Hand-made artisan invitations in a world without Etsy

A world without Etsy?? I know, the horror!

All of you lovely brides-to-be planning in the states should count your lucky stars to have so many wonderful resources at your fingertips!

I may not have etsy, or alchemy on etsy, but I do have the talent of local chilean artists!

La Olla Criolla - fab colombian food!

See this cute little neighborhood eatery? Inside is a colombian family that serves the tastiest arepas and jugo de naranja-platano in the area - La Olla Criolla! I'm biased, though - they're only a block away!

The fantastic part about this place is that Lina, the chef and owner, and her husband are active in the art scene of Coquimbo (the neighboring city to La Serena). They host art shows at their restaurant, and the inside is chock full of her husband's work!

Arepas y arte!

Once we realized it would be too difficult to mail paper for invitation supplies to Chile (customs would likely take a month - redic!), we thought about having our art friends at La Olla craft our invitations. Lina was very interested, and she asked her art friends what they could think up - apparently they can make their own paper (hello, pressed flowers!), and letterpress is a snap!

I'm going tonight to see an example invitation. While I had hoped to make the invitations myself, I'm now hopeful this way will turn out to be one of the most unique and beautifully artistic aspects of our wedding!

How did you find your wedding invitation inspiration? Lay all your etsy suggestions on me! I can still ogle :)