About This Stamp
Weddings are one of life’s biggest milestones, when all of the details, including your invitations, need to be just right. For the perfect finish to your stationery suite, the U.S. Postal Service introduces the two-ounce You're Invited • Wedding Edition stamp, featuring a timeless calligraphic design in gold foil that evokes romance and old-world elegance. This stamp can accommodate the heavier weight of a wedding invitation with enclosures. Pair it with the similarly designed With Love Forever® stamp, which can be used for the RSVP card often enclosed in a larger wedding invitation.
Reflecting on weddings, invitations, and stamps served as a starting point for art director Antonio Alcalá, who was encouraged to develop some designs for the stamp project that didn’t involve flowers. After trying several different approaches, Alcalá decided to explore using calligraphy. “I thought it could make for an attractive solution that pairs well with the visual sensibility of many wedding invitations — calligraphed names and addresses,” he says.
While researching calligraphers, Alcalá found artist Nina Tran, who had extensive experience with a style he thought might be appropriate for the stamp.
“When Antonio reached out to me with his idea of how my art might fit the project, he sent a few screenshots of work he liked, and my brain started to draft ideas before I got to my sketch pad,” says Tran. “After a few back-and-forth modifications, we were able to get to a design that we liked. Aside from some minor tweaks, the final artwork did not change much from our original ideas.”
Tran opted to use the Copperplate style of lettering to create the stamp’s central imagery. Copperplate, a popular style of penmanship closely related to English Roundhand, was widely used in the 17th and 18th centuries by master calligraphers who engraved the eponymous script on copper plates. “Although there are endless variations, Copperplate is generally known for its formality and elegance, which makes it a popular style to use for wedding invitations, name cards, and other formal occasions,” says Tran.
“I am grateful and thrilled beyond measure to have this opportunity,” she adds. “It’s a great honor to have my work represent calligraphy as an art and the calligraphy and lettering community at large.”
The You’re Invited • Wedding Edition stamp is the latest in a long line of elegant stamps intended for use on wedding invitations, featuring designs with classic wedding motifs such as a cake, rings, and flowers, among other elements that capture the romance of the occasion.
The words “TWO OUNCE” on this stamp indicate its usage value. Like a Forever® stamp, this stamp will always be valid for the rate printed on it.
Stamp Art Director
Antonio Alcalá
Antonio Alcalá served on the Postmaster General’s Citizens' Stamp Advisory Committee from 2010 until 2011, when he left to become an art director for the U.S. Postal Service's stamp development program.
He is founder and co-owner of Studio A, a design practice working with museums and arts institutions. His clients include: the National Gallery of Art, Library of Congress, National Portrait Gallery, National Museum of Women in the Arts, The Phillips Collection, and Smithsonian Institution. He also lectures at colleges including the Corcoran College of Art + Design, SVA, Pratt, and MICA.
In 2008, his work and contributions to the field of graphic design were recognized with his selection as an AIGA Fellow. He has judged international competitions for the Society of Illustrators, American Illustration, AIGA, and Graphis. Alcalá also serves on the Smithsonian National Postal Museum and Poster House Museum’s advisory councils. His designs are represented in the AIGA Design Archives, the National Postal Museum, and the Library of Congress Permanent Collection of Graphic Design.
Alcalá graduated from Yale University with a BA in history and from the Yale School of Art with an MFA in graphic design. He lives with his wife in Alexandria, Virginia.
Calligrapher
Nina Tran
Nina Tran is a calligrapher and calligraphy instructor based in Southern California.
Born and raised in the Philippines, Tran became interested in art at an early age. Her grandfather taught her to draw and how to see objects as simple shapes, a skill that has played a big role in her ability to isolate forms such as letters and break them down into basic components.
After moving to Los Angeles in 1991, Tran graduated with a B.A. in biology from California State University, Northridge, then worked in an art shop, married, and focused on raising her three children. Realizing she needed to be a part of something outside of her home world, Tran picked up a calligraphy pen to help a friend make signage for her wedding. The rest, as they say, is history.
Tran has received professional training and guidance from skilled calligraphy mentors, instructors, and peers. In addition to her lettering work, she has taught prolifically for calligraphy guilds and institutions across North America, Asia, and Europe, including major organizations such as the Society for Calligraphy, and the International Association of Master Penmen, Engrossers, and Teachers of Handwriting.
Prominent publications featuring Tran’s work include Calligraphy Crush Magazine, the Calligraphy and Lettering Arts Society’s the Edge Magazine, UPPERCASE Magazine, and The Speedball Textbook. She has also done calligraphic work for Dolce & Gabbana, Brunello Cucinelli, La Prairie, a variety of calligraphy guilds and organizations, and private individuals.
When she’s not working from her studio in Van Nuys, California, Tran enjoys reading, sketching, photography, and long walks in nature. She can also be found volunteering at the Los Angeles County Scroll Office and participating in regional calligraphy events and conferences.
Tran created the calligraphy for three 2027 stamps: With Love, You're Invited • For All Occasions, and You're Invited • Wedding Edition, a two-ounce stamp.