Best of 2018: Invitations + Gatherings

Happy New Year! My kids go back to school today, which means I finally get to go back to work – yay! I’m planning some big changes here at Oh So Beautiful Paper this year, so I wanted to start the year off by looking back at some of my favorite features from 2018. And of course, I had to start with some of my favorite invitations and gatherings from the year. It’s also sort of a mini trend round up of the year and a peek forward at some trends I’m anticipating for 2019. Let’s take a look!

Deckle Edge Paper and Vellum

If I had to describe 2018 invitation trends in just two words, it would probably be vellum and handmade paper. Both are incredibly romantic on their own, but are even more powerful in combination. I’m excited to see more of these trends in 2019!

Romantic Calligraphy Wedding Invitations on Handmade Paper by Plume Calligraphy

Romantic Calligraphy Wedding Invitations on Handmade Paper by Plume Calligraphy

Minimalist Type-Driven Deckle Edge Wedding Invitations by Every Little Letter

Minimalist Type-Driven Wedding Invitations on Handmade Paper by Every Little Letter

Soft Neutrals

After several years of really bright color, neutrals made a comeback in a big way this year – along with a return to classic type-driven designs. I’m loving the subtle tone-on-tone effect of mixing several neutral shades together and playing around with different ink colors. 

Modern Minimalist Wedding Invitations by Owl Post Calligraphy

Neutral Modern Minimalist Wedding Invitations by Owl Post Calligraphy

Understated Blush and Teal Wedding Invitations by Designed by Jaclyn

Minimalist Patterns and Colorful Paper

I found myself very drawn to abstract shapes, minimalist design details, and incorporating colorful paper into invitation designs – like the simple hand painted brush stroke on our Friendsgiving invitations and white foil on deep green paper for the Paper Party 2018 invitations. These weren’t big trends in 2018, but I think the colorful paper in particular will be a major trend in 2019. We’ll see!

Minimalist Hand Painted Friendsgiving Invitations by Bare Ink Co.

Minimalist hand painted Friendsgiving invitations by Bare Ink Co. / Styling by Oh So Beautiful Paper

Modern Minimalist Invitations with White Foil on Green Paper

Paper Party 2018 Modern Minimalist Invitations / Design by Ramona & Ruth, Printing by Bella Figura on Legion Paper Colorplan paper, Styling by Oh So Beautiful Paper

Pastel Mudcloth Inspired Wedding Invitations by Twinkle & Toast

Pastel Mudcloth Wedding Invitations by Twinkle & Toast

Those are my favorites for 2018, but let’s talk! What do you think? Did I miss any of your favorite trends? Do you agree with me on the trends going into 2019? If you’re a stationer, are you excited to incorporate colorful paper into some of your designs – either for invitations or other custom stationery? I really want to know!