Invitations are one of the most essential parts of planning a wedding. The invitation is what sets the tone for your wedding. Before guests even step foot in your venue, they can get a taste of your wedding just by opening up that envelope. Your goal is to keep your invitation out of the trash and make a lasting impression on your guests without busting your budget.
Below are some cost effective tips to make your invitation shine while keeping your budget in mind.
Size:Printing can be one of the most costly parts of invitation design. If you stick to the standard sizes your cost can be greatly reduced. When you get the stair stepped invites or large sizes the more the cost goes up. The invitation set picture above is created using standard size cards.
Standard Sizes include:
4x6, 5x7, 3x5
TIP: If you are printing your own invitations, you might consider putting more than one invitation per sheet. Most local printers will print up to 11x17 and you can print up to 4-5x7 invites on an 11x17 sheet of paper. Therefore, you will be getting 4 invitations printed for basically the price of one. Granted it may take a little more work on your part to cut them out. But in this case time is money saved.
Folders/Mats:While we always encourage brides to go with the works, sometimes some of the items just aren’t essential and definitely are not budget friendly. Instead of trying to get fancy with folders, mats and backers you could just try stacking all of your invites and holding them together with a bakers twine, ribbon or a belly band. These wrappers give your invitation a special touch without breaking the bank.
TIP: If you are really insisting on those folders, mats and backers and are willing to put in a little work, just buy some really nice cardstock and cut your own mats and folders. This is very time consuming and sometimes better left to the pros. But where there is a will there is a way.
RSVP Options:The more traditional RSVP’s can add to your costs. Not only do you have to print the RSVP, and purchase the extra envelopes and liners, but you have to pay a higher mailing costs.
One solution to ease your mind is to do an RSVP postcard. This enables you to use postcard stamps rather than regular stamps, saving you .15 per RSVP. Not only are the stamps cheaper but you can ditch that RSVP envelope as well. Just be sure that your RSVP is within the USPS mailing guidelines.
Another alternate solution to a physical RSVP card is to create a wedding website or blog, where people can RSVP to you via email. A website or blog not only helps with your RSVPs but it can help your guests navigate their way through your registry, get directions and more. Basically, having a website or blog can get rid of those pesky information, RSVP and directions cards. You could simply send out one card with the appropriate contact info, maybe including a phone number for those guests who aren’t so computer savvy.
Websites can be costly; however, they are still more cost effective than an over-the-top invitation. Plus the amount of information you can convey to your guests isn’t just limited to a 5x7 card.
TIP: Ivory House Creative offers custom wedding blogs and website designs starting at 150.00. See one of our templates pictured above.
Stamping:Stamping is another way to save some dough on invitations. If you are going for that rustic, hand-done look, but don’t want to pay the price for letterpress. Stamping your invitations could be a great alternative. You can get custom Art Mount Stamps from Simon Stamps in just about any size. For a 5x7 stamp it is about $67. So for the cost of ink and paper you can make as many invitations as you wish. If you need a hand with the design, we would be happy to assist.
TIP: This is more effective with dark ink on lighter papers. Brighter inks on darker papers are hard for the eye to read and just don’t go on as easy as the dark inks. Leave the light ink to the pros.
Buy A Package:Most invitation shops offer package deals. These are usually the most cost effective for brides. While the items included in the package are cookie cutter, the design doesn’t have to be. We have three different packages for brides to choose from that are very budget friendly.
TIP: A lot of times you can get a package deal for everything, Save the Dates, invitations and thank you cards. It is never too early to start looking at invitations, so shop around for those at the same time you are looking for your save the date cards.
We hope these money saving tips come in handy. Feel free to contact Ivory House today for invitations to fit any budget.
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