Top 10 Tips for Ordering Your Wedding Invitations

A big part of your wedding is your invitations.  After all, how else are your guests going to hear about the event details?

Being such a big part of the date, it is easy to get overwhelmed with the options available.  Do you want a multi-piece invitation, a postcard style, custom luggage tags or even an oversized piece?  Your wedding theme, as well as your budget, will help narrow those decisions down.

Here are our top 10 tips for ordering your wedding invitations:

1.  Pick a color... any color

Selecting your wedding color or wedding theme is one of the first decisions that you will have to make in the planning process. By choosing this early, you can make sure that your event is seamless and has a continious look and feel to it.  A great place to look for color inspiration is while dress shopping.  Most boutiques will have color swatches available so that you can match everything to your bridesmaid dresses or groomsmen's ties and vests.

2. Smile for the camera

Your save the date cards and wedding invitations are a great way to give your guests a keepsake. Many of our clients opt to include a photo on their cards, and guests are more likely to keep cards with photos on it past the wedding date.

3. Create a guest list and check it twice

Writing out a guest list is an important, and yet very difficult, task.  Your venue will greatly depend on how many guests that you will be having. According to The Knot, approximately 20-25% of your invited guests will RSVP no to a local wedding with that rising to 30-35% to destination weddings. 

You will need this list multiple times, so the best way to keep an accurate list is to create an Excel spreadsheet that you can update with new addresses or guests that are added through the process. You can also create a column for RSVPs and even list gifts as they come in and track when thank-you notes have been sent out.

4. Save the Date for your invites to go out 

You will want to send out your save the dates and invitations far enough in advance that people can make plans, but close enough that it won't slip your guests' mind.  A good rule of thumb is to send out your save the date cards 6-8 months for a local wedding, or 8-10 months for a destination wedding. Your wedding invitations can wait until 6-8 weeks for a local wedding, or 3-4 months for a destination wedding.

5. Spell it out

Another decision that needs to be made is how you would like your invitation to read.  Traditionally, parents were listed at the top inviting guests to share in the joining of their children; however, lately more couples are footing the wedding bill themselves and are leaving that portion off. A great way to find out what you like best is looking at samples online. Check out our post on wedding invitation wording here.

Once you have received your design proof, make sure that you review everything from the design itself to spelling, grammar as well as dates, times and addresses.

6. Look to the design experts

If you don't have design experience, creating your wedding invitations can be quite a nightmare. Taking the stress out of your planning is just one of the reasons that we have a full design staff in house. We want your invitations to be as unique as you are, so you don't have to worry about choosing from a pre-designed template.

7.  Personalize the experience

As technology continues to advance, you are able to personalize your wedding more than you ever could in the past. Our couples love that we can use variable printing with an Excel list to print the names of guests on RSVP cards to avoid getting responses back without knowing who it is. We can even create custom coasters, place cards or wine charms to let your guests know how much you appreciate them.

8. Bundle it up

You might think that you need to order your Save the Date cards, Wedding Invitations and Thank You Notes separately; however, ordering them at the same time gives you a few benefits. For instance, by ordering everything together, you don't have to worry about going through the ordering process again or wondering if you are going to forget to place your order in time. Another great benefit to ordering in bulk is that we can offer you a better pricing point by ordering multiple pieces at the same time.

9. Seal it up

Before ordering your envelopes for your cards, make sure that they are the right size.  Traditional paper invitations are much thinner and fit into different envelope sizes than plastic wedding invites. We love the wide range of colors and sizes available at Envelopes.com. They also have the ability to pre-print addresses on your envelopes to save you yet another step!

10. Put a stamp on it

Before buying all of your postage, bring a completed card and envelope to the Post Office and have them weigh and verify what postage is needed. Plastic wedding invitations are a bit heavier than paper, and different sizes (including squares) may require additional postage. 

Let one of our consultants help you through your wedding planning process.