Tips for Invitations Elegant Wedding Ceremonies by Donna Kooler Printed invitations are available in many styles form a variety of sources: stationers, party stores, print shops, copy centers, mail order catalogs, and internet sites. Here are some tips to consider when placing your order. Use standard wording. Most printers follow the Crane Stationery company recommendations of wording styles. Thermography printing is much less expensive than engraving. Large shapes and squares cost more and may require extra postage. Fewer enclosures will save money on both printing and mailing on the reception card. Purchase an embosser with your address to emboss the back flap, and omit the printed return address. Count how many actual invitations you’ll need, rather than the number of guests you’re expecting; you may be inviting several guests with a single invitation. Order extra invitations and envelopes to allow for additional guests you may want to invite or for errors in addressing. When purchasing from a mail order catalog or the internet, request a sample so you can judge the quality of paper and printing. Or to be safe, order a reputable name brand. If your budget doesn’t allow for some of the special touches in commercial invitation books, you may be able to achieve a similar effect with a small investment in time and energy. The simplest approach is to add a bow or translucent vellum cover to a standard printed invitation. Vellum paper is available from paper supply stores and mail order catalogs as well as craft stores (check the scrap booking department). If you’d like to add a pretty bow, watch for sales on sheer or satin ribbon. Use about 12”-14” if ribbon per bow. Computer-aided design, with a host of elegant typefaces and the ability to incorporate decorative artwork, offers numerous possibilities to anyone with a PC and applicable software. Using attractive paper and a laser printer, you can print as many invitations as you like. (When working with an ink jet printer you may want to use a spray fixative for permanence.) Use conventional desktoppublishing programs, or purchase a wedding invitation software kit which
includes the PC software as well as the card stock and envelopes. Additional invitations and accessory kits with ribbon and vellum are also available at craft or office supply stores. Creating your invitations is fun, but when deciding to make them, keep in mind the number of invitations and the time involved.