DIY WEDDING INVITATIONS

Plan well ahead as you will have so many other things to do.  Decide when you would like to send your invitations out and allow time to prepare your design, source your materials plus you may need several weeks to make them.

sourcing materials

There are so many craft outlets selling all sorts of items for card making.   We supply a range of d-i-y items including card blanks and envelopes to help you on your way.

Decide what stationery items you will be making and what size card blank you want for each.  If you decide you want an unusual shaped card, make sure you can find an envelope to fit it first!

• You may want to consider card blanks and sizes for
  
  Save the Date
  Wedding Invitation
  Evening Invitation
  RSVP
  Order of Service
  Place Setting
  Menu
  Table Number
  Thank You Card

• Table Plan

the design

Check out wedding magazines and your local card shops for inspiration.  Remember designs are subject to copyright but they can give you ideas for your own design.  

Experimentation is the key.  Don't be afraid to use a range of materials - beads, wire, feathers, flowers and so on.  Avoid putting too many different elements on your design, sometimes less is more.  Practice your design on folded plain paper or old card scraps first.  Use coloured papers, ribbons, wording or inserts to incorporate your wedding colour.  

Plan how your design will be incorporated into each stationery item.  Will all your design elements fit on a smaller thank you card, for example.   How will it look on a table plan.  Consider using one particular element, a paper flower for example, which can be used with other items on some of your stationery and on its own on other items. This will give your stationery a themed look.   Make sure your design is not too time consuming, difficult or fiddly.  If you're making 100 cards, you'll be cursing by the end of it.

• Remember it's got to fit in the envelope!  Some 3-D elements are difficult to fit into an envelope without getting squashed.

budget

Decide how much you want to spend on your stationery, either a cost per item or total budget.  It's very easy to get carried away with all the craft items available.  Keep your budget in mind when planning your design.

glue

• Avoid using water-based glues for paper elements on your design. They tend to soak into the paper making creases and indentation.  PVA can be used for your card embellishments (but only very sparingly).  For a professional look and ease of use, we highly recommend using our glue dots and adhesive tapes.

production

Get some sort of production line going.  Make up each element from your design ready to place on your card rather than doing one card at a time.  Make sure you are well away from anything that can spill or stain your invitations.  Store away from heat and sources of smell.  Make sure your hands are clean.  If you are doing lots of gluing, keep washing your hands as it tends to get everywhere.

inserts

Inserts can be handwritten, printed on an inkjet printer, photocopied, or you could have them professionally printed.  Check out bridal magazines or wedding sites for examples of wording.