Grazie Mille!

I received an unusual custom order for my wedding congratulations card yesterday. It was in Italian (but ordered from California) and the bride and groom’s names were replaced with Mio Suocero, and the love poem was replaced with Grazie Mille. Despite my years of Italian in college, I had to look up that first phrase, and found it meant my father-in-law. I emailed to say I received the order, and chatted a bit about my love for the Italian language and my genuine Italian godfather. I was hoping she would tell me the story behind the card, and she did.

What I love about Etsy is that people are real, and orders are personal. It is so easy to make a connection so that instead of just fulfilling an order, I am creating art for someone. The bride-to-be told me that her wedding is being hosted in her future father-in-law’s hometown in Italy, and she wanted the card to thank him. What is just so heartwarming about it all is that she has been secretly learning Italian (even the groom doesn’t know) so she can communicate with her future in-laws at her wedding. I so enjoyed making this card, feeling like I was just a little bit a fellow conspirator.