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Guys, sometimes being a married editor of a wedding website means that I bump into things that give me a big ol' case of the “wish I hads.” This “wish I could have” is brought to you by the nautical-themed wedding invitation designs of our sponsor Concertina Press. I had a beach wedding, and it was hard to find beach-y invitations that weren't super dull. And while I still think my invites were rad, I took one look at this octopus invitation and went “DAMN! WANT!”
Concertina Press creates nautically-inspired wedding invitations and stationery, using antique scientific illustrations of cool sea creatures like jellyfish, octopus, squid, sea snails, and even (my personal faves!) sharks.
Whether you're having an elaborate Cape Cod yacht club wedding, an intimate beachside ceremony, or a quirky wedding at an aquarium, Concertina Press has just the invitation design for you. Let's dive in…
Ruth Bleakley, the owner/designer of Concertina Press, used to work at the scientific library at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute, cataloging and scanning 200-year-old journals. Fast forward a few years later and she's working as a wedding invite designer at a stationery store…
The local scientists getting married would come in looking for something nautical, but different, and I felt like they didn't have too many options with the template software we had: “How about… this flip flop? No? Lighthouse?” When that stationery store closed in 2011, I started my own line, Concertina Press, to fill the niche of unusual, beautiful, nautical wedding invitations and stationery.
It's not all science, tentacles, and creatures with Ruth's designs. Concertina Press also has more generic “beachy” invitations, that could work with all types of weddings. I love the waves design (that also would have been perfect for my wedding, ARG!). The Cape Cod map is perfect for destination wedding. There's even this adorable blue pennant design that's great for non-beach weddings!
If you've somehow looked around the Concertina Press shop and still haven't found the right invitation for your shindig, that's okay! Ruth takes on custom design projects. Her last request was for a “tasteful shark design” — now that's a couple after my own heart. That also gives me another one of those “wish I had” moments.
While I sit here, nursing a bad case of the “wish I hads,” you should head over to Concertina Press and go for a blissful swim in this ocean of nautical wedding invitations.
About the Author: Megan Finley Horowitz
When Megan's not writing, traveling, and sleeping, she's eating like the fate of the world depends on it. (You're welcome, world!) You can snoop into her personal life over on her website The Dash and Dine!
My partner would have absolutely flipped for these. They are stunning. I would have bought the whole suite. Just amazing.
Hey Megan — I’ve got the “wish I hads” cure right here. Have them customized as anniversary announcements, Christmas cards, regular thank you cards, etc. These are amazing!
LOVE!!! I want them ALL. And to that end, I know what everyone is getting for Christmas this year in hopes that they will send me one of their cards & I can frame them all. Evil genius plan is a go!
Ooh, that is SMART.
We got married on the Moshulu in Philadelphia and I fell in love with one of their octopus invites. We printed everything ourselves and they were beautiful. Ruth’s customer service was amazing and she always replied to questions quickly. Highly recommend!
I used holiday cards from this shop a few years ago and everyone loved them (seahorses with rudolph noses and antlers). My bf’s last name sounds like “seahorse” so it was cute. I would definitely consider buying more things from here (like invites).
These are too gorgeous! Does anyone know of other scientific sketch type invites that go with other areas of nature (birds, forest, mountains, etc.) ?
Beauty beauty!