Matching your Party Invitations to your Venue

Whatever the event, it’s always great to have a thread running through the entire thing to draw it all together, to keep everything cohesive and on theme. Matching party invitations to your venue is one of the easiest ways to achieve this. Invitations should give guests a sneak peek at the character of the event, and the venue is the most defining aspect in creating that character. Matching the two is the best shortcut to make your event seem as though it has been put together by a professional stylist. But how do you match your party invitations to your venue? There are a number of ways you can do it.

We’re talking birthday invitations today, but these methods are completely applicable to other events like weddings, baby showers and other social events.

Location

Considering the location of your venue is a great starting point if you’re wanting to match your party invitations. Heading into the countryside? A natural motif of wheat or greenery is a perfect reflection of the scenery. Inner city? Something gritty and urban might be what you’re after. The botanical gardens? Floral birthday invitations are perfect. Of course, if you’re just having your birthday party at your home, this might not be the method for you (depending where you live, and if your guests are traveling to be there).

Matching the location is more important if the location is a heavy feature of the venue, with big windows or indoor-outdoor entertaining spaces bringing the outside in. Chances are, if the location is an integral part of the venue, you’ll know it the moment you walk into the place. When choosing your invites, think about what caught your attention when you first entered the space and channel that into your party invitations.

Formality

How formal is the venue you’re going to be using? A ballroom in the city’s fanciest hotel is going to call for a very different invitation to a local dive bar or trendy cafe. If you’re not sure, think about what sort of dress code you are going to ask your guests to adhere to. Is this a suit and tie venue, or a t-shirt and jeans venue? Cater your invitation accordingly.

Party invitations should communicate how formal the event is going to be through both design and wording. A premium print technique like letterpress or foil stamping is perfect for communicating luxury and formality to your guests. Traditional wording is the other half of this classy equation. Think something like Dear Emma, your presence is requested as we celebrate the thirtieth birthday of Georgia Louise Raymond, at six thirty pm on Saturday the twenty-fifth of March, two thousand and eighteen. Receiving a birthday party invitation like this sets the scene perfectly.

Decor

What sort of decor does your venue come with? This can be anything from bunting and balloons put up specially for your event, to the existing light fittings, furniture, and art. Think about shapes and themes throughout the decor. Is the furniture luxe and upholstered, or is it industrial metal? Are there chandeliers or exposed bulbs? Take your birthday invitation cues from the decor on show at the venue, and everything will match without being identical.

Again, think about what drew your attention the first moment you entered the venue. What are the features of the decor? Do they have statement sculptures on the bar, giant bookshelves from floor to ceiling, stunning couches in the entry, or a whole seating area made entirely from glass? Do they light the entire space using only candles or lanterns? Are there lights that oscillate with the music? These are the sort of things that are perfect to channel in your birthday invites.

Colour scheme

What colour scheme is in place at your venue of choice? It’s always best to work with the existing colour scheme and not try to fight against it. It pays to follow this principle with your birthday  invitations as well. You don’t have to be completely literal with it: green walls don’t have to mean that you choose green invitations. Think about colour families and colours that complement one another. You might choose white invitations with a similar green in the font. Or you may even go for the contrasting red that the venue uses for cushions, artwork and other accents.

With a little bit of careful thought, your birthday invitations will be completely cohesive with your venue choice and your entire event will look intricately styled.

 

This was a guest post by Maddison Wallace from Paperlust. Maddison is head of content at Paperlust. She is a communications professional who loves words and drinking cups of tea.

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