Invitations 101
An invitation is an invitation. How hard can it be? Think again. There are typestyles, ink colors, printing options, paper weights, and more. The wedding invitation is a unique ensemble made of many components that all work in sync with one another. A crash course on the details that go into creating your invitation ensemble awaits.
The Wedding Invitation
When should I order my invitations? Your invitations should be ordered about four to six months in advance. This will allow enough time for you to have the order processed, receive the order, and have the invitations assembled and addressed. If you are considering custom-designed invitations, you should allow yourself more time to account for the design process.
Essential
Custom-designed invitations are pricey, but you can still achieve a designer look at a fraction of the cost by using standard invitation books. Beautiful envelope liners, modern typestyles, a variety of design motifs and monograms, and a large range of ink colors are available to customize your invitations. You can also accomplish this with ribbons, charms, and other accessories.
Other than engraved invitations, what options do I have? There are four common printing methods for invitations. They include:
Engraving: Viewed as the most formal, they are also one of the most expensive options. A plate of the invitation is made and the paper is pressed onto it, raising the print, on which a layer of ink is then applied.
Letterpress: In essence, this is the reverse process of engraving; a plate is pressed into the paper from on top, leaving the letters depressed into the card. These invitations are fairly equivalent in price to engraved invitations.
Thermography: This is an extremely popular and cost effective option that offers a similar look to an engraved invitation. Ink and powder are fused together, giving the letters a raised appearance on the front of the invitation.
Lithography or Offset Printing: This is a flat printing process that is the least expensive printing option.
The Components
What are the components of the invitation? The components of the basic wedding invitation include:
Invitation: Invites the guest to the wedding and provides the necessary details: bride and groom's names, host, date, time, and ceremony location.
Response Card and Envelope: Allows the guests to indicate whether or not they'll be attending and if they're bringing a guest (if a guest is invited). Traditional etiquette dictates a guest is to write her own reply to the host, but pre-printed response cards have become the norm.
Reception Card: Directs the guests to the location of the reception. If the ceremony and reception are in the same location, a reception card is not always necessary. You may print “Reception immediately follows” in the lower left corner of the invitation.
Map or Direction Card: Provides guests with the address and driving directions to the wedding venue.
Inner Envelope: Part of a traditional presentation, it is becoming common to skip it in favor of saving paper. The stacked and completed invitation ensemble is inserted into the inner envelope with the text facing the back flap.
Outer Envelope: The complete invitation, whether inserted into the inner envelope or stacked on its own, is placed inside this envelope to be stamped and mailed. The return address should be printed on the back flap of this outer envelope.
Essential
Do not forget to pre-stamp the response card envelope. This facilitates the process of promptly receiving your response cards. Make responding as easy as you can for the guests and you can expect to have an easier time solidifying a guest count.
Ordering the Invitations
What do we need to know or do before we order the invitations? To make the ordering process easier, keep a few key points in mind.
Know how many invitations you need. You can usually count one invitation per household.
Have an idea about the wording of your invitation. Will your parents' names appear on the invitation? What about your fiancé's parents? Will you be using a poem or verse or other unique wording?
Confirm and reconfirm the details. Be sure you have the correct ceremony start time, the correct spellings of all people and locations, and the address for the ceremony and reception.
Know your response deadline, usually two to three weeks prior to the wedding. If you are using an R.S.V.P. service, you will need the company's designated phone number and website information.
Know if you are providing guests with a meal choice; you will need to have this indicated on the response card.
Can we cut costs by omitting postage from the response cards? It is not recommended because it facilitates the response process. You can cut down on the cost of postage by making your response card a postcard.
Can we use a phone number for our responses instead of a card? If your wedding is casual or invitations are going out last minute, it can be acceptable. If you are looking to skip the mailing of response cards altogether, try an R.S.V.P. service. For a fee, the company tracks the responses via a toll-free phone number (usually with a personal extension) or a website address for the guests to call/send in their responses. This is not a traditional reply method, so some of your guests may be a little confused. It is a personal choice; some brides love this idea and others are appalled. You will still need to include a card to convey the information. The following is a sample.
Please respond by June 25, 2012
