Love, Romance and Street Fighter?

If you know who E. Honda, Blanka and Chun Li are, I'm guessing either you or your significant other is a Street Fighter fan. I had the unexpected pleasure of being schooled in Street Fighter characters when I created custom stationery pieces for a bride and groom for their out-of-the-box wedding celebration.

Beginning with the couple's invitation, I designed a simple Street Fighter-inspired power bar featuring the names of the bride and groom (as opposing players), wedding date, and a single white heart and red infinity symbol to complete the look. The tag was attached to a wraparound belly band that easily slid off the pale gold pocketfold.

The interior of the invitation is where we mixed it up a bit. The couple's wedding coordinator, Mona Hirata of Weddings by Grace and Mona, suggested that we find a way to reflect the bride/groom's medical profession. This is what transpired:

I have fun designing all of my clients' invitations, but this particular invitation was SO much fun! It's hard to make out the details in the photo, but in the yellow section off to the right, I included cute little warnings like "Do Not Read While Intoxicated" and "May Cause Excessive Happiness." With the main invitation designed as a prescription label, it only made sense to design the response card to look like a doctor's prescription.

For the ceremony, I designed reserved seating cards and programs that incorporated the wedding colors of gold and deep red. For the reception, well, this is where things got crazy! Traditional table numbers were swapped for fancier cards featuring different Street Fighter characters. Allow me to introduce you to dear, sweet Blanka:

These images were taken from the custom bar menu that I designed for their signature cocktails:

The groom supplied the character images and I was given the freedom to interpret the rest of the design in anyway I wanted. What a gift to be given carte blanche on this fun job! The last piece I produced for the wedding involved printing the same powerbar from the invitation, but as an oversized 6-ft foamcore sign. It hung inside the reception room as the backdrop to the couple's Street Fighter tournament. Yup, that's right...video games, large screens, tons of fun. I didn't get to see the giant sign in person as it went directly from the printshop to the hotel, but I'm sure it was the perfect finishing touch for this awesome wedding!

Ocean inspiration

Back in December I received an email inquiry from a bride who wanted to incorporate a painting by a local Kailua artist into her wedding invitation. I asked her to send me the link to the artist's website and instantly fell in love with the gorgeous print that she had in mind:


"Ebb and Flow" by Colin Redican

We had a tight production timeline so I had the bride contact the artist, Colin Redican, right away to seek permission to reprint. A day later, I forwarded a copy of the invitation mock-up for his review and with his swift approval, printing was underway! The couple's beachside wedding and affinity for the ocean was reflected perfectly in this beautiful print.

I'll have a sample of this custom oversized 7"x7" invitation on display in the Emi Ink booth at the Hawaii Wedding Expo (April 29-30 @ the Hawaii Convention Center).

A little aloha for Japan

So much can happen in a month's time. A few weeks ago, I started a mental log of all the wonderful things I wanted to blog about. Unusual design inspirations, cool clients, fun events happening about town. I had so much to say, but I was waiting for the perfect moment to catch my breath before I could put pen to paper.

Then news came of the Japan earthquake and devastating tsunami. Although most of us in Hawaii were able to count our blessings in those early morning hours, our hearts went out to all those suffering in Japan. The personal stories of tragedy and triumph across the Pacific have inspired an outpouring of sympathy and charitable contributions. Every donation, small and large, can make a difference and in an effort to aid in Japan's recovery, Emi Ink will be donating 5% of all orders booked throughout the month of April to the Aloha for Japan campaign.

To my faithful readers, I encourage you to help in anyway you can. If not with a monetary donation, then with a prayer of support. And to our friends in Japan, 頑張って!