DIY Wedding Forum

DIY Invitations?

Has anyone on here DIY'ed their own wedding invites? Was there a website you based everything off of? I am pretty decent at graphic design and photo shop, so I will probably being designing my own, but I am open for help :) 


I love scrapbooking and so does my entire family, so I thought that this could be something fun that we could do together. 

Please post pictures or any tips if you have :) Thanks!! 
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Re: DIY Invitations?

  • I recommend Catprint if you are going to design your own. You can upload your file. They will print on any paper in any size in any quantity, and send you a free hard copy proof so you can approve it before printing the full order. I absolutely love them!

    Your invites probably won't be as involved as scrapbooking, even if you have assembly to do. I would avoid asking your family to help just because it's kind of a mundane task and they may not want to do it. If they offer, though, feel free to take them up on it! 

    I did mine a little at a time. Got my cardstock cut at Office Depot. I used a tape runner tool to attach the invite to the backing. Hot glued some lace into a circle for a belly band. Stamped a design onto each envelope. None of the steps took long and I did them at different times. No need for a big assembly line. :) 
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  • Do make certain that your wording is correct before you print.  We will be glad to proof read your invitation over on Invites and Paper.
    httpiimgurcomTCCjW0wjpg
  • I DIY'ed my invites and my sister's invites.

    I got more creative with mine.  I had a destination wedding, so my invites looked like passport books that included all the travel info in them.  I designed them from scratch, printed them on my laser printer at work and cut and assembled them myself. They were more time consuming than I had expected, but turned out awesome.

    My sister's invites were more traditional.  She wanted pocket-style invites.  We bought the pockets pre-made from www.cardsandpockets.com, because it was about same price to buy them pre-made as it would have cost to buy the paper and cut them myself.  We also decided to buy the colored backing paper from there, pre-cut, as it wasn't much more than DIY-ing that portion.  For the actual invite & inserts, I bought cardstock from Michaels and printed & cut them myself. Then assembled it all myself. It took less time than I anticipated.

    image 

  • Thank you ladies for your helpful advice! :) I have not heard of those sites, so I will look into them! 
    I am wanting more of a traditional style, but with an elegant rustic look to it was well. 
  • I'm doing my own, printed them on my regular printer, got all the paper from LCI Paper and the cutting tools from amazon. Like it's been said, if you do it in stages it's totally manageable on your own.

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  • CMGragain said:
    I am looking for a traditional style, but with kind of a rustic feel to it. Nothing one layered, no mason jars, etc. I don't know how else to word it. 
  • edited January 2016
    For my invites, I bought most of my paper from www.lcipaper.com and www.paper-papers.com.  Both great sites to look at paper options.

    My biggest advice is to keep them simple.  Like I said, I got more complex with mine and it turned into a big (expensive) project.  I went a lot more simple with my sisters and they were much easier (and cheaper) to make.

    image 

  • I DIY'd most of mine. I had them printed professionally because I couldn't obtain the correct size paper commerically. I had to fold them all, assemble them, wax seal them, and then stuff them. FI and I did one project a week, and it wasn't that bad.

  • I am in the process of making a handmade card and also a personal wedding anniversary guest book for an older couple who we are friends with and who are also neighbours, there party is in a just over a week.
  • I am getting mine through Zazzle. They have pre-made templates to browse, but you can also design your own covers, script, and background (I did this for STDs, which were magnets). If you keep an eye open, there are usually some pretty good promo codes every other week or so, too, which helped keep things more affordable. 
                        


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  • spockforprezspockforprez member
    First Anniversary First Comment 5 Love Its Name Dropper
    edited February 2016
    Here are mine. I love them. The only thing I'd change is that when I ordered the little reply cards I forgot that I had customized the colors of that little flower motif for my invitation, so they don't quite match. I don't think anyone will notice so I'm not willing to order them again. But I'd go back and fix that if I could.

    I just realized you can't see the middle wording because of the lace band but it's just "request the pleasure of your company as they are joined in marriage."

    ETA I'm also realizing now that I didn't say anything about a reception on the invites. Oh well. (It's all in one location anyway.) Hopefully everyone will understand that they will be hosted with food and drink. :) 
     

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  • music11music11 member
    First Anniversary First Comment
    edited February 2016
    We used Cards and Pockets for our DIY invites. 
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  • edited February 2016
    I made ours on my printer at home.  The most difficult part was printing on the "tracing paper".  Please excuse the photos below (and the broken starfish), I had to take a photo of the invite that I have glued into my scrapbook and block out a few personal details (yes, I chose to scrapbook my wedding photos instead of paying a photographer to print an album!).




  • CMGragainCMGragain member
    First Anniversary First Comment First Answer 5 Love Its
    edited February 2016
    Silvene said:
    I made ours on my printer at home.  The most difficult part was printing on the "tracing paper".  Please excuse the photos below (and the broken starfish), I had to take a photo of the invite that I have glued into my scrapbook and block out a few personal details (yes, I chose to scrapbook my wedding photos instead of paying a photographer to print an album!).


    Please, please tell us that these are not your real invitations!  Cash bar?  "No children"  Dress code?  Gift information on the invitation?   OMG!  Nooooo!
    Since you printed these yourself, is it too late to redo them?
    httpiimgurcomTCCjW0wjpg
  • edited February 2016
    And this is an invitation for a wedding that I attended last year.  Yes, they're wooden invites that the Groom made, as the couple had a "rustic wedding" and the invite matched the theme and table decor that they had.  The couple paid for their own wedding and chose to omit their parents names from the invite, as there was no contribution from them (I can see that really ruffling the feathers of the etiquette sticklers out there).  We don't live in the Dark Ages anymore and have freedom of choice.  Yes, some brides choose to do everything in the old-fashioned, very traditional manner and stick strictly to old-fashioned etiquette, while others prefer to be more open-minded and go with something that's alternative and very modern.  I don't think that a couple should be shunned or made to feel stupid or inferior because they've chosen to do something that they like and want to do, even though it might offend a few close-minded, old-fashioned people.  If you don't like it, scroll past it.  Everyone has different taste and different ideas, the world would be a boring place if we were all the same.  Remember the saying: "If you have nothing nice to say, don't say anything at all!"


  • CMGragain, as you've already criticised two invites on here, I'd love to see what yours look like.  I bet they weren't/aren't DIY'ed, in which case you shouldn't be commenting on a DIY'ed invite thread. 
  • Silvene said:
    CMGragain, as you've already criticised two invites on here, I'd love to see what yours look like.  I bet they weren't/aren't DIY'ed, in which case you shouldn't be commenting on a DIY'ed invite thread. 
    In addition to having bad invitation advice, your logic sucks balls.



  • CMGragainCMGragain member
    First Anniversary First Comment First Answer 5 Love Its
    edited February 2016
    I feel very sorry that you didn't ask us before you printed your invitations.  I am glad that you posted, though, because it can warn some other brides to not make those mistakes.

    There are some wording rules than can be changed to suit the sender, but there are also rules that cannot, should not be broken!
    1.  The bride and groom never directly invite guests to their own wedding.  It is not necessary to name parents on an invitation, but if the bride and groom are self hosting, the passive voice is used.
    2.  The wording must specifically state who, what, when and where. "Celebrate the marriage" sounds like you are already married, and this is a celebration party.
    3.  Cash bars are rude.  No argument.  Announcing them on your invitation is equally rude.
    4.  Gifts may not be mentioned anywhere in the invitation.  This includes references to "All we require is your presence."
    5.  The only permissible dress code is "black tie", and this would only be for a very formal wedding where all guests wear tuxedos/long gowns.  To tell your guests what they should wear is insulting.
    6.  It is very rude to mention people (children) who are not invited on the invitation.

    My post was not meant to insult you.  If your wedding has already taken place, I hope you had a lovely day.  That does not change the fact that you did break some important rules, and you posted them here on an open forum.  I hope to prevent other brides from making the same mistakes.
    httpiimgurcomTCCjW0wjpg
  • CMGragainCMGragain member
    First Anniversary First Comment First Answer 5 Love Its
    edited February 2016
    Silvene said:
    CMGragain, as you've already criticised two invites on here, I'd love to see what yours look like.  I bet they weren't/aren't DIY'ed, in which case you shouldn't be commenting on a DIY'ed invite thread. 
    I am a regular poster on the invitations board.  I have helped hundreds of brides word their invitations over the past five years.
    My own wedding invitation was copied straight out of Amy Vanderbilt's Etiquette book.
    httpiimgurcomTCCjW0wjpg
  • Silvene said:
    CMGragain, as you've already criticised two invites on here, I'd love to see what yours look like.  I bet they weren't/aren't DIY'ed, in which case you shouldn't be commenting on a DIY'ed invite thread. 
    Are you saying that DIY brides aren't interested in proper etiquette. How insulting!

     
                       
  • CMGragainCMGragain member
    First Anniversary First Comment First Answer 5 Love Its
    edited February 2016
    Actually, the most traditional and formal invitations are DIY.  The bride wrote them out in her own beautiful handwriting, using black ink on white or ecru paper and following traditional etiquette.
    httpiimgurcomTCCjW0wjpg
  • Damn, that 2nd invite is a hot mess. The mixed fonts and sizes along with the spacing issues are an eyesore, not to mention the grammar errors. I'm a little bit in shock that someone sent that out.
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  • DIY brides, before you print your invitations, come show us your wording on the invitations board.  We will be happy to help you word your invitation to avoid these mistakes.
    httpiimgurcomTCCjW0wjpg
  • It took me an entire day to do these, absolutely the worst thing ever to glue tiny bows on, but they came out nicely. I think it was Wilton ordered off Amazon, a diy kit basically.  :D
  • And this is an invitation for a wedding that I attended last year.  Yes, they're wooden invites that the Groom made, as the couple had a "rustic wedding" and the invite matched the theme and table decor that they had.  The couple paid for their own wedding and chose to omit their parents names from the invite, as there was no contribution from them (I can see that really ruffling the feathers of the etiquette sticklers out there).  We don't live in the Dark Ages anymore and have freedom of choice.  Yes, some brides choose to do everything in the old-fashioned, very traditional manner and stick strictly to old-fashioned etiquette, while others prefer to be more open-minded and go with something that's alternative and very modern.  I don't think that a couple should be shunned or made to feel stupid or inferior because they've chosen to do something that they like and want to do, even though it might offend a few close-minded, old-fashioned people.  If you don't like it, scroll past it.  Everyone has different taste and different ideas, the world would be a boring place if we were all the same.  Remember the saying: "If you have nothing nice to say, don't say anything at all!"


    I'm so confused as to why someone would pick this particular invitation to prove a point. Theres a capital R in the middle of the word sharp just for starters. Ugh, people who confuse good etiquette with being old fashioned are just idiots. 
                 
  • WHAT THE HECK IS STRICTLY SMART?
    image
  • ^I think "strictly smart" means dressed up but not tuxedo-formal. So nice pants & button down, or Dress. I could be wrong though  :D
  • justsie said:
    WHAT THE HECK IS STRICTLY SMART?
    If your IQ is below 125, you can't come in.  They're very strict about it.

    OP, I DIY'ed our invites, and especially since you have graphic design experience, I'd say go for it.  I used publisher to design ours using drawings from my late grandmother and then had them printed at Staples with cardstock I bought on amazon.  I kept them really simple apart from that: no bows, appliques, etc. So I'd recommend doing them in stages.  Start with the basics and then if you have time/inclination you can add more little things.
  • CMGragainCMGragain member
    First Anniversary First Comment First Answer 5 Love Its
    edited February 2016
    Well, that speshul snowflake melted quickly!
    httpiimgurcomTCCjW0wjpg
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