By shindig
Posted in Gift Ideas, Weddings | Tags : bride, groom, letters, love, love notes, weddings
Taylor and Candice, two wonderful newlyweds, appreciate the power of the written word, so it seems appropriate to feature them for National Letter Writing Month. We think you’ll appreciate their story. As if their international first date wasn’t cute enough (more about that later), Taylor has set the bar pretty high for all the grooms-to-be out there with his custom designed love note stationery set. We were touched by Taylor’s thoughtfulness in this gift for his bride, we just knew we had to share it with everyone!
1. How did you two meet?
Taylor and I met in March 2014 on a trip to El Salvador. I was working at The Harvest Group where we sponsored children through Compassion International. Each year, a group takes a trip to visit our children and this was my first time to make the trip. Taylor was a student at the University of Arkansas and was being mentored by one of the owners of the company (Ross). A couple of weeks before we left for the trip, plans changed a little and we ended up having one open spot for the trip. No one from the office could make plans that last-minute so Ross asked Taylor if he wanted to come. He was going to be on spring break and willingly said “yes” to the trip and I am forever grateful that he did! I was quite surprised when I met Taylor at XNA while checking in for our early morning flight – was not expecting this extremely handsome guy with a HUGE smile to be along for the trip! We talked some throughout the trip but we both tried to play it cool – neither of us were there to meet someone, after all. We were there for the kids. That all ended when we boarded the flight home and our seats happened to be right next to each other. I think both of our cheeks hurt from smiling so much! We talked non-stop for both flights – grabbing Buffalo Wild Wings during our layover and sharing our first “date” meal together on the airplane. There was an undeniable connection that we both definitely recognized and everyone around us saw (come to find out later). We went out that following weekend – a fun, Fayetteville date of Hammontree’s, Rick’s Bakery & Dickson Street Bookstore – and have been falling more in love with each other every day since then!
2. Tell us a little bit about your wedding day.
We got married on May 9, 2015 at the Botanical Gardens in Fayetteville. It was such a memorable day with family and friends celebrating with us. Although it was rainy, looking back we wouldn’t have wanted it any other way because of the intimate setting it created with everyone cozy under the party tents and in the indoor space and most of all because of the incredible sunset that we all enjoyed after dinner! We incorporated all of our favorite things – from a folk band (Sons of Otis Malone) to ice cream (Pure Joy), food from Greenhouse Grille, and our favorite drinks – La Croix for her, Dr. McGillicuddy’s Root Beer for him. It was a laid back time and just so special to us! We ended the night with a fun exit into the storm and took off in Taylor’s car with the custom JSTMRYD license plate.
3. Where did the idea come from for notes on personalized stationery leading up to the wedding?
Him: The idea for the cards started with having a wife (fiancé at the time) that loves stationery. Stationery is the media she has used her whole life to so genuinely support and love others, so I try my best to encourage that passion of hers. Also, one of her top love languages is words of affirmation, so a paper-related gift with the ability to love her through words was an obvious direction for a gift to her.When it came to design of the cards, I knew that stationery normally had a singular purpose of being from one person (adding one’s name/address) but with this gift I wanted see what was possible by refining the purpose of not just from a singular person but also to a singular person.
4. Tell us a little bit about the process of getting this custom stationery made.
Him: The day I went into Shindig to explain my idea I met with Natalie Freeman and asked if what I was describing was a “thing.” She responded with “no, but that’s super cute!” Knowing Candice’s style, Natalie helped me walk through and pick out the different styles to incorporate. I knew I wanted a grey envelope with a colorful lining. It was a really fun process to pick out each of the colors and fonts. I was just glad the stationery could customized as I was envisioning. It turned out exactly as I had initially dreamt.
5. Candice, what was your reaction?
Her: To be honest, at first I was a little confused! I first opened one of the cards that he had written to me on the stationery and thought, “wow, I had no idea you could just get a single card customized but this is amazing!” When I opened the rest of the gift that included several boxes of the custom stationery, I just couldn’t believe he had thought of such a thing! I thought I knew all there was about stationery and never had I considered this type of personalization. I was overcome with joy thinking about having a husband that would write me love letters for the rest of our lives together! I was ok when I had to give my gift back to him – ha!
Want to do a similar idea for a bride-to-be? Call the shop to set up an appointment to design your own customized stationery!
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