Hints and Tips

Things to consider when choosing your wedding invitation

From paper to printing and typestyle to ink color, there are a multitude of choices when it comes to choosing the perfect wedding invitation. First you should determine the theme, style and colors of your wedding. This will help you to select the appropriate paper color and style for your invitation. Bright white has been popular for a number of years for a white wedding, while soft white has been the choice for a traditional look and ecru for an off-white or ivory color scheme. Torn-edge paper featuring a hand-made look, with or without a pearl edge, has been a recent addition to the invitation industry. Imported European, textured and brown craft papers are all exciting choices that have become very popular. A colored bottom layer combined with a matching ink can also create a stunning combination

Thermography

Thermography or raised printing, is one of the most popular printing choices for brides who desire the classy and elegant look of engraving, at a fraction of the cost. Thermography creates raised lettering that is almost indistinguishable from engraving at an average savings of 40%. It can be used with any ink colors, as well as more sophisticated four-color designs.

Typestyles

When it comes to typestyle, Rook, Bickham, Citadel and Engravers are among the most popular choices. Photo lettering has also become popular. This method of setting type photographically expands the versatility in point size and broadens the availability of scripted letterings. Another choice would be traditional block lettering in black ink, which adds a classic look. Or, if you prefer, choose a fancy script in rich red ink to add passion. Or, choose a combination typestyle for a great way to highlight the bride and groom's names.

Ink Colors

When deciding on ink color keep in mind that although black ink has traditionally been the most popular color, many brides are choosing complimentary colors of ink to match the background color of the card - hunter green for a light green card, sable ink for a brown card, navy for a blue floral card, etc. There have been a lot of requests for slate or charcoal colored ink recently, which WPT members are adding into their next printing choices. Other "in" colors include shades of purple ranging from deep purple to lilac and periwinkle. Sage, grey and silver are also top choices for today's bride.

Ordering

• Always complete your guest list before ordering your invitations. Single guests and children over 16 receive their own invitation
• Always order extra invitations to account for address errors or last minute additions. Ordering 25 extra invitations at a later date will be considered a new order and will be very costly
• Order extra inner and outer envelopes in case of addressing mistakes or guest list additions
• When ordering, ask for a proof to make sure you like the set up and typestyle. Most companies will set up your wording and give you a black and white proof of your wording for a very small fee
• Before placing the final order, have others proof everything to be sure there are no spelling or grammatical errors
• Don't forget your wedding party and attendants such as ushers, vocalists, guest book attendants, etc.

Postage

• Bring the entire invitation ensemble to your local post office to be checked for size and weight to ensure you use proper postage
• Read the description of your invitation carefully. Most companies will tell you in the description of the invite if it will cost you more to mail
• Mail an entire invitation to yourself to be sure everything goes as planned, before you mail the invitations to your guests
• If some invitations have extra enclosures, the postage may be higher
• You should ask at the post office to have your invitations hand-cancelled for a nicer look
• Try to mail all your invitations on the same day. Humidity will play a part in what they will weigh

Miscellaneous

• Always have the host's return address printed on the back flap of the invitation envelope. This assures that your invitation has been delivered and returns any incorrectly addressed invitations to you for re-mailing
• If you need to make a correction due to a change of date or location, inquire about receiving a discount. Save all envelopes and pieces that are correct. Only the pieces with the error will be replaced
• Typing or clearly printing your order will ensure a perfect invitation
• Carefully read over all your copy. Make notes in the special instructions portion of the order form if you have names with unusual spacing or spelling
• Buy beautiful pens for addressing your envelopes
• Always proof and have at least two others proof all wording before you order. Be sure to check for correct spelling and also do a day and date match ... "Is March 15th really a Saturday?"
• Order a proof to handle corrections before there is a problem