Toronto and Vancouver, two new save the dates

Two new cities are on the templates page: Toronto and Vancouver. Both are fall evenings, both end on a kiss, and both are made for couples who want their save the date to look like the city they are getting married in.

Like the other scenes, each one plays on your guests’ phones from a link, with no app and no account. And like the other scenes, something happens before your date appears.

Toronto: a dance under the CN Tower

Your guest breaks a wax seal. The envelope opens, a card slides up, and the screen fills with the waterfront at night. The CN Tower stands on the left, the towers of the Financial District glow behind, and maple leaves drift down from the island’s trees.

A bride and groom lean into a kiss. Then they start to dance, turning slowly on the spot, and slowing down little by little until they stop. While they turn, your names, your date and your place appear one line at a time above them, over the night sky.

The scene is painted in gouache, with flat colours and soft edges. The dance comes from a real filmed movement, redrawn so it stays sharp on a phone and smooth even when slowed down.

It suits a wedding at Harbourfront, on the islands or anywhere downtown. It also suits couples who met in Toronto and want their guests to recognise it in one glance.

Vancouver: a kiss by the Gastown steam clock

This one opens on a carpet of red maple leaves. In the middle sits a stamp drawn like the face of the Gastown steam clock. Your guest taps it, the clock strikes two, and a burst of steam blows the leaves away.

Behind them, the plaza at night. The lamp switches on, the clock ticks and steams, leaves keep falling, and the bride’s veil and train lift in the breeze. The view closes in on the couple as they lean towards each other, the camera turning slowly around them until they kiss under the maple. That is when your date appears.

There is one more thing in this scene, and we will not spoil it. Tap the couple once the date is on screen.

What both include

Toronto and Vancouver work like every other save the date on Zendegi.Studio:

• Your names, date and place, written into the scene in its own typefaces.
• Add to calendar, for Apple, Google or Outlook, in one tap.
• Every language your guests read. Each language gets its own link, and the scene plays in it.
• Sharp on every phone. Both are painted large enough to stay crisp at the deepest zoom, and tested on mid-range phones.

When you can use them

You can play both scenes today on the templates page, with a sample couple. We are finishing them before they join the scenes you pick from when you create your own save the date, next to Autumn drive, Lakeside Cottage, Quebec in Winter and Montreal. We will say so here the day they do.

Until then, if your wedding is in Toronto or Vancouver, open them on your phone and send them to each other. They are short, and they are better on a phone than on a laptop.

More cities and seasons

Montreal, Québec City, Toronto and Vancouver now each have their scene. We keep painting: more seasons for the cities we have, and more places across Canada, from the lakes to the Rockies. If your city is missing, tell us; a lot of what we paint next comes from those messages.

Follow along on the blog or on Instagram to see each new scene as soon as it is ready.