Quaker Marriage Certificate - Quilled Waves

Last winter I was contacted by a bride-to-be who was interested in a quilled marriage certificate for her summer wedding. She shared a photo of the tranquil dock where she and her fiancé had met, which was situated on lovely turquoise water.

They planned to incorporate the photograph in their invitation design, and requested that I use it as inspiration for the quilling.

We discussed an ocean scene - dock, water, seabirds, etc. and narrowed it down to a modern design of loose, flowing scrolls in a palette of aqua, turquoise, blue, green, and silver to express the beauty of Caribbean waves.

The little whitecaps below the scrolls are actually two layers of quilling paper. Turquoise and silver-edged white convey the glint of sunlight on water (unfortunately not captured in these photos).

This is the first wedding document I've worked on that features traditional Quaker wording. Each certificate is a two-step process, as the professional hand calligraphy is completed before I add the quilling. Riva Brown of Living Letters Studio lettered the elegant copperplate script, some of which has been digitally erased for privacy. The document is quite large, 22 x 30 inches, and has light lines penciled below the wording for bride, groom, and guest signatures.