Missouri-St Louis

DIY Invites

Just trying to figure out my options....has anyone purchased the materials for invites, developed a design, and then had them printed? Where would I start finding a printer?
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Re: DIY Invites

  • kdbisopkdbisop member
    First Comment
    edited December 2011


    You can look on etsy.com for someone to create the invitation design that you would like. For inspiration I looked at magazines, blogs and etsy.  For paper, you can go to Xpedex on Kingshighway. For printing you could do it yourself or take it to a printer. The cost for printing I think is pretty reasonable.

    Now, I ended up using www.paperfrosting.com.  Melinda was wonderful and worked specifically within my budget. She listened intently to what I wanted and it worked out perfectly. We thought about DYI but decided just to set a budget and stay in it. She did our STDs, invitations and table numbers. We got so many compliments on al l of the staitionary for our wedding.  The only thing we did DYI was the programs. Again, Melinda was wonderful.

  • kdbisopkdbisop member
    First Comment
    edited December 2011

    That is about what I spent.  But just let my say, if you go DYI just make sure it doesn't drive you crazy. You will have enough to worry about outside of if they will come out right with your printer, who will cut them and the time it takes to put them together.  For me it was worth the peace of mind.

    That being said, if you decide to go the DYI route, Xpedex has every kind and color of paper you would ever want. If you are using ribbon, go to the walter knoll warehouse. It was the cheapest I found anywhere. If the roll was slightly used, they will give you a % off. I got al of my ribbon for the programs there. It was really cheap. GL
  • cgeithmancgeithman member
    First Comment
    edited December 2011
    In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/local-wedding-boards_missouri-st-louis_diy-invites?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Local Wedding BoardsForum:87Discussion:4f1ff849-56c3-485a-947f-68a56ad58052Post:b71fd06e-b7bf-4c2a-b018-c8d4e8c383d8">Re: DIY Invites</a>:
    [QUOTE]That is about what I spent.  <strong>But just let my say, if you go DYI just make sure it doesn't drive you crazy.</strong> You will have enough to worry about outside of if they will come out right with your printer, who will cut them and the time it takes to put them together.  For me it was worth the peace of mind. That being said, if you decide to go the DYI route, Xpedex has every kind and color of paper you would ever want. If you are using ribbon, go to the walter knoll warehouse. It was the cheapest I found anywhere. If the roll was slightly used, they will give you a % off. I got al of my ribbon for the programs there. It was really cheap. GL
    Posted by kdbisop[/QUOTE]

    This is exactly what FI says. I may end up agreeing with the both of you, but at the end of the day I'm still cheap! Off to research!
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  • edited December 2011
    I very nearly DIYed pocketfold invites for my wedding.  In the end, after pricing out all of the materials, time, and printing services I'd need (I didn't consider printing my own because I wanted embossed text) it wasn't worth it.  Instead, I split up my paper needs between places where I got great deals.  

    I spent $6 on save the dates- postcards, envelopes and magnets (Vista Print), $4 on glue dots to attach the magnets to the postcards (Michael's), and $189 on 150 invitations, return cards and envelopes with addresses preprinted (MyJeanM.com) and $65 to print my 200 (1/3 sheet) programs (AlphaGraphics in Kirkwood).  Table numbers were printed on my home computer (6/ page, each page was .10 at Michael's- spent less than $1) and put in frames from the dollar store ($16 more).  So, I spent less than $300 for all of my paper not including the paper cutter I already had and postage.  And I did about 2-3 hours of work on them (design online for VistaPrint and MyJeanM and very small time printing and cutting table numbers).  
    White Knot
    Stand up for something you believe in. White Knot
  • jlk0219jlk0219 member
    First Anniversary Combo Breaker First Comment
    edited December 2011
    If you have a good friend who does graphic design, why don't you ask her to create the invite design as her wedding gift to you?  Then you would get a professional design for *free*.  Check out Cards and Pockets for the printing and paper.  Their printing is high quality, they have lots of colors available, and they can also cut the paper for you too.
  • aragx6aragx6 member
    5 Love Its Combo Breaker First Comment
    edited December 2011
    If you feel comfortable with basic layout, but not with actual design and illustration, you can have an Etsy designer create you a custom monogram and then you can use that for all your paper needs -- invitations, RSVP cards, Thank You notes, menu cards, place cards etc. etc.
    Lizzie
  • edited December 2011
    weddingchicks.com has some nice diy invite templates!
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  • aeperez80aeperez80 member
    First Comment
    edited December 2011
    As an avid scrapbooker I highly recommend NOT creating your own invites just to save money.  I've made the Save the Dates, Shower, and Wedding invites for all my friends weddings  and I can tell you from experience that it is very time consuming.  You will save some money (unless you have to purchase the basic tools) but depending on how many you have to make it might not be worth it.  If you still want to give it a go then try Archivers.  There's a store at the St Louis Mills.  They have great examples of create invites and very helpful employees.  If you decide to go with one of their designs then try very hard to purchase ALL your material at once.  If you're not sure how much you'll need then take your best guess because you can return it later.  The last thing you want to have happen is to run out of material and then find out the store is also out of what you need.  I learned that lesson the hard way!

     
  • cgeithmancgeithman member
    First Comment
    edited December 2011
    aeperez80--i abandoned the idea of making my own invites, for exactly the reasons you list. i figured out i would only be saving like $75 and for that it's worth to have someone else do it! i went with corey at paper, rock, scissors in st. charles, MO. she is working on a design for me right now and then she'll print them, all for about $3 per invite (including all envelopes and enclosures). 
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