Clueless about invitations- how to?

Knottie1444090863

Hello! I am completely clueless about invitations! I don't want to hand write each one- is it possible to buy the invitation/RSVP kit from a place like Target, type out what information I would want on the invitation and then give that document to a place like Fedex or Kinkos to print on the card? Do I format to the dimension and will they alter them to fit if I do it incorrectly? Or is there a place online where I can submit the info into a template and they'll create types invitation kits for purchase? 

laurad75

Start by looking online at vistaprint and zazzle maybe wedding paper divas which have great deals all the time.  You can customize one of their designs.  

ILoveBeachMusic

Check out minted.com also.

KittenMittens84

Check out Basic Invite. You can order customers samples and they ship pretty quickly. Just beware of the wording most of those sites have prepared. There is a sticky on this page for correct wording if you need an idea of the correct wording. 

SP29

The US David's Bridal online store has a section for wedding invitations.

You chose a design you like, and you are often prompted with what words to include, or at the very least, given examples you can use.

I also really like WeddingPaperDivas, but ended up going with DB as it was cheaper.

Knottie1444090863

Thank you all so much! So sites like these will ship to you, and then you write in the guest's names? 

Knottie1444090863

Ohh I am loving Vista Print!

pinupbride6189

Knottie1444090863 said:

Thank you all so much! So sites like these will ship to you, and then you write in the guest's names? 

They ship you your customized invitation, and then you address the envelopes as needed. I think Minted will actually address your envelopes for you as well.

ILoveBeachMusic

Knottie1444090863 said:

Thank you all so much! So sites like these will ship to you, and then you write in the guest's names? 

Yes. Some sites even have an option for them to print the guests' names. Before you order, put your wording on here to get feedback. As someone else said, not all of the sites have proper wording.

ernursej

Depending on your budget, you could also look at local stores in your area. Most places have some sort of stationer that does custom work. Usually more expensive but you often have complete control.

CMGragain

Check the sticky I wrote at the top of this board for wording.  There are some rules that you should follow.

My daughter used Vistaprint for her invitations.  I liked the invitations, but I thought the free envelopes were flimsy.  I would have bought heavier ones from an office supply store instead.

ScottishSarah

I used vista print and yes the free envolopes are crap.  Defo hand write the names though, much more personal.  

lnixon8

ScottishSarah said:

I used vista print and yes the free envolopes are crap.  Defo hand write the names though, much more personal.  

I don't know about this. Some people's handwriting is awful and they can't easily afford a calligrapher. Personally I would not side-eye printed names and addresses on the outer envelope. I will probably not keep the invitation itself, i will DEFINITELY not keep the envelop it was sent in. 

CMGragain

lnixon8 said:

ScottishSarah said:

I used vista print and yes the free envolopes are crap.  Defo hand write the names though, much more personal.  

I don't know about this. Some people's handwriting is awful and they can't easily afford a calligrapher. Personally I would not side-eye printed names and addresses on the outer envelope. I will probably not keep the invitation itself, i will DEFINITELY not keep the envelop it was sent in. 

 The accepted, proper way to address a wedding invitation is with handwriting.  If this is impossible, some brides have been printing addresses directly on the envelope.  Please do not use sticky labels!  That is so tacky.

laurad75

I have awful handwriting and calligraphy was a very expensive option.  I had my addresses printed directly on the envelope and I thought it looked just fine.  It's a terribly petty thing to side-eye IMO.  

OurWildKingdom

CMGragain said:

lnixon8 said:

ScottishSarah said:

I used vista print and yes the free envolopes are crap.  Defo hand write the names though, much more personal.  

I don't know about this. Some people's handwriting is awful and they can't easily afford a calligrapher. Personally I would not side-eye printed names and addresses on the outer envelope. I will probably not keep the invitation itself, i will DEFINITELY not keep the envelop it was sent in. 

 The accepted, proper way to address a wedding invitation is with handwriting.  If this is impossible, some brides have been printing addresses directly on the envelope.  Please do not use sticky labels!  That is so tacky.

Sticky labels are for business mail. My handwriting isn't the best, so I'm going to hand-print invitations. 

ScottishSarah

To me I'm likening it to printing the inner and outer of a birthday card.  Most people wouldn't type "happy birthday John!" even if they had awful handwriting.

JediElizabeth

laurad75 said:

I have awful handwriting and calligraphy was a very expensive option.  I had my addresses printed directly on the envelope and I thought it looked just fine.  It's a terribly petty thing to side-eye IMO.  

This. All of this. 

MairePoppy

JediElizabeth said:

laurad75 said:

I have awful handwriting and calligraphy was a very expensive option.  I had my addresses printed directly on the envelope and I thought it looked just fine.  It's a terribly petty thing to side-eye IMO.  

This. All of this. 

I know it's not proper, but I'll agree with this, also. There's not much point in handwriting the addresses if your writing is illegible. 

PaperTigersx

You could maybe do a fancier font if they're printed ? I think there's an actual font called calligraphy. 

lnixon8

No one is suggesting sticky labels. FWIW I hand wrote my invitations, I was just being honest about not caring at all if someone printed directly on the envelopes.

laurad75

The font I used for my address printing coordinated with my invitations (I think it was brotherhood).  Its not like I used Comic Sans or Arial .  I think calligraphy can look messy sometimes so I much preferred this look.  

OurWildKingdom

lnixon8 said:

No one is suggesting sticky labels. FWIW I hand wrote my invitations, I was just being honest about not caring at all if someone printed directly on the envelopes.

@CMGragain brought up sticky labels as tacky (I don't know if she intended to make a pun, but I totally did).

ScottishSarah

Haha tacky!

Tyvm

For my Save the Dates I purchased a calligraphy worksheet (you can see a sample free one, here: https://thepostmansknock.com/catalog/amy-style-calligraphy-worksheet/). I cut out each of the capital letters, placed the letter on the address line, and traced over it with a ballpoint pen. This gave me an indentation to trace over with a firm Tombow Fudenosuke Hard brush pen. Then I just wrote the rest of the name/address in small caps with a uniball vision needle pen. This might work for people with bad handwriting...and your groom should be perfectly capable of following this process as well.

This gave the effect of the first capital letter on the name line being in calligraphy, and the rest of the letters were in small caps. It's a little bit extra effort, but it is nicer than just all small caps. Sort of like in this photo:

OurWildKingdom

That looks really cool, @Tyvm!

MairePoppy

When I first joined TK, a frequent suggestion was to run the envelopes through a printer and then trace over the addresses, by hand. This could work if you do a few each night, rather than tackle them all at once. 

@Tyvm your postcards look great.

[Deleted User]

MairePoppy said:

When I first joined TK, a frequent suggestion was to run the envelopes through a printer and then trace over the addresses, by hand. This could work if you do a few each night, rather than tackle them all at once. 

@Tyvm your postcards look great.

Yes, printed in a light gray font or something like that, right?

KatCtoKatA

For those willing to consider a Calligrapher -- I hired someone through Thumbtack and she has been a total pleasure to work with. She's charging me $2/outer envelope, and she also will do inner envelopes and RSVP envelopes if needed.  We got several quotes in this approximate price range, so I'm guessing it's about the going rate.

We didn't have a ton of invites, which meant it wasn't super expensive.  After handwriting the envelopes for our save the dates, I knew it was worth it to me to avoid the headache and ensure the invites looked better than my own efforts.

OurWildKingdom

KatCtoKatA said:

For those willing to consider a Calligrapher -- I hired someone through Thumbtack and she has been a total pleasure to work with. She's charging me $2/outer envelope, and she also will do inner envelopes and RSVP envelopes if needed.  We got several quotes in this approximate price range, so I'm guessing it's about the going rate.

We didn't have a ton of invites, which meant it wasn't super expensive.  After handwriting the envelopes for our save the dates, I knew it was worth it to me to avoid the headache and ensure the invites looked better than my own efforts.

That's a great idea. I may do that.

SP29

We (or I should say, DH) printed out names and addresses on the envelopes via the printer. He created a template on the computer, picked a cursive font, centered everything, etc. It turned out really well- clearly written, still looked nice, and DH spent a lot of time getting the template right, so it wasn't like we just threw something together.

While I understand that hand writing the name/address on the envelope is more personal, the point of an envelope is to provide information on to whom and where the contents of the envelope are to be delivered. Thus I fail to see how not handwriting names/addresses is poor etiquette.