Let''s talk invitations!

[Amanda.Rx]

Hey ladies! So, I figured picked out invitations would be a breeze, right? WRONG! I'm really struggling over my decision. I've fallen in love with invitations that are more than what I planned to spend (they're around $700 after tax, shipping, proofs, etc. for 100 of them and I didn't want to spend more than $400-500). Then I'll pay for calligraphy, postage, etc. I actually found a picture of them online: They're just really simple and classy. They've got a subtle hint of gold outlining them that makes them look very sharp! I don't know why I'm so crazy about them... Invitation Link

I started to look at invitations that were within my budget, and I just don't like them!

I used to think, "Whatever- it's paper- people are just going to throw it away." Now I'm thinking "It's the first impression of my wedding- they MUST look good!" My heart is tell me yes, but my mind is telling me no.

How much did you spend (only if you want to share), and what was your justification for it?

 

[cocolaw]

i agree with you COMPLETELY. i love edge painting-gold edge painting with black writing is SHARP. LOVE IT!! i just signed my contract with bella figura a few days ago. i am spending around 1200 for 75 invitations. then another 300 or so for my maps. once i touched letterpress i was hooked and could not go back!

 

[cocolaw]

we are doing these classic calligraphy by bella figura

white 2-ply invitations with navy writing

navy lined envelops

i think they will look beautiful with our colorful maps!

 

[ash313]

oooohhhh, invitations!! So difficult!

Like cocolaw, I touched letterpress and never looked back. I am IN LOVE!! Cocolaw, I am supremely jealous of your invites - beautiful!!

I really like the classic simplicity of the link you posted, Amanda.rx!

So I need 130 invitations. I am spending about $1200 for letterpress invites from Mercurio Brothers Printing. I designed them myself in Word (using VERY simple designs, and a fancy font). This includes the invites, the envelopes, the reply card and envelope and a reception card. All in all, pretty good price!

And the paper is SUPER thick (Waterford 640 gm) which is cool, and I am printing all on color (black).

My justification: As you mentioned, this is the first impression of the wedding (besides STDs, but I letterpressed those, too). Our wedding is fairly formal, and we actually had one of our guy friends tell me that he and his girlfriend are so excited for the wedding because "We saw that STD, and knew it would be a classy event!" This confirmed to me that people look to your paper products for the "feel" of the wedding.

How many invites do you need? I would be happy to give you some tips if you want to try my process - it''s not hard at all. Believe me, I am no designer! Good luck!

 

[cocolaw]

oh LEE!! i love the thick paper!! do you have any back yet? id love to see a picture of them.

 

[Amanda.Rx]

Thanks, ladies!

Coco- your invitations are gorgeous. I love the letterpress too, but I just can''t spend quite that much.

Lee- yours sound lovely too!

I was thinking that I would do something fun and cute for my STD, but maybe I should rethink and do something classy? Oh, the decisions are endless!

 

[cocolaw]

my std was fun and cute!!!! i guess i have an excuse to upload a picture

 

[Amanda.Rx]

Yes! I wanna see!

 

[ash313]

Date: 8/18/2009 9:07:43 PM
Author: cocolaw
oh LEE!! i love the thick paper!! do you have any back yet? id love to see a picture of them.

Haha, the thicker the better! None back yet, but I will upload as soon as I do!!

threadjack: you know how Bella Figura does the "edge" painting?? I''m sort of obsessed with how amazing that looks on the thick paper; do you think I could DIY that???

 

[ash313]

Date: 8/18/2009 9:09:47 PM
Author: Amanda.Rx
Thanks, ladies!


Coco- your invitations are gorgeous. I love the letterpress too, but I just can''t spend quite that much.


Lee- yours sound lovely too!


I was thinking that I would do something fun and cute for my STD, but maybe I should rethink and do something classy? Oh, the decisions are endless!

Thanks! I hope they are!!

Fun and cute can be classy, too! What were you thinking? Doesn''t have to be boring to be classy!

 

[Amanda.Rx]

Eeehhh... I''m not sure how you''d go about DIYing that. It seems that the potential for "screw up" would be high if you''re working with paint. I dunno- if you''ve got a few you can waste, you could always try it. They do make metallic ink pads (that might work). I would just be concerned that if the paint was too deep for dipping, the lines will be sadly uneven.

Of course, you may have a much better idea for accomplishing it.

 

[Amanda.Rx]

I thought these STDs were really cute for some reason, but they''re not what I would call "classy"... just fun. I''m certainly open to ideas, though.

Save the Dates

 

[cocolaw]

ok kind of hard to see, but it is very easy to read in person. it is a trifold: we have "coco & mr coco" are getting married on the first page, then the date and location and hotel info. it is in a bright shiny orange. we had a lot of compliments on these!

 

[cocolaw]

lee: i think with edge painting an ink pad would be the way to go-if you do it really lightly it might be possible!

 

[pjean]

I''m also using Mercurio Brothers! We''re getting 75 invitations (although we could probably have ordered 65, but it''s only about $8 for the extra 10, and it''s SO much more expensive to get them reprinted) for $485.

We''re getting one page printed that will include the invitation and a reply postcard. I got a perforator from Paper Source for about $4, so that the reply card can tear off the invitation. We love letterpress, and by having only one page printed, we could justify the cost. (Well, sort of.)

They''re scheduled to arrive tomorrow - I''ll let you know how they turn out.

 

[charbie]

Nothing too significant to add...except you all have beautiful ideas for invites!

 

[princessplease]

My invitations are coming from a seller on etsy, and the invites and reply post cards will cost under $200.

 

[Dannielle]

We are going with an invitation studio that we saw at a bridal expo. Each invitation is costing us $15 and that includes the invitation, envelope, RSVP card, map insert or wishing well insert. Personalised with guest names & addresses.

This is similar to the one we like

All up it will cost us $375- I really wish I had the skill and patience to DIY, but I can just see that leading to alot of tears and heartache

 

[cocolaw]

charbie: i want your dogs.

 

[ilovethiswebsite]

We spent about 600$ incl. taxes for 75 invitations from Stephita.com. They were the nicest invitations we could find in the price range we wanted to spend... We got a ton of compliments on our invites and they can customize any style you like

 

[jerseygrl]

AMANDA.RX- I deserve a prize...

I found the invites you like on the costco website for 25% off (deal they have with e-invite). They do thermography, not letter press...

I don''t think you actually need the costco membership to order through the site.. .http://pal.einvite.com/product/Wedding/WeddingInvitations/Traditional/OSV-YRE-GPALENS/?Cobrand=PAL&Site=PAL&vk=1777211146

if the link doesn''t work you go to costco.com then to the "floral" tab, click on invitations/announcements and the invites are under "traditional" in the wedding section and are called "simple sophistication"

hope this is helpful!

 

[charbie]

Date: 8/18/2009 10:38:04 PM
Author: cocolaw
charbie: i want your dogs.

haha. i just saw this you''re too kind! thank you so much, coco! they are my babies, that''s for sure.

although, there are days i''d give them to you, and pay for the plane ticket.

 

[Amanda.Rx]

Date: 8/20/2009 12:42:32 AM
Author: jerseygrl
AMANDA.RX- I deserve a prize...

I found the invites you like on the costco website for 25% off (deal they have with e-invite). They do thermography, not letter press...

I don''t think you actually need the costco membership to order through the site.. .http://pal.einvite.com/product/Wedding/WeddingInvitations/Traditional/OSV-YRE-GPALENS/?Cobrand=PAL&Site=PAL&vk=1777211146

if the link doesn''t work you go to costco.com then to the ''floral'' tab, click on invitations/announcements and the invites are under ''traditional'' in the wedding section and are called ''simple sophistication''

hope this is helpful!

WHAT?!? Bless you, darling!

I''ll have to check it out! I can''t believe you acutally spent time looking that up- I feel so special! THANK YOU!

 

[boobookitty]

invitations are extremely important to me. maybe it''s because i love paper, but i have worked in two custom invitation shops as well as a hallmark for most of my retail career. i discovered letterpress while working for one of these shops four years ago and fell in love. at the time my future husband to be wasn''t even in the picture, but day in and day out i loved looking at invitations and dreaming about how mine would look one day. i am quite a ways off from actually ordering my invites (probably like a year and a half) but because i think they are so important and really convey the tone of your event, i''ve budgeted about $3000 for our invites. i love letterpress so much that i have researched the old machines that create these gorgeous works of art and plan to purchase one when i have the capital. from there i am going to learn how to use it and hopefully open up my own studio and offer my designs for future brides and other occasions. i am an amateur designer and have worked a lot with web design and graphics so maybe that''s another reason why our invitations will be nothing less than spectacular. i''ll be using a lot of paper products wherever i can, including escort cards, individual menus, random signs for different displays, table signs, favor notes...whenever i see an opportunity for it there will be a paper product. i''m a huge advocate for calligraphy as well and have found the most perfect mother-daughter team to create our envelopes and other calligraphy items for us. i love some of the custom designs by ceci new york, but i find them to be just a tad too pricy, so i have found minna designs. she does gorgeous work and i know i will be very happy with the end result if we choose to work with her. however i am still on the lookout for custom letter press designers. anything pre-made or designed just doesn''t sit well with me. i want something that screams our personality and give an amazing first impression to our guests that will get them all excited!!

 

[les12]

I work in a stationery store, so invitations are very important to me also. I am getting a calligrapher to handwrite my invitation and then I''ll send it off to Crane to engrave them in gold ink. The paper I''m using is typically used for letterpress so it''s very thick and has a soft cotton texture. I''ll be getting calligraphy done on my envelopes as well. My colors for the wedding are gold ecru and pale peach, so I''m using a very light peach envelope liner. They are going to be beautiful, I can''t wait!

 

[cocolaw]

Date: 8/21/2009 12:42:10 AM
Author: les12
I work in a stationery store, so invitations are very important to me also. I am getting a calligrapher to handwrite my invitation and then I''ll send it off to Crane to engrave them in gold ink. The paper I''m using is typically used for letterpress so it''s very thick and has a soft cotton texture. I''ll be getting calligraphy done on my envelopes as well. My colors for the wedding are gold ecru and pale peach, so I''m using a very light peach envelope liner. They are going to be beautiful, I can''t wait!

that sounds so beautiful!!!! i cant wait to see them!

 

[tyty333]

Date: 8/18/2009 10:21:36 PM
Author: Dannielle
We are going with an invitation studio that we saw at a bridal expo. Each invitation is costing us $15 and that includes the invitation, envelope, RSVP card, map insert or wishing well insert. Personalised with guest names & addresses.

This is similar to the one we like

All up it will cost us $375- I really wish I had the skill and patience to DIY, but I can just see that leading to alot of tears and heartache

These are beautiful Danielle!