Invitations

Whew! Our invitations are finally on their way to our lovely guests. It feels SO GOOD to be finished with this project!!
I made the decision to hand craft our invites after scouring the net for countless hours trying to find an affordable, unique invitation that fits our colors and theme. After ordering several samples and reviewing price quotes; it was determined that nothing really “fit” what I was looking for. All of the navy blue price-
conscious options were either too “corporate” looking or were clearly for a summer (nautical) wedding.
Thus began the task of designing our invites. WHAT A TASK! But after finishing and mailing them this week, I’ve decided it was all worth it because they completely convey the style of our wedding.

So here we go, the complete how-to and method behind my madness:

***SUPPLIES***
-Signature Pocketfold in “Champagne Metallic” … www.cardsandpockets.com
(on sale!)
-“Night” blue cardstock … www.papersource.com
-“Night” blue envelopes in 4 bar & A9 … www.papersource.com
-Cream cardstock paper… www.staples.com
-Regalia design paper … www.envelopments.com
-Swirl Stamp … www.heroarts.com
- Midnight pigment ink, embossing powder, embossing heat gun, tape-runners, curved corner cutter, etc … www.Michaels.com
-HP Inkjet printer
- Fonts: “Feel” (script) and “Optima” (print) I uh, "found" them somewhere online ;)

***PROCESS***
1. Decided which inserts we really really needed
2. Researched and decided on wording for each insert including the main portion of the invitation
3. Using word, I typed up the information and picked which colors will go where and positioned everything so it looks balanced. I also made sure enough room would be left for the stamp.
4. I went to www.weddingmapper.com to create our map. I used the good ol’ fashioned “paint” program to fancy it up.
5. Figure out all of the measurements for each piece of cardstock. I made sure that there was only ¼ inch spacing on each piece. (between the night and the cream) I made several mock-ups to make sure everything was perfect.
6. Custom sized the page for each insert for easy printing. Put all of the PDF files on a zip drive.
7. Went to my local Kinkos. My main man Paul (the perfectionist) helped me make sure everything was straight, and aligned. He also figured out how many prints could fit on each piece of cream cardstock to maximize space. He printed all of my inserts and cut them to size for me. I also had all of the night paper cut to the correct matting size.
8. I rounded the corners on all of the cream cardstock
9. I started an assembly line! I stamped the swirl design, and sprinkled on the clear embossing powder. Then Mr.50 used the heat gun to emboss the stamp.
10. Next I used glue/tape runners to affix the cream cardstock to the night backing. The map is on back of the Directions card. To save paper and space.
11. Repeated this process for each insert. Then put everything together! We made clear labels with our website that is behind the inserts on the pocketfold.
12. Finally, the patterned paper was cut into 2” strips and wrapped around the pocketfold as the “belly band.”
13. Put all the invitations in the envelopes and used the “Sharpie” metallic pens to address them.
Oh and don’t forget the postage!

I purposely didn’t use any ribbons, or stones, or bumpy items on the invites. Using such items would really jack up the postage. When I went to buy the 61 cent stamps the USPS employee thanked me for making it easy.

This has definitely been the largest project. I recommend having plenty of patience and time if you decide to make your own invitations.

Finally … I kissed those suckers goodbye!! :D