Today we’d like to introduce you to Liz Wytko.
Hi Liz, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
I first started practicing calligraphy in my Anatomy class in college. I was studying to apply to nursing school, which I realized quickly that I didn’t want to do, and I had to make many flashcards for my exams. I would spend hours creating the flashcards because I would focus solely on making them beautiful and using them to practice my hand-lettering over and over again rather than learn anatomy. I would also spend weeks planning & decorating for themed parties any chance I got – I would skip class because I was way more excited to curate the design for a house party, so needless to say, I could have been better. Friends quickly started encouraging me to pursue an event/wedding planning career. I wasn’t sure where to start or what I wanted to do, but I knew I wanted to be in this creative world rather than working in healthcare, and I knew there was a huge market back home in Austin.
Once out of college, I interned/assisted in some wedding planning and got my foot in the door by doing some calligraphy here and there for weddings and events. I had a pretty exciting start to my career because shortly after college, I got married. Then, COVID hit, and the world shut down about a month after I married. This was a unique time in my life, and I don’t leave it out of my story when it comes to my business because if it weren’t for that time, I wouldn’t be where I am today. This time allowed me to spend all day every day practicing lettering, building a website, learning how to make contracts and build invoices, teaching myself graphic design skills, making connections through email and zoom, and being married allowed me the financial freedom to get my business off the ground, which I do not take for granted.
Long story short – I am no longer married (that is a long story, haha), which was a complicated process and created some hardship in my business. There was a time when I wasn’t sure I could handle growing my business now entirely independently, and imposter syndrome started to kick in. However, I am incredibly thankful to have many amazing connections in this wedding industry who have encouraged me from day one, referred me to their couples, and loved watching me create pretty things. Now, I design all wedding stationery – from save the dates to full invitation suites, menus, programs, and seating charts. I strive to create more eco-friendly stationery and signage, using 100% recycled paper or cotton paper on printed bulk items and encouraging reusable signage like welcome signs on mirrors! What started as faux-calligraphy on flash cards, to then slightly better calligraphy on envelopes that I took iPhone photos of in my first apartment, became a business I am proud of – where I design and create beautiful paper goods that I am proud to call mine, where I’ve now been published in magazines, and where I have more inquiries than I know what to do with sometimes. If you had told me this is where I’d be in my stationery endeavors three years ago, I would not believe it. I am so thankful for this amazing Austin wedding industry, the life events that helped get me here, and my wonderful couples who trust me to design something unique and personal to them.
Can you talk to us about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way? Has it been easy or smooth in retrospect?
Oh goodness – not. But I wouldn’t have it any other way! I started to get serious about making my hobby/passion my career right before COVID. So, of course, that was a difficult time because while it was an amazing time to learn, grow, and invest in my business, there were better times to make money or work events. There were many discouraging moments when I thought it was hopeless to try and start this as a career, and I also knew nothing about running a business. The weight of the amount of research and learning I had to put in also sometimes made me want to give up and do something “easier.” I also mentioned that I got divorced recently during my business’s busiest/most successful year. This was a difficult personal process, which caused me to take some steps back and not book as many weddings as I wish I could have. There was even a time I considered giving up the thing I love most to get a “real, big girl 9-5 job” so that I would have normal benefits and a guaranteed income now as a single 25-year-old woman. It was also a weird transition from being married in the wedding industry to being divorced. I cry during vows like every single wedding! I worried that it may cause couples not to want to work with me as much, that they might think I don’t care about weddings or believe their big day is that important. However, I have felt so encouraged during this time, and even though I am divorced, I love weddings and getting to be a part of so many people’s special days.
As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For readers who might need to become more familiar, what can you tell them about what you do?
I design wedding stationery, which includes (but isn’t limited to) invitation suites, hand-calligraphy of envelopes/mirrors, menus, programs, welcome signs, save the dates, etc., etc., etc. I am most known for my modern and bold stationery. I love to use color, create fun invitation suites, and work with couples whose weddings will be full of color and life and want their invitations to reflect their day. While I design more traditional invitations, most inquiries are based on the more unique designs I’ve created. I’m most proud that recently, my work was featured on the front page of Style Me Pretty. This online wedding magazine features weddings from all over and has an Instagram following of over 1 million followers. This was a huge moment because it was the first time my work had been featured on a large platform. It was lovely to look back on where I started because I don’t think that three years ago, I, who was beginning to figure it all out, would even believe that I’m now creating stationery that is taken this seriously. I’m proud of how far I’ve come, and I’m proud that I’m still learning and growing.
What sets me apart is my desire to connect with all couples and show their personalities through the stationery I design. I sometimes have different styles/tastes than my couples, but I still always want to create something beautiful that is unique and personal to them. I love getting to know my couples and think my designs can be a way to tell their story through art. I always say to my couples that the invitation suite is the first glimpse of the “feel” of the wedding your guests will get. You want it to show them how formal/informal the day will be, show them some hints at your overall design, and show them how your unique personalities will be reflected on this special day.
Alright, so to wrap up, is there anything else you’d like to share with us?
The biggest thing I’ve learned over the last three years of chasing my dreams and designing stationery is that there will be many people wanting to do what you do and are good at what you do. However, we shouldn’t view others in the industry as our “competition” but as a community. We can learn from and encourage one another. There are always always always going to be weddings, and there are plenty to go around in the Austin area. So if you want to do something similar to what I do/work in the event industry in Austin: don’t try to create designs just because you think they are famous or trendy and don’t try to create designs because they look like what someone else is doing who’s successful, but create designs that make you feel inspired, that connect you to the people purchasing your art, and focus on showing yourself through your business/work. The couples and planners who work with me choose to work with me because they want to work with me, not because they think I’m the best or the only one that can do what I can. Be fully yourself in your art or whatever you create/pursue, and people will want to work with you (and your work will be even better because of that!)
Contact Info:
- Website: greengirlatx.com
- Instagram: @greengirlatx
Image Credits
Elle Reaux Photography Carhart Photography Amy Odom Photography Sam Hugh Photography Riley Glenn Photography
