Wedding invitations do so much more than relay the who, what, when and where of the upcoming nuptials, they provide the first taste of a couple’s big day — and then crystallize that experience for posterity. And no one understands this better than Madaline Goodnuff of Sugarhouse Stationery.
“My goal is to help create the feeling of your day through my art and design, and capture it on paper,” she describes. “That way, the feeling, energy, and pure essence of your wedding day is held forever in your stationery. You feel it as we move through the design process, and your guests see it when they open their envelopes.”
A Pennsylvania native, Madaline, who also goes by Maddie, graduated from the Communications Design program at Syracuse University and then began designing for a Vermont snowboarding company. She moved with her husband and dog to New Hampshire … and the wedding bug bit her after she took a weekend job at a wedding venue and got to witness a wide breadth of festivities firsthand. Then Maddie herself got engaged … and she began daydreaming about her own wedding stationery.
“At that time, my day job was focused on creating Print collateral, so I was well versed in the technical side of creating print projects. And when I realized I could design my own invitations, it opened the floodgates for ideas. At first, I was overwhelmed because I could really create anything!” Maddie recalled. “But, I took a step back and approached the project like any other; I used our red barn venue and our wedding day vibe as my inspiration and went from there.”
And by January 2016, a stationery business was born. Having lived all over New England, the natural world shapes Sugarhouse Stationery’s creations. “I definitely feel more alive when I’m immersed in nature. The scent of the woods does something to me; it makes me feel at peace and inspired, which lets the creativity flow. I start with a more natural, rustic aesthetic. When a client wants something specific incorporated, I take inspiration from their venue, their look and feel, their colors, and the feeling they want the guests to have at their wedding. I immerse myself in that, and then move forward with those factors in mind so that whatever I create reflects them and their wedding vibe the most.”
Maddie tailors each suite to the couple’s vibe, not the other way around. “Some couples come to me with a very specific look in mind,” she noted. “If they have no idea of what they are looking for, I start with what their wedding looks like in their mind. I ask them all sorts of questions, and their answers usually give me a good direction.”
Who does Maddie look to when it comes to print fulfillment? TOG.ink! “I am in love with the multiple print processes TOG.ink offers!” she enthused. “It elevates my offerings and capabilities to my clients as well as the design itself. I just worked on a project that’s in production right now that I can’t wait to see. The invitation has THREE print processes included in just that one piece: a blind deboss hit, a sage ink letterpress hit, and a gold foil hit to finish it off! The florals in the design are all blind debossed — I just can’t wait to see the textures those shapes create!”
The TOG.ink ordering process is “a breeze,” Maddie described. “All I need to do is set up my print files, upload them, choose my colors, my paper, and my quantity, and viola! I’m set! It’s obvious that they’ve streamlined their ordering process to make it very user friendly. I love how quick and easy it is.”
While Maddie’s graphic design background is essential to her business, TOG.ink’s customer service representatives make the entire process a snap. “If I ever have any questions about anything, they point me in the right direction quickly and easily,” she explained.
With TOG.ink as her partner, Maddie’s imagination can run free. “Having the ability to combine print methods allows me endless opportunity for more creative designs. I have a bold, colorful style, and their printing capabilities allow me to highlight the aesthetic I love and capture those clients who align with that look and feel! It’s been amazing to have them in my corner as my print vendor to allow me this evolution of the designs for my brand.”
As TOG.ink’s offerings expand (as they constantly do), so too does Maddie’s body of work. “The more products and printing capabilities TOG.ink can offer, the more I can utilize them as my sole printing vendor. As a business owner, if I can streamline my processes and vendors, that just makes things easier for me to keep track of. And creatively, the printing possibilities are only going to grow, which means I can create more and more customized designs.”
And, Maddie never forgets that it’s TOG.ink’s dedication to craftsmanship and quality that transforms her creations from beautiful on the screen to exquisite in life. “You can have a fabulous, drop-dead gorgeous design, but if it’s produced poorly, you’ll never appreciate it. You’ll focus on all of the negative attributes rather than appreciating the design itself. (So) to me, the printing of my stationery is of the utmost importance. I want my clients to see their custom designed pieces come to life and the production to aid that, not impede it. I’ve searched high and low for a vendor with extensive capabilities, outstanding customer service, and a seamless, user-friendly process. TOG.ink is it, and I cannot wait to use them for more and more of my projects.”
