When to Order Wedding Signs: The Timeline

A custom metal sign is not a shelf item. It is designed, proofed, laser cut, finished, packed, and shipped — in that order. Work backwards from the wedding and each stage tells you when to order.

The pattern: give yourself one buffer week. Something always shifts — a name spelling, a table layout, a courier delay — and a buffer turns a panic into a shrug.

Here are the numbers we publish, with no padding added:

• Production: most orders dispatch in 4–7 workshop days after proof and payment confirmation. The clock starts when you approve the proof, so check your email and approve promptly.
• Metro shipping: 5–7 business days after dispatch.
• Regional shipping: 7–12 business days after dispatch.
• Remote shipping: 10–20 business days after dispatch.

Shipping estimates run from dispatch, not from the day you order. Every order gets a tracking number by email, and checkout quotes exact Australia Post rates for your address — free on orders over $150. Full detail lives on the shipping page.

Running behind? Express production and express shipping are available for urgent orders — but contact us with your wedding date first so we can confirm we can genuinely meet it. A promise we cannot keep helps no one.

Most couples land on three or four pieces. The usual suspects:

• Welcome sign — your names and the date at the venue entrance. Typically 450 × 600 mm to 600 × 900 mm so it holds its own in the space.
• Seating chart — the hardest-working sign of the night. Needs 600 × 900 mm or larger depending on guest count, and it can only be finalised after RSVPs close.
• Bar and menu signs— signature cocktails, the bar menu, “unplugged ceremony” requests. Small format, big personality.
• Table numbers — usually 150 × 100 mm to 200 × 150 mm, readable from a standing position.

Order them as a matching set — same font, same material, one design session. Consistency reads as expensive, and orders over $150 ship free. Browse the wedding sign range for layouts and sizes.

Stainless steel — the wedding favourite. Brushed silver, catches candlelight and camera flashes, suits nearly every colour palette, and shrugs off a garden ceremony. From $169 AUD for a 600 × 200 mm sign. Engraving is available at $5 per layer for fine detail.

Aluminium — the practical second. A quiet matte silver at one-third the weight, from $99 AUD. If your signs are travelling in a hatchback and perching on easels, aluminium makes the whole day easier. Note it cannot be engraved — aluminium signs are cut designs only.

Mild steel — the rustic pick. Raw dark grey that weathers toward a rust patina. Perfect for barn, vineyard, and country weddings, from $99 AUD. Keep it indoors or sealed if you want the raw look to survive past the honeymoon — our patina care guide explains the options.

The workshop rule, printed on the wall:

• Metro: order 4 weeks out. Comfortable minimum 3 weeks.
• Regional: order 5 weeks out. Minimum 4 weeks.
• Remote: order 6 weeks out. Minimum 5 weeks.

Inside the minimum, express production and express shipping can often close the gap — but only if we know your date. Contact us before ordering and we will tell you straight whether it is doable.

One last trap: the production clock starts at proof approval, not checkout. The couple who orders 6 weeks out but approves the proof 2 weeks later has a 4-week order. Approve fast.