YFK’s Last Weddings

Last fall, I had the privilege of designing signage for two incredible weddings: Emily & Andrew and Sara & Jonathan. Coincidentally, both celebrations took place during my favorite season, both leaned into warm rusty oranges somewhere in their palettes, and both reminded me exactly why I fell in love with creating custom wedding signage in the first place.

Beyond those similarities, though, they couldn't have been more different. One celebrated a shared love of music and meaningful family artistry. The other embraced the quiet romance of late autumn and the natural beauty of its venue. Each couple trusted me to create something that felt uniquely theirs; not something copied from Pinterest or inspired by the latest trend, but something rooted in their own story.

As it turns out, these also became my final client-based wedding projects. I couldn't imagine a better way to wrap up this chapter. Both weddings gave me the opportunity to stretch creatively, lean heavily into illustration, experiment with new techniques, and create work that feels like such a fitting finale to this season of this branch of my business.

E&A: Let Your Wedding Look Like You

One of my favorite parts of designing wedding signage has always been helping couples realize they don't have to follow trends just because everyone else is. The best weddings aren't the ones that look the most like Instagram. They're the ones that feel unmistakably like the people getting married. Emily and Andrew understood that from the very beginning.

Rather than chasing whatever happened to be popular, they wanted to celebrate the things that already mattered to them. Music has always been a huge part of their relationship, and they also had something incredibly special that many couples don't: a talented family member who created their engagement artwork, save the dates, and invitations.

Instead of treating those pieces as separate moments, we decided to let them become the foundation for the entire wedding experience.

Held at Shannopin Country Club in September with around 150 guests, their palette blended rich navies, warm rusts, creams, and soft oranges; classic, romantic colors that paired beautifully with the custom illustrations. From there, we built an experience around the details.

Their table numbers became miniature CD cases featuring favorite artists and song lyrics. Guests found their seats on a magnetic seating chart complete with removable magnetic place cards. The welcome sign introduced the day with the same typography and illustration style already established in their invitations, making every detail feel connected from beginning to end. Because this was never about making "wedding signs." It was about extending their story into every corner of the celebration.

One of my favorite parts of this project was finding ways to honor the artwork their family member had already created. Rather than competing with it, I wanted everything I designed to celebrate it. It also gave me permission to try ideas I'd never explored before. The CD table numbers became one of my favorite concepts I've ever created, and this project was my first real opportunity to experiment with paint pens on acrylic. There's something incredibly satisfying about learning a new technique while simultaneously creating something that couldn't belong to anyone else.

S&J: Designing for the Place as Much as the People

Where Emily and Andrew's wedding centered around personal history, Sara and Jonathan's story began with a place. Glass on Enchanted Acres already feels magical on its own, and they wanted every design element to complement (not compete with) that atmosphere. Their vision leaned into romantic late-autumn colors: layered rusts, earthy sage greens, soft florals, and an overall feeling that the signage simply belonged there.

Their wedding, held in November for approximately 250 guests, included signage for nearly every major guest touchpoint - from the rehearsal dinner welcome sign and ceremony entrance to the seating chart, signature cocktails, guestbook instructions, and welcome displays.

Rather than relying on bold graphics, this collection became an exercise in illustration. Large hand-painted florals framed several pieces, while delicate line work tied everything together across the suite. Even the "His & Hers" cocktail sign became an opportunity to hand-illustrate each drink. This project pushed me creatively in an entirely different direction than the last. Instead of experimenting with paint pens, I picked up brushes. Instead of creating playful music-inspired pieces, I focused on layering oversized florals and building depth through hand-painted illustration. It challenged me to think differently, and I absolutely loved watching each sign slowly come to life.

Closing This Chapter

To every couple who trusted me with your wedding signage over the past several years...Thank you. Thank you for inviting me into one of the biggest days of your lives. Thank you for trusting me with your ideas, your stories, your Pinterest boards, your color palettes…with this huge piece of your love story.

Creating for weddings taught me more than I ever expected. It strengthened my illustration skills. It challenged me to solve creative problems. It introduced me to incredible vendors and even more incredible people. But it also taught me something equally valuable: Not every chapter is meant to last forever. As my business has evolved, so has the type of work that energizes me most. And with that said, the next version of this creativity isn't disappearing; it's simply changing shape.

Today, I'm far more interested in creating immersive, strategic signage for businesses and community spaces. Signage and displays that become part of the customer experience rather than exist for a single day. A bar sign that doubles as an herb planter. A boutique welcome display that changes with the seasons. Window installations that become storage. Venue-owned seating charts that can celebrate hundreds of couples, not just one.

I love the idea of creating pieces that continue telling stories long after an event ends. They're more sustainable, more strategic, and, if I'm being completely honest, they also fit me better. Wedding work carries a unique kind of pressure. Some of it is real. Some of it lives entirely inside my own head. Either way, I've realized I do my best creative thinking when I focus on building experiences rather than worrying about perfection. Maybe that's something I'll continue unpacking in therapy. But for now, it simply feels like the right next step. And I couldn't have asked for two more meaningful projects to close this chapter.

The medium may be changing, but the mission hasn't: to create spaces that help people feel something the moment they arrive.

Keep loving, and keep creating,