Why Sharing Is Not Always Caring - Invites + Disneyland

Photo Credit: Dipp Photography  (And before you say anything...don't fret. This is a sample.)

I've always been surprised at the countless photos on Instagram or Facebook that have invitations to weddings and parties that haven't happened yet. It makes me cringe. I begin to panic and have terrible images floating in my head of wedding crashers, uninvited family, friends or coworkers appearing at the event expecting a seat and a meal to boot. OR EVEN WORSE... EX's and ILL WISHERS (aka Haters) who want only to ruin one of the most important days in a couple's life. 

This is such a concern to couples. So much so that I was having a conversation about it with a group of vendors the other day and, surprisingly, some didn't think it was such a big deal. This is when I brought up something that I'm going to tell you about and it all has to do with Walt Disney and Disneyland's Opening Day. 

Photo Credit: Loomis Dean / Time & Life Pictures / Getty Pictures

Yup, you would think even back in the 50's, Walt Disney would have crossed his i's and dotted his t's when it came to the opening of his brand new park, Disneyland. Truth be told, no one had ever created a park like this. There were no guidelines, just a guy making one big dream come true (literally). Needless to say, there was a ton of buzz about the opening and 6,000 private invitations were sent out to people of the press, studio workers, sponsors, construction workers and their families.

On July 17, 1955, more than 30,000 guests walked through the gates of Disneyland to encounter more than just a food shortage problem. Counterfeit tickets had been sold and there was even a story about a newspaper reporter printing the invitation to the event on the front page of their paper a few days before the event. Needless to say that the extra influx of uninvited guests amongst other issues that occurred that day made for a disastrous moment in Disney history. As we can now see today, they were able to make it through that day, but not without it's pitfalls. 

Hence, this is why I don't post invitations prior to our client's events. I may post a small sneak peek or process photos, but I try my best not to let the cat out of the bag by posting specific details. By doing so, I am able to keep my social media fresh while also showing you all the hard work that goes into creating these important pieces to your big day. 

We Are Live!! 🎉 Our Rebrand 2017

After countless days planning and dreaming, the day is finally here. 😁  I am finally unveiling our new branding and website, today, August 1, 2017. To think that over two months ago, all of this was a thought and now it's a reality. Well, I guess you've waited long enough, no?

Here's our new logo!! 🎉

I am totally in love with this new look. For starters, the fluid flow of the text is exactly what we were looking for when trying to represent this new stage in our business. Keeping it clean, but hit with a hint of "magic" this logo is giving me all the feels.✨  "With great power, comes great responsibility"...no no no. Wrong quote. LoL. Actually, there are two quotes from one of my favorites that would be appropriate to share today. 

“We keep moving forward, opening new doors, and doing new things, because we’re curious and curiosity keeps leading us down new paths.”

— Walt Disney

...and lest I forget..

“All our dreams can come true, if we have the courage to pursue them.”

— Walt Disney

Funny enough amongst all of the encouraging, sweet quotes and prints I have in my office, I actually have a similar photo to the one above. The only difference is that Uncle Walt (most Disney fans do this....calling Walt Disney "Uncle Walt". It's totally ok...) is standing beside a plot of land that at that time was known as the secretive "Florida Project". And although in a slightly faded, colored shadow, an image of Cinderella's Castle from Walt Disney World can be seen hovering on the immense plot of land. Why do I bring this up? 

Because we don't know the great work we are capable of and sometimes it takes a village (literally) to make you see the great potential there is in change. Change is scary, but if we don't change, we won't grow. We will stay stagnant in our pot of dirt and won't grow to our fullest potential.

One more thing, a little bit of scripture that been on my heart and I've shared before on the blog. 

“Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.”

— Joshua 1:9 (NIV), Bible

+

“For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.”

— Jeremiah 29:11 (NIV), Bible

There is this funny saying that goes, "We make plans, God laughs". Most will take it in a sarcastic sense making it seem God thinks of us as stupid humans. I think of it differently. For anyone who has small kiddos in their life, there are moments in a learning experience where they are stubbornly trying to fit a square peg into where a circle peg should go. The adult will chuckle to themselves in a loving manner and try to show them the right way to do it. A lot of times, we aren't paying attention to the path God has thoughtfully carved out for us. Instead, we try to make our own way and wonder why "NO" appears at every dead end.

My encouragement to you today is to know that we all have our struggle figuring out what we are supposed to do in life. Let God light the path. He has the best lit path anyone could dream of.

And before I finish this post up, there are a few thank you's that need to be said.

Charisma - You helped make this happen!! Thank you for doing what I could not do for myself. Your insight and  really pushed me to think outside the box and be okay with doing away with some of the fluff that didn't belong.

Family + Friends - The ones that saw and encouraged this change and step in the right direction. Whether it was with your words or through your actions. You guys are my biggest cheerleaders and I'm so lucky to have a supportive tribe like ours.

Friendors - There is a small group of folks I want to thank that encouraged me before and through this process. Some of you told me the truth, without bumpers or any cushion for me to fall back on. You provided honest feedback and steps to better this sweet babe of mine. You know who you are. I've probably already told you "Thank you" more than anyone should...but again I say thank you. 🥑 🦄 

...and last but not least...

Gus - Kid, this is a big step for the both of us. As I sit here and type this...I am literally struck with emotion. Kid, we are no longer "Almost There". WE ARE THERE!! I love you more than words and am so excited to see what is over than next horizon.

So without anymore mushy feels and sweet words, I say with my best Arnold Schwarzenegger accent, "What are you waiting for? GO CHECK OUT THE WEBSITE NOW!! DO IT NOW!!!"

Stationary VS Stationery

There has been a battle brewing in the wedding and events industry that some of you might not know about. It is something that has been seen by some as a common mistake and a major faux pas by others. So much so that memes and products have popped up addressing the issue.

Do I have you at the edge of your seat? Are you dying to know what I'm talking about? I'll give you a clue below...

This great pillow created by Elizabeth at Pomp Creative can be purchased on her ETSY Shop. Click the image to purchase now.

That's right. The issue that has been plaguing countless Facebook Groups and subjects of frustration amongst vendors has been how the word stationary/stationery is written when used in the context of invitations and paper goods. Just in case you don't know, stationary is when someone or something is completely still; not moving. Stationery is used to describe products used for writing such as paper, pens, pencils, and ink. It has actually gotten some folks pretty upset when one mistakenly uses stationary instead of stationery.

You may be reading this and thinking, "These people are nuts for being offended that I mistakenly misspelled the word. It's a common and honest mistake." Well, I mean wouldn't you be slightly peeved if someone misspelled your name? Truth be told, I made this mistake in our business within our first year. Needless to say after I began to learn more about this industry and what a privilege it was to create these treasured paper goods, I quickly made the change to the correct spelling of my occupation.

Any who, for those of you passing through and thinking this is silly, here's some expert food for thought.  If not, just remember recheck that spelling before you send that email or social media status. 

Change is Coming...

Yes, yes, I know...I'm getting Game of Throne Fans excited by my blog title. Truth be told, neither Gus or I are into Game of Thrones (don't throw your computer to the wall just yet), but felt like this title, in a sense borrowing the sentiment of #winteriscoming, was really appropriate.

Back to why we've taken you away from your regularly scheduled social media scroll break. We have some news and it's about time we told you about it. We have been in business for almost 6 years. Trust me when I say that there has been a lot of blood, sweat, and hard work (okay okay...tears too) that have gone into everything we've done since starting on this journey in 2011. But like any good movie plot, change is immenent young padawan (total Star Wars reference...look it up). 

Change can be scary, but so needed. After taking some time and reevaluating everything from our branding, logo design, website, and presence in general, I think I should tell you about some changes that will be taking place in our company.

OUR BRANDING AND LOGO DESIGN

Although it went through a slight redesign, the logo you see today was as it was at the beginning of our company; from the text written in my hand writing and the fountain pen that many of you have probably been puzzled about. Our branding elements like the wood background and accents that were purely from a photo taken of our dining room table (that we still have). The electric blue color throughout our branding was a random idea that I thought was needed. 

All of this imagery just doesn't feel right anymore.

OUR WEBSITE

When the needs of your project changes, so do the tools in your tool belt. Our website has always been a great tool for our us to communicate not only what our business does but who we are. We have been brainstorming and making moves to provide more services to benefit the experience that you, the client, will be receiving. This means we need to expand and change the way our website is coded, shaped, and make sure we are using to its fullest potential.

....which brings me to our biggest change....

OUR ROLES IN THE COMPANY

As a lot of you may know, Gus and I work as a husband and wife team. Although we have probably mentioned it in conversation, we haven't specified our roles in the company (which is totally our fault). We both feel it's important to be totally transparent with y'all if we haven't discussed it before.

I, Monique, handle all of the day to day work from answering emails, putting together invoices, and running our social media accounts. I also am the only designer and customer service representative that will not only walk you through the process but be a source of knowledge and comedic relief when things aren't always going right in your planning. 

Gus is responsible for our back end. He is the one that keeps track of our accounting and finance department. Gus is my biggest supporter and has been known to be my minion when in need of another set of hands to complete an order.

For these reasons and others, Gus is taking a step back in terms of presence in our social media accounts and other aspects of the business. So, in a sense, it will be I, Monique, that you will hear from and interact with on a daily basis. But don't freak out, our relationship is fine. I'm still going to include the emotionally, sappy posts that I know you guys love seeing (and I love sharing) about us as a couple. We just want to be clear on why Gus won't be as visual in the future.

After watching YOU PANIC A LITTLE, LET ME EASE YOUR MIND BY TELLING YOU WHAT WE AREN't changing...

OUR MISSION

I genuinely feel like our mission is to serve couples by helping them create beautiful, custom invitations and paper goods. There is a reason why a light bulb went off in my head after our wedding. Ultimately, WE WERE NOT THE ONLY ONES WHO STRUGGLED DESIGNING THEIR DREAM INVITATIONS. So many of you are in that struggle right now (or were until we helped make that wish come true). You should be able to have a design you love and treasure as something that tells the epic story of your prequel. Like Episodes 1-3 of Star Wars, your children and their children's children will want to know the details of how you two came together. Your invitation is a great way to help tell that story.

With all of that said, I hope you keep along with our journey to see whats in the future for Only One Mark, Inc. Change will come along slowly (or all at once), but one thing remains: our mission to create your dream stationery for your big day. 

Until next time!