Will your invitations look the way you imagine them if you do them yourself? If so, then go for it!
If you want to choose just one item to do yourself for your wedding, invitations could be on the list of choices. As with most things you’ll want for your wedding, invitations do require a certain amount of skill and time, but if you feel up to the challenge, you can probably pull it off–depending on what you want.
If you must have traditional, engraved invitations or letterpress invitations, you’ll have to hire a pro. Some of that equipment is very expensive!
But if you want something more casual, there are lots of options. One of the easiest things you can do is go to a stationery store, paper store, or even an office superstore to find paper or cards you like. Then you can run them through your printer. The hard part is figuring out what you want the invitations to say, laying it out, and formatting it.
You can also do your own graphic design, including the text, if you have the skill. This is beyond what I can do, so I have no idea what goes into it. I have seen it done, however. Sometimes, a friend or family member can do this part. If not, though, you’ll probably want to hire a pro.
You can also do the layout and design yourself and take it to your local printer for reproduction. That saves on design fees but means you don’t have to slave over your printer for hours. Some home printers are also not up to the task, so be sure to do a test run or two–and have plenty of spare ink on hand if you are doing the printing yourself. If you’re doing 300 invitations, also be sure you have a very sturdy printer. Most of the inexpensive ones won’t stand up to this kind of treatment.
Leave plenty of time if you are planning DIY invitations. Save-the-date cards should go out six months in advance, and invitations should go out six to eight weeks before the wedding. Plan on spending several weeks getting invitations ready before your projected mailing date. And don’t forget that it takes time to address, stuff, and stamp the envelopes!
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