Collaboration is at the heart of what
Beetle & Quill does
Truly authentic design that reflects all the love, care and attention you've put into your occasion takes time. Because Beetle & Quill is a one-woman-show, I recommend that couples and families looking to work with me get in touch about their wedding as soon as they have essential details (such as wedding venue) booked. It's never too early to start envisioning your stationery.
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The custom design process takes about 3-4 months from your design consultation, to receiving all of your finished stationery elements in hand. Designs from our existing collection require an 2 month turnaround from first contact to completed order depending on the print process chosen, however, rush service is available subject production availability.
STEP 1:
INQUIRY & WEDDING QUESTIONNAIRE
Start by reaching out with a few details. We'll get back to you within 1-2 business days and send you a copy of our Wedding Questionnaire to get the ball rolling on your stationery.
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Our wedding questionnaire is designed to get as many details about your stationery in one place as we can. In your questionnaire, we'll ask about what stationery elements you're considering, any looks you're drawn to, and any other details that might help us come up with your perfect suite.
STEP 2:
PROPOSAL & PRICING
Once we've had a chance to review all of your details, we'll put together a custom proposal just for you to build your own personalized wedding stationery package. This proposal will offer a variety of suggested packages and stationery items based on the information you provided in your questionnaire and offers you the ability to build your own stationery package tailed exactly to your needs and budget.
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At this point, you'll have the option to schedule a follow up consultation via telephone or video call if you have any pricing questions. This is a great time to double check with your relatives for any last minute guests, or touch base with your planner to make sure no detail has been left out.
Once you're happy with the chosen elements of your suite, you'll be able to submit your requests and we will set up your own personal client portal where you'll be able to access your design agreement, pay your design retainer and in the next steps, access your Wedding Stationery Mood Board and design proofs.
STEP 3:
STATIONERY MOOD BOARD
Once we've received your signed design agreement and retainer payment, we'll get started on creating your own custom Stationery Mood Board complete with design sketch and/or mock up of your full suite, inspiration images related to your stationery, font and/or wording suggestions, suggested colour palette, and any other items we think might bring everything together.
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Once we receive your feedback on your design look book, we move onto the exciting part...
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STEP 4:
DESIGN PROOFS
Hands down, one of the most exciting moments of wedding planning (in our opinion) is being able to see the first draft of your wedding invitation. For a lot of couples, this is where things start to feel real and those tingly feelings of excitement start up all over again.
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Each proof contains the option to approve with no changes, approve with specified changes made, or request a new set of proofs with changes. In order to keep your order on track, all changes should be submitted within 1-2 business days. Any proof changes requested, will be made within 2 business days.
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Once your final proof approval has been signed off, it's off to the presses!
STEP 5: PRINTING, ASSEMBLY & SHIPPING
Once you've signed off your final proof it's time to pay your remaining order balance in your client portal to send your order into production.
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Depending on the complexity of your order, your order can take from 10-14 business days (digital printing) to upwards of 10 weeks (letterpress, foil and other complex print methods) for printing and assembly prior to shipping or notification for local pick up from the Beetle & Quill studio. If your order is being shipped, you will receive an email with tracking information as soon as it is posted.
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When you receive your order, inspect it carefully to assure that everything you ordered is accounted for and there weren't any accidents while your order was in the postal system. While Beetle & Quill endeavors to pack everything safely and securely, accidents in the postal service can happen. Should your order be anything less than perfect, please contact us within 7 days of receipt to arrange replacement items or appropriate compensation.
Everything perfect? Take a completed invitation to the post office and double check the weight (unless you purchased custom postage, then this was done for you already!) before affixing postage to all invites and reply cards. Once you've got the right amount on all your invites, take them to a post office (not just a mailbox) and drop them off to be mailed.
Finally, it's time to bust out the champagne and confetti and wait for delighted phone calls and responses from your friends and family. This is also a great time to let us know how we're doing with the customer experience survey we send out after every order.