Before you choose your wedding invitations, here is a quick guide to get you started in the right direction!
Unless you send a Save the Date, the invitation is the first glimpse into your wedding. It creates a sense of anticipation, and sets the tone for your event. With endless options to choose from, it can be an overwhelming decision. A few quick tips will help you match your ideas to the perfect invitation – complementing the theme and formality of your wedding.
We also suggest you choose a Save the Date after you find the perfect invitation so you can “link the look!”
Identify your style as a couple – Ideally, the “style” of your wedding should be reflected in the design of your invitations. Is it going to be a glamorous ballroom affair, or a trendy vintage barn wedding? The style of the invitation should be in keeping with the type of event you are planning and it should remain constant across the board for everything you send out. Whether contemporary or classic, retro or refined, the style of the invitation is the opening page to the story of your wedding and thus sets the tone for the event.
Pick a palette – Once you choose a color palette, it can serve as a guidance tool to keep you from straying from your theme and introducing chaos to your wedding decor. A consistent color palette will provide aesthetic order and organization, even if it doesn’t govern every facet of the wedding. Whether you decide to go BOLD with vibrant colors, or tone it down with neutrals, make sure you give this some careful consideration before you invest time, money, and effort.
Decide on the details – Now that you’ve nailed down your theme and your color palette, it gets down to the nitty gritty details. You can play with size, shape, assembly, and material to complete your vision. A circular card can play up a more modern vibe, while a classic rectangular invitation will denote a more formal or traditional affair. Deciding how much of your budget you are going to allocate to invitations before you start looking will prevent you from investing time on invitations with costly assembly or appliqués. Prices can range from $.75 to about $17.00 per assembly, so that will also narrow down where you are most “at home” in the discovery process. Make sure you request a sample before you commit to anything you order online!
Words of Wisdom – Whether you design the invitation yourself or work with a professional, choosing the typeface and wording is a meticulous task. Spend as much time as necessary to choose the perfect lettering and don’t crowd the card trying to add too much detail. Brief yourself on etiquette guidelines, even if your style is less traditional. Style is important, but the message is crucial. First and foremost, your guests need to be able to extract the necessary information from your invitation.
For the indecisive bride, you may want to try doing things the other way around, but start EXTRA early! Browse Pinterest and blogs for inspiration and you may find that someone else’s idea speaks to you personally. There is nothing wrong with seeing something you like and making it your own.
Oh So Beautiful Paper custom stationary inspirations for your wedding
As a parting note, allow me to restate what has already been said throughout this guide: know your budget before you get too involved with any one design. Don’t be discouraged if your perfect invitation is out of budget. There are endless ways to cut the costs to get the invitation you want, like comparing vendor prices online and ordering the paper separately in bulk. New, cost effective printing methods allow you to achieve a contemporary style without breaking the bank. It also helps to know shipping prices on the different envelope sizes you are considering. Odd shapes are much more expensive to mail than standard envelope size cards.
More helpful resources to guide you!