Vanessa Williams Wedding: Peeling back perfection with Adorn Invitations

Vanessa Williams and Jim Skrip’s serendipitous encounter took place on the Nile River in Egypt. Despite the fact that they both lived in New York State it was here, three continents from home, that they found love and each other.

Although three years have now passed the sights, sounds and rich imagery of their first meeting are forever etched in this couple’s memory. It was therefore only natural that this enchanting landscape would be the inspiration for their wedding.

Adorn Invitations take on Vanessa & Jim

Vanessa and Jim needed a company that would capture the essence of their story and craft that into an invitation worthy of their love. Adorn Invitations, a British company, were the perfect choice for this.

Their stunning invitations, which are made with such intricacy and detail, ooze with personality. The company’s mantra centres on their ability to make every invitation unique and that is exactly what they did with Vanessa and Jim’s invitations.

The Invitations: Inspired by the Pharaoh’s of Egypt

After an epic three-month journey, fuelled by the moving story of Vanessa and Jim, the Adorn creative team came up with a design that Vanessa herself describes “a work of art”.

The custom crafted design was inspired by the golden tones of the Egyptian landscape, Marsala roses and the iconic Lotus flower symbol. Starting from hand sketches, the Adorn designers created an intricate shape which when multiplied created a seamless pattern for the design. Coupled with the gold metallic shimmer paper, these 586 small shapes made for a stunning covering pocket that represented the intricate detailing of Vanessa’s dress. To complete this covering, Vanessa and Jim’s initials are carved into the centrefold of this pocket.

This exquisite invitation is rich, in all its elements, with a sense of occasion. The cursive and gold-foiled lettering pressed into the rich Marsala paper brings a sense of excitement just to see it.

The finishing touch on this beautiful invitation is the 14 carat gold lotus applied on the gate of the enclosure. This symbol is used to represent the triumph of love, as the flower blooms from murky waters overcoming its surroundings so too does love. It is a symbol of fortune and of purifying the sprit and nothing could be more akin to Vanessa and Jim’s story.

The detailing of this invitation from the custom gold lining down to the pressed wax stamp has turned something, which could be so simple, into a work of art. There can be little doubt that Adorn have, once again, lived up to their mantra in creating something exquisitely personal to Vanessa and Jim.

• adorninvitations.co.uk