Big Orange Designs is a custom stationery company owned by two graphic designers who, in recent years, have become wedding service providers for some of the community's most creative brides. After tying the knot, Ted and Lisa Treleaven turned the focus of their graphics company over to a fresh and rewarding cause – making over weddings, one piece of stationery at a time.
Big Orange Designs is contemporary and fresh at the same time. You can envision their stationery designs for a rock star wedding just as easily you could for an elegant, local one. So by offering stationery that is completely tailored to the look and feel of your own wedding, staff at The Ring took notice of how this boutique design firm is making a name for themselves in the local wedding industry, with glowing referrals and service that includes a little something extra. Let us explain...
A history of creativity
Ted and Lisa come from backgrounds in graphic design and customer service. Ted says designing wedding stationery allows him to let his 'creative juices flow'. For Lisa, it's as much about the people as it is about the designs. Big Orange Designs lets her feed off the energy of a bride and groom in love. It allows her to work with people and get involved in something that inspires her clients.
When Ted and Lisa were planning the details of their own wedding, they were disappointed to find that there weren't many appealing options when it came to their wedding stationery. Nothing was close to what they were envisioning, or who they were. "There was a void of fresh products available," and so - like entrepreneurs would - they created their own wedding stationery. From table and place cards, to menus and favour tags for their guests, Ted and Lisa found an entirely new outlet for their creativity.
After their own wedding day had come and gone, the couple began designing and printing stationery for their friends' weddings. As they provided this service to friends, they have received many, many compliments on their customized designs. That's when Ted and Lisa decided it was time to take things to the next level and bring something new to the stationery industry's table. They opened the doors of Big Orange Designs' wedding services in 2007 - complete with online stationery design galleries. They've now expanded their site to include full online shopping capabilities so you can choose, click and purchase all of your wedding stationery in the formats you want.
Feeling the love...
The first thing you need to know about Big Orange Designs is that they are fresh, enthusiastic and ready to take on stationery vision of each of their clients. That are constantly developing new designs and offering more choices to their couples. "You've gotta stay fresh!" they told us. "We aim to have the most cutting edge, current, styles and are always looking for a way to go above and beyond."
Laura Parker was married on June 21, 2008 and used Big Orange Designs for her wedding stationery. She told The Ring, "Going with Big Orange Designs was one of the best decisions we made in our whole wedding process. Ted and Lisa were absolutely fantastic. They were very easy-going and confident in their products, and they talked to us like I was the most important customer they had. I never felt like an inconvenience to them, and never felt like I was just another paying customer. They really made me feel special which made all the difference in the world... Because of the exceptional service we received from this company, we are planning on having all of our thank you cards printed through Big Orange Designs as well."
What will likely make the biggest difference for local brides, however, is their unique designs. You can see their Big Orange style coming a mile away, but not so much so that it overpowers the personality of the wedding in question. Laura loved her invitations designed by Big Orange Designs and says that she wasn't alone, "Can you believe I am still getting compliments on the invitations even now that our wedding is over? They were so unique and personalized just for us... Because we liked the invites so much, we also got Big Orange Designs to do our favours for us as well, which were chocolate bar wrappers that they had never done before. They worked hard to make them what we envisioned and even were able to keep the same theme as the invites and include a colour photo on them!! They looked so cute on the table and everyone loved them!"
Designing your day
Big Orange Designs can help you pull your wedding theme together in print. They do this by offering everything from ceremony programs and seating charts to invitations (in six different formats), place cards, favour tags, table numbers, menus, and among other things, thank you cards. All of these pieces are fully customizable if you choose, done in the theme that Ted and Lisa will work with you to create - one that's all your own. You can check out some of the many products Big Orange Designs offers to tie your wedding theme together by clicking here. Ted and Lisa say they can work with you to create a package that best suits your needs and ensures you get the most out of their skills. "Without giving any of our trade secrets away, we make a practice of giving each client a 'little extra something'," they told us.
Ted and Lisa offer the option to choose from their sample design ideas - such as 'ballroom' and 'pampered', seen online - or to start from scratch, creating a custom design that suits your personality and wedding theme. Ted and Lisa are the first to claim, proudly, that "there is nothing generic about what we offer." They break with tradition and provide the bride and groom with a design outlet, allowing them to have a hand in the design while still getting professionally designed stationery. Couples will love this company if they want contemporary designs combined with elegance, personality and style.
"We use the highest quality paper and materials in our invitations," Ted told us, including some post-consumer recycled paper. Much of Big Orange's stationery is printed in-house to ensure great results. They also work with reputable and dependable local printers, holding them to the highest standards.
Easy Online Ordering
The Big Orange Designs website now features an area where clients can login and browse various stationery options that take place during the creation process, making it convenient for the busy bride and groom. These options include font styles and invitation and ceremony program scripting. When purchasing stationery online, "a form takes you through the process step-by-step and allows you to purchase directly through PayPal or by credit card. The beauty of this process is that a couple can order online anytime they want!"
Budgeting for creativity
Pricing will of course depend on how much or how little you want Big Orange Designs to do for you. Ted and Lisa say that for a wedding of 100 people you should budget about $500 to $600, "but we've done basic wedding packages for as little as $2 per guest." Wedding website fees range from $5 per month for hosting, to design rates based on how elaborate your website will be.
"We offer a variety of price points for our clients to suit any budget and make the process as easy as possible," say Ted and Lisa.
Ted and Lisa will work with the couple to come up with a design they love and that suits their wedding. Additional design fees may apply if a request goes beyond the norm, but Ted and Lisa say they will surely give fair warning if that was anticipated. Big Orange Designs says they can work with the couple at any stage of the planning process. Because they prefer to get the finished product to the couple two weeks prior to the date needed, they recommend you book them a minimum of four to six months in advance.
A few of The Ring's favourite things...
Introducing…D.I.Y.? Why? This is a brand new line of wedding invitations that are sharp, savvy and will save you money, without the hassle of a D.I.Y. project. Choose from many different patterns that are available in a wide variety of colours and you can even choose your font styles and options can be seen online by clicking here. This is Big Orange Designs' most budget friendly invitation line (and one of their most popular!), starting at $2.99/set. Each set includes the invitation, RSVP and both envelopes. These invitations still give couples a wide variety of styles, colours and fonts to choose from while taking the stress of printing them themselves out of the equation! What could be easier?!
Big Orange goes green...Environmentally minded couples now have the option of using 100% post-consumer fibre paper (recycled paper). This offer is subject to availability.
Fun, funky and unique place card holders!
Place your custom designed place cards in a lavish and unique place card holder. It adds personality and flair to your table, and performs double duty as a little something your guests can take home as well. Consider, for example, luggage tags designed with your guests' name. This can be used as the napkin holder at the table, the place card AND the favour they take home. Stylish, savvy and budget friendly!
Biodegradable ribbon!
Did you know that BIODEGRADABLE RIBBON is available in a wide variety of colours and textures? So now, not only can you have earth friendly papers used in your invitations and stationery, but your ribbon accents can be "green" as well! Add SPARKLE to your invitation with our new line rhinestone buckles! Square, oval, diamond, circle or heart shapeds available. Miniumum quanities may apply, ask for details.
Details, details, details
• Because so much can be done online with Big Orange Designs, including choosing your design, inputting the details and submitting payment, they can work with you to custom design stationery even if you're elsewhere in North America, as well as personal meetings for those who are local.
• Book them at least 4 to 6 months ahead of your wedding to ensure enough time for the design and print of your stationery.
• A non-refundable 50% deposit is required at booking; the remaining balance is due once the artwork/proof has been approved and prior to printing.
• Additional design fees may apply.
• Invitations will be delivered within 1 to 3 weeks from receiving the balance depending on the production time involved.
• View their wedding package details online.
In other words...
"The stationery carried the entire wedding. From the unique foreshadowing of the invitation in the mail, to the bright and colourful table presentation that delighted ones senses as a guest. We loved how each place setting, from the menu to the name tags, felt individual to us as guests. We even noted how a couple special menus had been customized for fun for the children and certain "very special" family members! As a guest, that has experienced a complete stationery package created by Big Orange Designs, we can honestly say that the attention to detail and creativity made the day an "experience" that we will always fondly remember over and above many other weddings we have attended." - Lisa & Fred, married in Kitchener
"So happy with our invitations, and our Wedding day was further beautified by your stunning menus, place cards and wedding favours. We really loved how your invitations matched perfectly the colours and feel of not only our wedding, but us as individuals. John and I thank you so much for the extra care and personal touch you showed. We've received so many complements on our invitations, we highly, HIGHLY recommend you to any Bride and Groom looking for unique and personal style! As you said "We try to exceed your expectations." well you certainly did. " - Michelle & John Davean
"Getting our invitations and favour sleeves through Big Orange Designs was one of the best decisions we ever made. Throughout the entire process I felt like we were their number one priority, our ideas were always taken into consideration and we were consulted every step of the way. The final products were absolutely spectacular and made our special day that much more memorable. Thank you Big Orange Designs for your fantastic work!!!" - Laura & Rees
"Big Orange Designs were very easy going and great to work with. We had a small wedding and a tight schedule and they were able to design an invitation that was completely custom... one of a kind, right on time with our schedule!! They had excellent design ideas and also incorporated some of our ideas to come up with a great product. Not only did we love our invitations, but so did all of our guests! Big Orange Designs made our wedding planning easier because of the work they did for us. We will be recommending them to our friends!!" - Tammy & Matt
"Hannah and I just wanted to say how excited we were to receive our invitations! They look even better than we were expecting. All our guests have commented on how wonderful they look! Your willingness to meet with us and help design our invitations was greatly appreciated! Before meeting with you the invitations were something we were anxious and nervous about. With you, the experience has been something we both really enjoyed!" - Scott & Hannah
"Thank you very much for the super fast delivery of our wonderful wedding invitations. They look amazing. It was great doing business with you. So easy, fast and professional. Amazing work!" - Diana Dietz (soon to be Connors!)
