Ceci New York
Ever since I first saw a magazine article interviewing Ceci of Ceci New York and saw her gorgeous designs and invitation suites, I was a fan. And it's amazing to me now, that I am the one interviewing her and showcasing her work! Isn't this what Oprah would call a 'full circle moment'? ;) Below are 10 different invitation collections (with a Q&A too!) that will blow you away ... from funky, to destination, to elegant, to vibrant, to classic ... Ceci knows it all :)
XO ~ Heather
Wedding vendors involved include: Invitations: Ceci New York
Style Unveiled: How did the idea of Ceci New York begin?
Ceci: I think I can honestly say I've always been an entrepreneur. I was the kid on the block who went door to door selling whatever I could so I could earn enough money to go buy the next Barbie doll I was coveting. Truthfully, I never thought I would be an invitation designer, but after countless meetings with brides who were friends of friends of friends and hearing "why aren't you offering this full time? You're exactly what I've been looking everywhere for!" I started realizing there was a real demand for what I do. I studied the wedding industry and discovered there was no one doing what I was doing, so based on demand and passion, I went for it! This was seven years ago. I loved the idea of being able to create one of a kind works of art for my clients and make them look amazing on paper! Ceci New York enables me to use all my professional art and design schooling and training (ranging from studio art to graphic design skills) to create exclusive art everyday for each of my clients. I haven't looked back since!
Style Unveiled: What is your favorite part about being an invitation guru?
Ceci: I love all my clients and what they bring to the table. Each is a new opportunity and a chance for me to learn something new. Whether it's about their culture or style or whatever it may be, it all excites me and gives me great inspiration to translate into my art. I am constantly creating new things. I never copy and love to innovate. But the best part is being able to get to know my clients and translate their style and express their individualism through truly creative work. That's what my company does best. We produce great creativity and create a unique representation of our clients which you can't find elsewhere. It's so much more personal than something you just can order off the Internet or out of a book at your local stationery store. I believe just as important as what you wear, so is your image on paper. So make sure you look great! And make sure it's a fantastic representation of you.
Style Unveiled: If you were designing for yourself, what would the invitation suite look like? Colors? Designs?
Ceci: This is an easy one to answer because I actually just had this challenge for my own wedding. I recently got married and designed my own wedding invitation. It was the perfect balance between sophisticated elegance and daring creativity that I'm known for. My husband, Alan, always used to tease me that I made art for everyone else and he would always ask "When are you going to make me something?" So for our wedding invitations, I made sure to go all out and dedicated a beautiful mural that I hand painted symbolizing our new life together that I incorporated into the lining and back of my invitation.
Style Unveiled: How do you become inspired? What is your advice to brides who are looking for inspiration?
Ceci: Inspiration is everywhere! All you have to do is open your mind and look around. Typically, your venue or wedding location (state or country) has a ton of inspiration. You chose to get married there for a reason so think about what excites you about it? Is it the architecture, the white sand beach, the culture, the colors of the country, the patterns in the ceiling or the wonderful wrought iron detailing of the gates, etc. I find inspiration all around me. My clients inspire me but as an artist and designer, my job is to come up with the ideas and inspiration for them. They are just the starting point. A real designer will not ask you "what do you want?" and you have to tell them what to do. They will work with you to define your true style and present their own ideas of what's possible to you. It's the ultimate luxury to be able to turn yourself over to a designer and have them create something exclusively for you!
Another great place to find inspiration is my new online magazine called CeciStyle. I launched it for this purpose to inspire brides everywhere to do something unique and fashion forward for their own events. Each week I send out a new issue which highlights a different theme that I'm inspired by. I highlight ways for you to get the look in your own way and make it easy for you to achieve enviable creative style!
Style Unveiled: What is the most unusual / unique paper product youve been asked to design?
Ceci: I like to think all my works are unusual but the two that top the charts are I once had a bride that wanted to walk on water. Literally, her aisle was to be a moat covered in plexi so she could walk down it. I thought how cool is that? And I transalated that water theme into the invitation. I printed on plexi and submerged the invite in water sealed with soft plastic so it wouldnt leak! Also for another great bride, I created a custom molded aluminum beach pebble paper weight that was engraved with their logo I created for them on the top and when flipped over I presented the save the date details! They were hand delivered in a light green velvet box personalized with each guests name. Incredible! In both of these examples, I didn't even use paper. So remember great ways to be unique is to go beyond paper. Mix in cool materials that apply to your wedding style. Like for a beach wedding try bamboo or rattan. I love to do mix media.
Style Unveiled: Do you have any projects in the works that you're really excited about? Tease us!
Ceci: I am constantly working on great new exciting things but some of my big favs I'm working on are the Emmy's. They actually lent one to me as inspiration. I have it sitting on my desk-kind of surreal. I'm also working on Reshma Shetty's wedding invitations. I'm a big fan of her hit TV show Royal Pains on USA Network. Really excited for her upcoming wedding.
Coffee or tea? Coffee
Starbucks or Tullys? Starbucks
Mittens or gloves? Gloves, preferably with a luxurious lining for extra warmth
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Reader Comments (1)
The invitations are very good .... nice work :)