I had the privilege of visiting a private collection this weekend of old wagons and sleds. One in particular caught my eye and I thought I would share the picture and a little history that relates to wedding invitations.
Have you ever wondered where the inner and outer envelope came from? Why so many envelopes? Isn't one envelope enough? Before the 20th century, the postal service was not very reliable and in many areas did not exist. The only way to ensure your invitation was delivered was to have them hand delivered by servants or by a private carrier service. Since the delivery would require traveling through the elements (rain/snow/mud) and most likely by horse, the odds of a nice, clean, crisp envelope at destination was unlikely. Therefore, upon delivery, the outer envelope would be removed and a clean invitation would be presented. Today you will find the idea of an inner/outer envelope set to be fondly remembered, but not so much applied. I find very few of my clients request it, and with the pocket fold invitations I can not provide it. Suppliers just do not make inner/outer envelopes to fit them. I guess you could consider the popular pocket fold design of today the new and improved inner envelope.
The Satin Bow
The Satin Bow
