How to Create a Marble Wedding Invite in Adobe InDesign | How To
Marble is a big trend in wedding stationery right now, and it’s a beautiful way of making print invitations look instantly more luxurious and expensive.
Here, you’ll learn how to put together a two-sided invite in InDesign, complete with elegant script lettering and metallic foiling.
On the hunt for more wedding-related fonts, templates and stationery? You can find templates to suit every wedding style on Envato Elements and GraphicRiver.
Let’s get started!
What You’ll Need to Create Your Invite
We’ll put together the invite artwork in Adobe InDesign, and dip into Adobe Illustrator briefly to edit some vector graphics. You’ll also need to download the following images and fonts:
- Aquamarine marble backgrounds
- Bw Modelica font family
- Klast script font
- Star vector icons
Install the fonts on your computer, and you’re ready to get started.
1. How to Set Up Your Invite in InDesign
Step 1
Open InDesign and go to File > New > Document.
Set the Width of the page to 4.5 in and Height to 6.25 in, which is a standard size for wedding invitations.
Add Margins of 0.1875 in and a Bleed of 0.25 in. Click Create.
Step 2
Expand the Layers panel (Window > Layers) and double-click on Layer 1, renaming it Marble.
Create three more new layers in this order—Border, Stars, and finally, Type at the top of the pile.
Lock all the layers except Marble, which we’ll work on first.
Step 3
Use the Rectangle Frame Tool (F) to create an image frame across the whole page, extending it up to the edge of the bleed on all sides.
Go to File > Place, navigate to the marble backgrounds folder you downloaded earlier, and choose ‘8.jpg’ from the pack. Click Open, and allow the image to fill up the frame.
Step 4
Lock the Marble layer and unlock the next layer up, Border.
Use the Rectangle Tool (M) to create a shape that extends up to the margin line on all sides. From the Swatches panel (Window > Color > Swatches), set the Fill Color to [None] and Stroke Color to [Black].
Expand the Stroke panel (Window > Stroke) and increase the Weight of the border’s stroke to 4 pt. Set the Type to Thick – Thick.
Go to Object > Corner Options. With the Size of the corner set to 0.01 pt, switch the Shape to Rounded.
Step 5
Expand the Pages panel (Window > Pages) and, on the Page 1 icon, Right-Click > Duplicate Spread.
Page 1 will be the front of your invite, and Page 2 the reverse.
2. How to Add Elegant Type to Your Invite
Step 1
Head back up to Page 1 of your document, to work on the front of your invite.
Pull out a guide from the left-hand ruler (View > Show Rulers) to 2.25 in, marking out the center-point of the page. This will help you to align text centrally as you work.
Lock the Border layer and unlock the top layer, Type.
Step 2
Use the Type Tool (T) to create a large text frame about a third of the way down the page. Type in ‘Name 1′.
From either the top Controls panel or the Character and Paragraph panels (Window > Type & Tables > Character / Paragraph), set the Font to Klast and increase the Font Size to fit appropriately.
Step 3
Select the text frame and Edit > Copy, Edit > Paste it, placing it below the first name, leaving a slight gap between. Edit the text to read ‘Name 2′.
Paste again, positioning this frame between the two names and typing ‘and’. Reduce the Font Size to about 75 pt.
Step 4
To ensure the script lettering is highly legible when set in metallic foil, we can add a slight stroke weight to the lettering.
Select all three text frames and from the Stroke panel set the Weight to 0.3 pt. From the Swatches panel click on the hollow ‘T’ symbol to add a [Black] swatch color to the stroke of the text.
Step 5
Create a text frame at the top of the invite, writing up some introductory text.
Set the Font to Bw Modelica Bold, Size 7 pt, Leading 13 pt, Tracking 140, All Caps, and flush the text to Align Center.
Step 6
Copy and Paste this text frame, positioning the copy towards the bottom of the invite, below the names.
Switch the style of the font to ExtraBold, and increase the Font Size to 8 pt. Adjust the text to read the date and time of the event.
Step 7
Paste a couple more text frames below this, adjusting the text to read the location of the event and any more important information, such as ‘Reception to follow’.
Step 8
Scroll down to Page 2 of your InDesign document, to work on the reverse of your invite.
Paste another text frame onto the page, adjusting the text to 9.5 pt in Size. You can treat this as a subheading, e.g. ‘Dress Code’.
Paste another text frame below, and use this as a body text frame, e.g. ‘Black Tie’.
Step 9
Select both frames and Copy and Paste them, creating a sequence of paired text frames.
This is a good place to put information about how to RSVP, as well as more details about the event.
Step 10
Minimize your InDesign window for a moment, and open up the star icons EPS file in Illustrator.
On the illustration, Right-Click > Release Clipping Mask.
Select the star icon on the third row down, in the bottom-left corner, and Edit > Copy it.
Step 11
Leave Illustrator and head back to your InDesign document.
Edit > Paste the star vector onto Page 2 and position it centrally between the first two sections of text. Adjust the Fill Color of the star to [Black].
Copy the star and Paste it a couple of times, positioning a star between each section of text.
3. How to Set Up Your Invite for Metallic Foiling
To really make your invite feel more luxurious and special, you can pull out the border and type in a metallic foil. Check the foil options your printer offers before you prepare your artwork. The standard options are usually gold, silver and bronze, but you may also be able to ask for copper or rose gold foiling for an on-trend look.
Step 1
From the Swatches panel, choose New Color Swatch from the main menu.
Name the swatch Foil Spot Color, and set the Type to Spot and the level of Magenta to 100%. Click Add and Done.
Step 2
Unlock the Type, Stars and Border layers.
Select all the text frames sitting on Page 2 and adjust the Font Color to your new swatch, Foil Spot Color.
Adjust the border’s and star shape’s Stroke Color to the spot color too.
Step 3
Scroll up to Page 1, and apply the Foil Spot Color swatch to all the elements on the Type, Stars and Border layers on this page too.
Step 4
In the Layers panel, hold Shift to select all three of the top layers and Right-Click > Merge Layers.
Rename the merged layer FOIL DIE LINE, and click OK.
Step 5
Select all the text frames on Page 1 and go to Type > Create Outlines to create a vectorised version of the text.
Do the same for Page 2, outlining all the text.
Step 6
Go to Window > Output > Attributes.
On Page 1, select all the elements sitting on the FOIL DIE LINE layer, and check the Overprint Fill and Overprint Stroke boxes in the Attributes window.
Do the same for Page 2.
4. How to Export Your Invite for Printing
Your invitation artwork is finished—awesome work! All you need to do now is export your InDesign document to a PDF format ready for sending straight off to the printers. Read on to discover how.
Step 1
Go to File > Export. Name your file, and choose Adobe PDF (Print) from the Format drop-down menu at the bottom of the window. Click Save.
In the Export Adobe PDF window that opens, choose [PDF/X-1a:2001] from the Adobe PDF Preset menu at the top. This is the best format to choose for exporting die lines.
Make sure that All is checked under the Pages section, to export both sides of your invitation.
Step 2
Click on Marks and Bleeds in the window’s left-hand menu.
Check All Printer’s Marks and Use Document Bleed Settings, before clicking Export.
Conclusion: Your Finished Invitation
You’ve created a beautiful marbled wedding invitation—great job! In this tutorial, we’ve covered a broad range of print design skills, including:
- How to set up an invitation template in Adobe InDesign.
- How to add a cool marbled backdrop to your layout.
- How to format typography to an advanced level in InDesign.
- How to bring in vector graphics to your InDesign document to create a unique design.
- How to set up your design for foiling, and how to export your work for professional printing.
That’s a lot of handy skills to add to your design arsenal. If you’re looking for more wedding-related fonts, templates and stationery, you’ll find items to suit every wedding style on Envato Elements and GraphicRiver.
