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Frequently asked questions...

general

 

So what exactly is the Guest Comment Frame?

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  • This is a frame in which your guest’s comments are captured within a frame that we design for you to provide a truly memorable and unique keepsake of your big day.

  • These comments are later centred around either your favourite wedding photograph or a sketch of your wedding venue (if we have this on file through our sister company – The Illustrated Invitation).

  • The comments are either scanned (so they will be in the guest’s original hand-writing) or we type them and print in various sizes and fonts.

  • After you have agreed the proofs we provide, the artwork is then mounted and framed in a variety of colours and sizes. This is then delivered to you by courier so you can hang proudly in your home to bring back memories for years to come.

 

How does it work?

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  • Prior to the wedding day, we provide a number of post cards (you get to choose the font and colour) printed with your personal message to your guests on one side and blank on the reverse for them to write their message.

  • We suggest you put a card for each guest on the tables at the reception.

  • We often receive feedback that this is a great way to get the conversation and banter started with guest’s discussing their fond memories, funny anecdotes and sharing ideas on what to write.

  • We advise nominating one of the wedding party to act as coordinator and collect all the message cards and keep them safe with your wedding cards.

  • After the wedding, you then send the cards back to us for creating the framed comments (which we later return so that you retain the originals).

 

What are the different sizes you offer?

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  • We are not limited to any size but have shown the most popular dimensions on our price list.
    o Size 1: 40cm square or 30cm by 50cm.
    o Size 2: 60cm square, 70cm by 50cm or 90cm by 30cm.

  • These are approximate sizing – a lot will depend on the Message Cards when we see them and we will always provide advice on this.

 

What different types of frame do you offer?

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  • Our wooden frames come with a glass front (rather than clear perspex).

  • The Contemporary frames are available in black, white and wood effect.

  • The Distressed frames are available in black, white or grey.

  • The Wooden Grain frames are available in black, slate grey, white or pale grey.

 

What colour is the mount?

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  • We always provide a double mount within the frame which helps 'frame' the artwork (excuse the pun!) and we generally find that an outer white mount works very well with an inner mount that coordinates with the frame colour choice.

  • Alternatively, you may wish to have a double white mount or even a black outer mount with white inner mount (we are happy to provide photographs to showcase these).

the cards

 

How many Guest Comments Cards do we get and is this included in the price?

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  • Each frame comes with 50 cards as standard. If you need additional message cards these are available for a small additional price - please refer to our price list.

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What message do you write on the front of the Guest Comments Cards?

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  • We will provide our standard message but this is only a suggestion and we are happy to amend this to any wording you wish to have.

  • This will be in a typestyle and print colour of your choice (a proof will be provided before we print these for you).

 

Where should we position the cards at the venue?

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  • Some couples have placed them in a designated area at the venue and asked guests to go and write their message. However this can sometimes cause some confusion, or some hesitancy as guests do not wish to hold others up while they think of what to write.

  • We would recommend that they are placed on the tables so that each guest has one and can take their time over what they write and not feel rushed.

  • We strongly recommend you provide sufficient black gel ink pens on each table (essential if you are thinking of having the scanned option). These are widely available at stationers or Amazon for a few pounds – we can provide links to help guide you.

 

Does every guest write on a card?

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  • Why not! However we do find that some couples attending your wedding may choose to write a joint message. Where we deal with weddings that have say 80 guests, we generally find that c.40 Message Cards are completed. However it is nice to give each guest the opportunity to write their own card if they wish.

  • You may wish to have additional cards for people who are attending just the evening reception or even for those guests who for whatever reason are unable to make the big day (see next point).

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What if we want to include a message from someone who cannot attend the wedding?

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  • You can always post the card to them beforehand and ask them to return in time for you to add this to the collection.

  • We have for example provided cards for family members who are away on service or work overseas (even dare we say the dreaded covid) and then incorporated their message in the frame.

 

What if there are over 100+ guests!

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  • Wouldn’t it be wonderful to have so many messages to treasure! We can provide as many cards as you wish, however, there will be a limit to how many comments we can fit on a frame and it is not as easy as limiting this to a set number of messages as a message could be a simple one-liner or the message could take up the whole of the card. Between 40 – 60 messages is ideal. We can always discuss options such as filtering some messages out if you are over this amount or filtering part of the messages out so more can be included. It is probably easier to chat this through once you have your Message Cards back from your guests and we know what we have to play with.

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What if we are having a close, intimate wedding where there may not be that many messages?

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  • Not a problem. We could work on a slightly smaller frame for you or you may wish to consider including some of the readings from your wedding or messages included within wedding cards etc. in addition to the comments you receive from your day guests. We have produced frames for just a dozen or so messages and these have made great keepsakes – ask us for some sample pics we can share with you!

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How do we get the cards back to you?

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  • We strongly advise you use the Special Delivery service by Royal Mail which provides the ability to track your parcel.

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Do you send these back to us so that we get to keep them afterwards? 

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  • Yes, all original messages are also returned so that you have these cards plus the frame as a special keepsake of your big-day.

  • We also use a tracked courier service to post your cards and frame back to you.

design & artwork

 

How do I choose between having the comments scanned or typed?

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  • The scanned option is very personal because your frame is then printed in your guest’s own handwriting. However, we appreciate not everyone had hand-writing that is easy to read or looks neat in a frame!

  • The typed option has the advantage that we have much more flexibility to edit the comments. For example, certain sentences/phrases from each message card could be used so that each guest is included. We also have the flexibility of re-sizing the text and to vary the comments between landscape or portrait to add more variation to the end display. You may also have spelling mistakes on the message cards which we could correct if re-typing.

  • That said, we do a lot of editing on the scanned messages. Basically we crop various parts of each message and re-stitch back together. This way we minimise the “white space” on the frame and it gives a much better look. This is quite time-consuming however which is why our frame prices include up to x40 scanned messages (if going for the scanned format) – additional messages can be included for a small costs – see our price list. Typed messages however are unlimited.

  • We are more than happy if you want to wait until you have seen the message cards before making a decision on whether you want to go for the scanned or typed option.

 

Can I mix and match – have some typed and have some scanned?

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  • No we don’t offer this – only because it looks very odd to have both formats on the same frame.

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How many comments can you have on the frame?

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  • This is our most popular question but it is difficult to answer without seeing the cards because this depends on a number of factors:

    • It depends on how much ‘coverage’ is on each card, i.e. some will write a long lengthy message that could take up the whole card while others will write a short but sweet message or a funny one-liner.

    • It depends on whether you have your guest comments scanned or typed onto the frame (generally you can include more comments with the typed option).

    • It also depends on the size frame you have.

  • Assuming a mix of long, average and short messages you will be looking at approximately 30-40 messages. Don't forget that a lot of couples will write a joint message too.

 

Do we get to see a proof before we receive the actual frame?

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  • You will firstly receive a proof of the artwork via pdf on email.

  • You will then have a hard copy proof with the messages printed in the same size as we will use on the final frame.

 

What if we have already bought a guest book?

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  • No problem! You could still have the typed option Guest Frame by simply photocopying the comments and letting us have them. We can do this at any stage after the wedding (perhaps you could treat yourself to an anniversary present if your wedding took place some time ago!)

timing

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When shall we order and do we pay in full up front?

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  • We are a small family business and given the time it takes to produce each frame and to ensure we provide the best quality product and service, we will only undertake a certain amount of frames each month. Due to the demand of our frames we are often taking bookings up to a year before the wedding takes place.

  • You can secure your order with a £50 deposit and production time will then be allocated for your order. The full balance for your order is then requested when you approve your hard copy proof.

 

When do we receive our Message Cards?

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  • We will get the design (typestyle and colour and message) all agreed as soon as you place the order and pay the deposit. We will send a soft copy proof for this.

  • Once the proof is approved, we will then ‘park’ the order until we get closer to the big day. We would normally print/deliver your cards four weeks before your wedding day.

  • We hope the few days leading up to your wedding are as relaxing and stress free as possible. No-one wants to be worrying over any products arriving in time!

 

When do we receive our Guest Comments Frame?

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  • This depends to a certain extent on when we receive the Guest Comments Cards back from you. We appreciate that straight after the wedding, you may want the dust to settle and relax as a couple. You may even be doing this on a honeymoon!

  • However, we do request that we have the cards back within a month of the wedding or it could lead to a delay in providing both your proof and your final finished frame.

  • Don’t worry too much if you haven’t had your wedding photographs back at this stage. We can start your artwork without this and then once this is ready, simply email a high resolution image to us and we can slot this into place.​

 

When we receive the cards back from you, the following will happen:

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  • You will receive an acknowledgement of safe receipt.

  • We then either scan the comments or we type them ready to position in your frame.

  • If we are typing the comments then we may come back to you with any words/names that we cannot decipher so that we get the proof as accurate as we can.

  • A proof is then prepared and emailed to you.

  • We then provide the hard copy proof, which you may find is easier to check for any spelling errors etc if going for the typed format.

  • When you are entirely thrilled to pieces with the final artwork, we then frame it (unless you have requested the print only) and post via courier to you. This takes two weeks from approval of the hard copy

  • It then hangs in your home and when any of your friends or relatives pop over, you all rush over to look at it and the memories come flooding back!

other

 

Is it just Guest Comments Frames that you provide?

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  • We also provide a wide range of bespoke and personalised wedding stationery. The Alternative Guest Book was founded through our parent company The Illustrated Invitation.

  • This is where we sketch the wedding venue and provide a suite of unique stationery featuring the venue you have fallen in love with.

  • Please take a moment to look at our website www.illustratedinvitation.co.uk and also ask us if we have already sketched your venue. As we are a preferred supplier to many of the wedding venues in the South West and have a fast growing national portfolio then we may well have it and we would love to show you. We also provide special stationery suite packages so that you can have something truly unique but at a fantastic price.

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