Akron Wedding Photographers
Making Your Own Wedding Invitation


Many couples today choose to make their own wedding invitations. It may or may not save some money, but you have a special wedding invitation that is uniquely yours.

Designing a Wedding Invitation

Look around at other wedding invitations and see what you like before you design yours. Look at your friends wedding invitations. Go to craft stores, and get ideas there. Go to wedding stores, and look at the wedding invitations they sell. Check out craft books, or go online and take a look at whats available there. Get all the ideas you can, and then the two of you can begin to design what you want your wedding invitation to look like. Get the look first, and then you can work on the wording.

Most of the time, a handmade wedding invitation uses specialty paper, vellum and embellishments. Dont get too carried away with embellishments; the USPS doesnt like bulky, lumpy envelopes. Some kind of pretty ribbon is usually enough. A lot of couples have a photo printed somewhere on the wedding invitation, too. Some people like to use special stamps to mail the wedding invitations and youll need to purchase them when you get the rest of your supplies.

Decide if you want to include a response card. This can be either a postcard or a small card and envelope that is stamped and addressed, so that people can respond to the invitation. Its the best way to get people to respond to the invitation, so that you can plan for the number of people who will be there. These envelopes can be printed; they do not have to be hand addressed.

Some people enclose a registry card, which is a business-card sized piece that tells where you have registered for wedding gifts.

Your final decision is what to say on your wedding invitation. There are lots of examples on the Internet and at wedding stores to get you started. Once youve finalized the wording of your wedding invitation, you can get it printed.

You have several things that need to be printed: the wedding invitation itself, the response card, response envelopes and registry inserts (if you use them). You can either have them printed or you can print them yourself. Be sure to print more than you need. Youll need extras to compensate for mistakes, for people you decide later to invite and for keepsakes.

Its nice if you can have your wedding invitations professionally cut to the right size. Heavy-duty paper cutters produce a nicer cut than smaller ones, and you can be guaranteed theyll be cut straight. Dont have them folded, though, unless youre sending out thousands. Hand folding is much better.

Gather up all the pieces, and youre ready to assemble your wedding invitation. This is a good opportunity for a party. Get a few friends together and set up an assembly line. When the job is done, drink beer and eat pizza. All you have left to do is hand-address the invitations, add postage and send them out.

Everybodys all dressed up in their fancy best, and things just get dirty.

Wedding Vendors
The three main options for wedding rings are yellow gold, white gold, and platinum, but a variety of other materials are now becoming more common. This wedding accessory distinguishes the bride on her special day and serves to underscore her commitment, beauty, and the sacredness of the journey that she and her groom are undertaking. Most florists offer both real and silk flowers, in an assortment of styles and prices. Use your imagination, and youll find a good alternative both to the wedding cake and to the cake-cutting ceremony. If you are using a non-denominational wedding chapel, perhaps owned by a town or historical society, you may take a few liberties as long as the wedding chapel is left exactly the way it started. Determine how much of the budget is going toward silk bouquets and do some comparison-shopping.

A synthetic might be a better choice.
Provide places for people to sit and rest without getting their clothes soiled. If your dress is traditional white, white wedding shoes are obviously best and there are countless styles available. Choose a pretty basket, or an appropriate vessel, and just pack it full of things that you think the young couple will need, but wouldnt think of.