Megan Kuntze, Crane's brand director, said last week's layoffs and wage cuts were done to keep the company profitable through 2009. Although the new line of wedding stationery will be released this spring, Crane isn't expected to experience the benefits of the partnership until the first quarter of 2010.

"A particular launch like this is going to be a very slow build to a successful business," Kuntze said. "It's not going to be overnight. There's a lot of moving parts and pieces to make this successful. It will only really begin to see the light of day in the first quarter of next year. In order to save 2009, it was imperative to make the difficult decision that we made.

"Could this turn things around?" she said. "It could be positive in making things go the other way."

The new stationery line will be available through Crane stationers that are equipped with the company's new "personalized design studio," which is a new ordering system, Kuntze said.