pure custom stationery magic at the villa balbiano

throwback to 2020 and right before covid started! i can't believe it's been 5 years since this magical shoot came together.

i can't believe i got to have my pieces photographed at the amazing Villa Balbiano! this is one of the "world's most expensive venues", it is situated off of Lake Como in Italy. an absolutely stunning venue, as you can see in the pictures below.

shooting my pieces here was actually a last minute change-up, and boy, what a glow-up for my pieces! this is definitely the fanciest my paper goods have ever been. wowie. i can't remember what my pieces were going to do originally, i think they were going to fly to italy for another styled shoot, but man - this last minute shoot that Justine from Greater Good Events did with Karen Obrist Photography at the Villa Balbiano really blows everything i've ever done out of the water.

my dreams are made of this venue. can you imagine being able to walk through these grounds yourself? the peace and beauty that you would enjoy seems amazing.

this was actually a simple set of custom paper goods that i designed, on the premise of a simple private elopement dinner for a couple. i designed the menu, a custom calligraphy piece, and a two place cards.

i wrote the couple's names out on the menu, along with the date to memorialize it, on top of simple watercolor painting that i did - i love the colors that were used and how they tied into the lovely napkins that Justine brought along for their custom elopement dinner (i mean, look at those (imaginary) four courses - yum!) and of course, i made the couple's name interact with the little crossover between the 's' & the 'm'. love making custom wedding pieces for couples and figuring out how their names work together!

i did simple place cards with watercolor on the back again. oh, how i miss making place cards these days! i gotta figure out how i can get that back into my workflow...

for the calligraphy piece, this is my first piece in another language! it is a poem by the italian poet Francesco Petrarca. i loved how i did it on a bold yellow, and how that interacted with the other pink painted pieces, and tied it all perfectly with the flowers & the building colors at the Villa Balbiano.

all in all, this is such a stunning shoot for me to look at still! i can't believe i was a part of this. the only thing that would have made this better is if i had stayed at the venue for a whole week with my family while i put all the pieces together - a girl can wish, haha!

huge thanks to Justine & Karen for making this magic shoot happen at one of the most beautiful places on earth. what an honor to make custom wedding stationery, and i can't believe the place it's taken my work!

styling & concept: Justine Broughal at Greater Good Events
photographer: Karen Obrist Photography
venue: Villa Balbiano