed typeface. Using her wedding dress as inspiration, the invitation has an element that will carry meaning for the guests as soon as they see her walking down the aisle. The chartreuse and charcoal colors are carried throughout the printing of the invitation set, giving consistency and harmony. When the guests arrive at the Fours Seasons at Beverly Hills for the wedding and reception they will surly make the connection between the invitation design and her wedding.

As Amy began creating wedding invitations for her own fall wedding, she drew her seasonal inspiration the fall harvest. Amy wanted an earthy and elegant invitation that was full of nature – and as a floral designer, full of blooms. The colors that came to play were chocolate, mustard, suede brown, olive, and a light celadon green. Because the wedding is in a setting with orchids, she used a single pressed green exotic orchid at the top of the invitation. An overlay of Japanese paper in mustard was placed over the invitation, revealing the elegant, natural script in chocolate brown on a cream paper beneath. As each guest opens the invitation, they will feel warmth and elegance – instinctively knowing that her wedding will take place in the fall.

When Shauna began planning her winter wedding in a small chapel nestled in the mountains, she considered the colors of a veiled winter garden – deep greens, winter whites, and berry reds. Her inspiration also came from the colors of the chapel setting – a charcoal stone path, and colorful stained glass windows. Shauna and her custom invitation designer created a look of blankets of white with bursts of deep colors in a hunter green printing, red velvet ribbon, and charcoal wax seal. Her invitation certainly spoke of a wedding amidst a winter garden.

Seasons are full of hidden inspirations that you can use in creating your unique wedding invitations. As you begin working with your custom invitation designer, think of your setting, time of day, floral design, and your season.