21 Unique Wedding Invitation Ideas

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While we love a traditional wedding invitation, we’re also huge proponents of personalizing your wedding day in every way possible. Don’t let your wedding invitation get away from you and become just another invite. There are so many unique wedding invitations to choose from nowadays. From the use of interesting materials such as acrylic, to modern fonts and innovative designs such as metallic black foil, stationers and graphic designers have truly given brides and grooms a plethora of cool options—and they just keep getting more creative.

We have scoured the web for unique concepts and have found several themes popping up on the invitation scene. Scroll on to see what unique cards made the list and to find the wedding invitation style that makes your stomach drop—in a good way. They’re pretty rad, if we do say so ourselves.

21 Unique Wedding Invitation Ideas

1. Acrylic

One of the most unique wedding invitations out there is acrylic. When using acrylic, rather than paper, as the base material for the invite, text is painted, etched, or placed with a decal onto the surface. The result is a modern invitation that makes an impact. It looks like glass, but is much more lightweight and durable. Acrylic comes clear or colored so you can find a surface/text combo that fits your wedding color palette.

2. Pressed With Florals

Did you know that you can press real flowers into paper, or between slabs of acrylic? Those are two ways in which floral-pressed invitations have been made possible. And thank goodness they’re possible, because they’re possibly the prettiest invitations that we’ve ever seen. Incorporate this unique touch on the envelopes (as seen here) or on the actual invitations, and carry it through to your day-of stationery, too.

3. Swirls

Put a feminine, yet unique, spin—or should we say swirl—on your wedding invite with a cool swirl pattern in the background. This print feels modern, romantic, and fun all at the same time, and will surely make your invites stand out.

4. White Space

It takes an artistic eye to appreciate this unique wedding invitation design. The “white space” makes the invitation feel clean, minimalistic, and modern—not at all traditional. Your guest’s eyes will chase the small, simple font around the page, landing on all the important information. Add a subtle design if you’d like, or keep it simple.

5. All-In-One

Why send so many moving parts when you can send one fun and unique all-in-one invitation? This style includes the envelope, invite, details, and response card (which guests can tear off and return) all in one beautiful package. Plus, given that there are fewer paper pieces to purchase, it can be more affordable too.

6. Vintage Paper

If your wedding theme is particularly vintage, your vibe is ultra-romantic and elegant, or you’re tying the knot at a grand estate or historic venue, you may want your invitations to follow suit. Make them unique by using paper with a vintage feel. Certain textures and colors lend themselves to vintage stationery well, but what seals the deal is the paper’s raw edges. Complete the look with a wax seal and calligraphed addresses, and you’ll have achieved the perfect vintage stationery suite that’s completely unique.

7. Square

Why make your invitation only unique in design when you can also make it unique in shape? A square invite can read cool and contemporary, or fun and cute depending on the style; and it will always stand out on the fridge amidst the many standard sized and shaped wedding invitations.

8. The Great Outdoors

Show off your natural side with an invitation (such as this one) that puts mountains on paper. In addition to being unique in featuring a nature scene, this style also features graphic lines and modern fonts that also feel anything but ordinary.

9. Vellum

Vellum has recently become a popular material to use in wedding invitations, but we’d say it is underutilized. Vellum adds such a pretty, almost-mysterious, veil to an invitation. It can be used as a protective layer over the invitation, printed on to become the invitation itself, or as an envelope. Whichever method of use you choose, it will bring a unique, romantic, and ethereal air to your invitation suite.

10. Hand-Painted

Hand-painted invitations are a great option if you want to be totally unique and aren’t afraid of a totally custom invitation suite. Find a talented painter (with experience in wedding stationery) that you love and recruit him or her to make something lively, personal, and super fun.

11. Map

When having a destination wedding, a map invitation is not only unique, but almost necessary. It shows off the location in an interesting and creative way, and it looks good, too. Carry out the travel theme with passport-inspired response cards and place cards modeled after luggage-tags.

12. Flourishes

While a flourish here or there isn’t anything new to see on a wedding invitation, when it comes in droves and decorates the entire invitation, the result is much more unique. Add style to your invite with more than a flourish, and watch it come to life. It can end up looking full of Southern charm or Art Deco flair.

13. Storybook

Why not signify your happily ever after with a storybook wedding invitation? You can follow a unique booklet format, implement storybook phrases, or both. Use curly fonts and plenty of flourishes (see above) to execute the storybook invitation expertly. Don’t forget to model the colors and tone after your favorite storybook, such as “Harry Potter”, “Cinderella”, or “Romeo & Juliet”.

14. Heavy-Handed Calligraphy

An invitation written completely in calligraphy is both unique and elegant. It exudes an almost regal feeling and signifies a formal event. Your guests will be blown away by the beauty of an all-calligraphy invite, as long as it’s legible.

15. Bright

Nothing pops right out of an envelope quite like a brightly colored invitation. The solid blue hue of this one gives an otherwise classic invite a bold twist that is sure to capture guests' attention and get them excited for the big day. Pick the brightest shade in your wedding color palette and don’t look back.

16. Boxed

If you’re looking for a truly out-of-the box idea, consider sending boxed wedding invitations (see what we did there?). A boxed wedding invitation is not only unique, but also as elegant as they come. Plus, the box will safeguard all your pretty paper invites and any special momentos you want to send along with them. Just remember, they’ll cost a great deal more to ship than standard envelopes.

17. Handmade Paper

Using handmade paper is a unique way to print your wedding invitations; they will feel authentic, delicate, and romantic. Whether you’re going for a vintage vibe or an earthy feel, you can achieve it with handmade paper. Oftentimes you can even find handmade paper that’s plantable or at least 100 percent recyclable.

18. Modern Typography

By using your initials as the headline on your wedding invitation in a modern type, you’ll take a cool, sleek approach to the design. We love how the lettering stands out against the subtle sketched backdrop on this invite—another unique wedding invitation characteristic to love.

19. Message in a Bottle

Yes, you can actually send your invitation in a bottle. This is the perfect, unique wedding invitation idea if you’re having a seaside celebration or a nautical-themed wedding. Plus, guests can save the actual bottle as a keepsake. We’ll guarantee that they’ve never received a wedding invitation this way before.

20. Black Foil

Gold foil, silver foil, rose gold foil, we’ve seen them all, but black foil? Now, that is unique. We love the moody, elegant look this adds to an invite. Plus, black is always in fashion. Go black on black if it’s in step with your theme, such as a nighttime wedding, winter wedding, or ballroom affair. Or, dress up classic black and white stationery with this dark, fancy foil to take it up a notch.

21. Fun Phrasing

Wedding invitations don’t have to be formal if that’s not your style. Embrace your comedic side and send an invite with fun phrasing. There are plenty of unique ideas on the internet to give you inspiration, but the best phrasing will come from the heart. Let your creative juices flow and your personality shine by coming up with wording that’s all your own. Your guests will be able to tell, no doubt, and will love the personal touch.

Have we made it too hard to choose? When you go with one of these unique wedding invitations, your guests will be in for a treat when it hits their mailbox. We bet you’ll get more than a few texts from excited and awed guests. Just be sure to save a few extras so you can photograph and remember the unique beauty, too.