From what I’ve seen, it should be cheaper to make our own so that’s what I’m thinking we’ll do. I made a couple today… some I really like actually! I was impressed with myself 
haha. I had another idea though. Can you tell me if it’s tacky?
Our colors are black and white with red as an accent. I’m thinking we could use an engagement picture and make it black and white. That’ll be kind of the background but all the information will be on a transparent piece that overlays the picture. We’ll tie a little bow at the top to tie the two pieces together. What do you think?
We Are Thinking About Doing Our Own Wedding Invitations… Opinions Please?
22
Nov
Mrs. Greenlee *06/05/09*
November 22, 2009 at 6:19 am
I think this is a great idea…but I’m not sure you’ll really save as much as you think you will.
Purchasing the stock to do your black and white photos on isn’t a big deal, but you’ll want to make sure that you get mylar or some translucent material for the top layer that won’t let the ink smear when your guests touch it. (You might not have to worry about smearing very much if you’re printing with a laser printer, but if you’re printing with an ink jet printer I’d get a few sample sheets and print out the wording on it. Then I’d leave it sit for a day or two and they try pulling your fingers across it to see if the ink smears before you commit to purchasing all the translucent stock and printing everything only to find out that all your invitations arrived smeared). This type of stock is also notoriously expensive (compared to plain paper) so shop around and make sure you’re getting a good deal. You’ll probably want to look in a scrapbook store though, where you can find someone who will help you choose the best paper for what you want to do.
You’ll also have to make sure that you can cut your paper stock down to the appropriate size so that it will fit into your envelopes. If you purchase a cutter from a scrapbook store it would probably help a great deal so you have straight edges. There are lots of diffrerent cutters, so you’ll want to make sure and ask which ones will cut the best without leaving any lip or drag marks on the heaver stock.
Also, you should think about how much ink you’re really going to be using. Of course, this depends on how many invitations you’ll need to print…if you only have 100, then it probably won’t be too bad, but if you’re printing more then you’ll want to make sure that you’ve cleaned your printer so that no problems arise once you start. Ribbon is easy…so I don’t’ tell you that it will be expensive…unless you choose expensive ribbon.
Over all, the idea is great…and I think that most major printers have a similar idea/option somewhere in their catalog…so that right there should tell you that you’ve got a winning idea! The bottom line is, if it’s what you want, then do it! It’s your wedding!
Congratulations and Good Luck!
thecreat
November 22, 2009 at 7:09 am
Its not tacky at all. Your idea sounds great. All you can do is make a couple of pictures, print out the invitation and put it all together and then see what it looks like. With the high cost of weddings nowadays, saving money wherever you can is certainly nothing to be ashamed of.
I made invitations for my parents 50th wedding anniversary and they turned out wonderful. I found some really nice card stock with a floral embossing on it at Staples. I printed them out with a nice bold script and they actually looked nicer than my wedding invitations that I had printed professionally many years before.
Josie826
November 22, 2009 at 8:05 am
Making your own invites is a great idea! I made my own and besides saving a ton of money and having some great times putting them together with a few close family & friends, I also got so many compliments on them. Nobody thought it was tacky. Your idea sounds really nice, just get a few people to help you with it and it will be done so fast and really inexpensive. It would look really cute if you had the black and white picture and put a red ribbon on the top. Good luck!
PS: Red is not exclusive to Chinese weddings!!
for shizzle
November 22, 2009 at 8:14 am
I think red is usually used for an Asian themed wedding. I’m not saying you can’t use it. If you’re going to use a vellum, be very careful on printing on it because they tend to smear. There’s a special printer to be used. Make sure that your engagement pic don’t print too bold so it won’t be difficult to read the wedding invitation wordings.
Hope this helps!
http://www.tinniewinnie.com
kriztinn
November 22, 2009 at 8:39 am
love your idea and this would work great with your colors!
Make sure the bow to attach the 2 sheets is red!
Also, Wilton and glamour have come out with some great DIY invitations that I’m sure are making some stationary shops jelous- they are PRETTY amazing and inexpensive.
Check out wiltons website or michaels craft store!
sportymo
November 22, 2009 at 9:09 am
Go for it. With all the different papers and accessories so readily available, making your invitations will be cheaper and they’ll be original. I’m sure the recipients will notice their originality.
My husband and I did our invitations using our computers and printers, paper cutter, and scissors; we were quite pleased with the font we used, the vellum overlay, and the ribbon tie.
suellenh
November 22, 2009 at 9:46 am
i think it sounds great love love love the sound of that,
i just finished my invites and it took a lot of hours but felt good that i had done them myself and was really happy with the end product.
i put a magnet on the back of all mine so they can go straight on every ones fridges if they wanted, just an idea,
La
November 22, 2009 at 10:24 am
I made my own wedding invitations too! I bought them on Ebay for a really great price. I got 60 for $30, with shipping! When at Michaels or Party City where $20+ for 20! Anyhow, they came out great, everyone loves them! A plus for me, since I can personalize them, I needed half in english and half in spanish!!
Future Mrs. G
November 22, 2009 at 10:48 am
Not at all tacky. I think handmade wedding invitations are very special and I love receiving them. Your description sounds lovely!
Skatin'
November 22, 2009 at 11:26 am
My concern would be readability. If it is easy to read, I think it sounds like a neat idea!
theology
November 22, 2009 at 11:52 am
Make sure that the ink doesnt smear! Most invites printed at home smear really bad!
Kjersti G
November 22, 2009 at 12:12 pm
I love the idea! I did the same thing. Well kind of… I saw the invites I wanted that were so intricate with little rhinestones all over the place and they wanted $4 a PIECE for the suckers I needed 120 of them! So I asked my best friend if her mom could do it because she’s amazing at that kind of thing and she said yes. In the end all of the materials ended up costing me $67.00!!!!! I gave her some money for her time and ended up only spending $132.00 for 120 invites that are absolutely “us”. I love them and would have been mad at myself if I’d gone with something else! If you want to know what we came up with for $67.00 here’s what ours looked like…http://i68.photobucket.com/albums/i15/ti…http://i68.photobucket.com/albums/i15/ti…
And these are the ones that would have cost me $480…http://i68.photobucket.com/albums/i15/ti…
Crazy right?!
The clear paper you are talking about I think is refereed to as “Vellum” I love that paper! Here is an amazing online shop I found that I love. I used a bunch from them when making my own and they have vellum in just about every color under the sun. You could do your black and white picture with white vellum and red writing or something cool like that. Black vellum with white writing and a red silky ribbon would be cute as heck too! Here’s the site and if you want to buy a sample it’s like $0.50! I did that with some of the metallic and I’m glad I did because I got to feel how thick and nice they were and picked a color from that.http://paperandmore.com/cat-vellum.html?…
They have other things on there that might interest you too. I hope that helps you out a little bit. Great idea!