Skylands Manor at New Jersey’s Botanical Gardens

I was reflecting back on one of my all time favorite wedding invitations. The wedding took place in February during an unbelievable snow storm. It was a record year here in New Jersey for storms, most notably Hurricane Sandy. Much of the design and print work was put together during superstorm Sandy. Yes, it was nearly impossible to have this completed with no means of power for almost 3 weeks! With perseverance, this snowy, woodland theme came to life.

Woodland Winter Design Suite

I first consulted with Melissa and John about their wedding and the style they wished to evoke on their special day. The wedding took place at the beautiful Skylands Manor, New Jersey’s Botanical Gardens. The idea for the custom invitations easily fell into place after visiting the gardens and reception site. I had drawn up some sketches of the venue and taken a tour of the grounds. The wedding suite would feature both the surrounding natural, woodland beauty and the grand architecture of the castle itself. The overall feel would become a glamorous, woodland  theme. Natural elements along with the sparkle of Swarovski crystals throughout gave the icy vibe I was looking for.

Loose Swarovski Crystals ready to be hand applied to the invitation suite

Snowflakes in different styles were cut from numerous paper weights and finishes. These were then carefully packed into glassine envelopes to add a bit of whimsy to the wintery wedding suite.

Cut paper snowflakes in different weights and finishes

Translucent, textured wood grain wrappers in a milky white and metallic white envelope liners printed with silver snowflakes added to the wintery scene.

Woodgrain wrappers fastened with belly bands

Envelope Liners

Belly Bands with hand applied crystals

Envelope liners, wood grain wrapper and belly band

The design also included pinecones, winter berries, tree branches and evergreens.  Direction cards with a custom pinecone motif were folded and fastened with silver cord.

Direction and accommodation cards

Silver wax seals in a snowflake motif and pinecone forestry stamps rounded out the design.

Woodland Winter Wedding Design Suite

Woodland Winter gift tags

Recently, I reimagined this wedding suite with a beautiful winter border suitable for all winter weddings! I also added NEW pinecone envelope liners and seating card options. Please see the link below and click on other available elements to view the full design suite. https://littledovedesign.com/designs/woodland-winter

For ideas on floral arrangements and boutonnieres to complete this Woodland Winter themed wedding, see below. To add a bit of drama, you may easily incorporate natural elements in different shades of white, green and woodsy brown with some sparkle. Here, I wired small hemlock pinecones and then proceeded to beed them with crystals and seed pearls. When in midtown New York, I often like to visit Hymen Hendler & Sons — a specialty shop carrying ribbons and millinery. It is there that I found these beautiful vintage, white velvet leaves. I was just waiting for the right occasion to use them. I decided they would make the perfect backer for my beaded pinecone stems.

Bejeweled Pinecones

For table decor, vases wrapped in natural wood bark are a great find! Winter white roses, evergreens, small twigs, pinecones and the white velvet leaf with bejeweled pinecones gave an unexpected pop of sparkle to the arrangement.

Woodland Winter Table Decor

To add a woodsy glow to the event, tea lights were inserted into small slabs cut from trees. Each votive holder was of different width and height to add interest to the tablescape.

Woodland Winter Table Decor

Please feel free to contact me for any custom items or ideas that you might like incorporated into your wedding. A wedding should be as unique as you are and I love helping my wedding couples achieve their vision.

Cheers- Monika