I have clients come to me with all sorts of inspiration for their wedding invitations, but this was a first. These clients came to me with a movie clip! Specifically, The Count of Monte Cristo of all movies. If you're not familiar, is about a man wrongfully, but deliberately, imprisoned and his brilliant strategy for revenge on those who betrayed him. I don't know about you, but that doesn't exactly scream "wedding" to me either.

Nonetheless, there is a scene where someone is delivering a beautiful wedding invitation, much like the one you see here, with handwritten calligraphy, wax seal and gold foil – but instead of the lions and cool border you see above, there were people's faces in their version. So you see, inspiration comes from literally everywhere, not just on Pinterest and in magazines!

Since we were on such a tight timeline, the wax seal had to be designed and put into production first, so it became the focus of the overall design. Once that was decided upon, the rest fell into place quite easily. This was one of the faster design processes I've had in recent months, mainly due to the fact that the groom had a very clear vision of what he wanted and I executed very cleanly upon that vision.

The real joy of this project is the feel of the finished product, the tactile quality of the thick paper – duplexed, meaning two sheets put together, textured Neenah's Esse is a very luxurious paper and the wax seal is a delight to feel as well. If you'd like to learn more about this paper, go to Neenah Paper and explore the options they offer!