Your wedding day will be one of the most memorable days you will experience in your life, and as such your invitations should reflect the magic and elegance of this event. Sending out hand-made invitations, tailored specifically to your personalities and styles, will leave a lasting impression for the bride and groom and your guests.

As you are considering your invitation options, cost is likely to be a factor in the kind of invitations you decide to purchase. Custom designed invitations do not have to be expensive; they can be created based on any budget you may have. In some cases, they can be less expensive than your average, single-card printed invitations. I have created custom wedding invitations as low as $0.39 each, excluding shipping.

I make the creation process as simple and as personal as possible to ensure your complete satisfaction with the final product. Here, I will explain my design process to show you that not only can custom invitations be within your reach, but also be an important piece of your wedding keepsake collection.

THE PROCESS

1. Bride and Groom – Who Are You?
The first step in the creation process is to have a discussion with either the bride/groom yourselves, or the individual you have appointed to handle your wedding invitation project. I learn as much as I can about your personalities, who you are and what you love about each other. All of this information is helpful in determining the style in which the invitations will be created in. Injecting your personalities into the design is what makes this project personal, and I want to ensure the final product expresses you.

2. What Is Your Budget?
Of course, your budget is an important player in this process. Custom invitations can be created around any sized budget, large or small. I use several types of materials in my designs, including such items as special papers (patterned, textured, cardstock, vellum, recycled and hand-made), ribbons, brads, fibres, etc. The larger your budget is, the more room we have to be creative with the items that are used; however, this does not mean that a low budget inhibits the use of these materials. Each invitation design is treated individually, and you will have many options to choose from when the time comes.

3. Colors and Styling
By the time you decide to have your wedding invitations started, you likely already know what your official wedding colors will be. We can design the invitation around these colors, or come up with a palette that compliments the colors you have chosen. The style of invitation will be reflected based on the previous discussions of personality and budget, and at this stage we will discuss the final physical size of the invitation, and if there are any special elements to the design.

4. Paper and Material Samples
Once the colors and styling have been determined, the next step is to seek out the materials to be used. I will provide you with approximately 10-12 samples of paper, in complimentary combinations, as well as embellishment options (ribbons, etc.) Once you have been able to review these samples, we will discuss options for their uses in the design.

5. Custom Invitation Sample
This is where we begin to see the end of the project. From our discussions of the material samples provided, I will construct 2-3 invitation design options and send them to you. From these you can select elements to mix and match, or if we are lucky, one of the designs as is. Revised samples can be sent out at your request if the changes are significant.

6. Proofread the Contents
The details of the event will be included in the constructed sample, as supplied in the previous step. I will ask you to proofread the sample and ensure everything is correct as it is placed. If all of the details are not available at the sample stage, digital renditions will be sent via email once the information is available, and you will be asked to proof these files prior to the final construction of your invitations.

7. Assemble and Mail
This is the last step! Once everything has been properly proofread, the final product will be hand-crafted and sent to you via registered mail. Congratulations!

RECOMMENDATIONS

I recommend allowing three (3) months prior to your intended mailing date for the creation process. This allows time for mailing of samples, decisions, and final details. The last thing we want to do is rush a project this important!

Depending on the paper stock used, and the final invitation size, you may be left with bits of extra paper. Instead of wasting these leftovers, they can be used for things such as RSVP cards, place settings, thank you cards, hotel information, or if the pieces are larger, perhaps a small story about the bride and groom (this adds an even more personal element to your invitations.)

PAST EXAMPLES

Please visit my Wedding Invitation Portfolio to view some of my previous design work. Should you have any questions, please contact me and I’ll be happy to help.