ChocoTaco’s DIY Orchid Boarding Pass Invitations!

MY SPIEL (feel free to skip to the pics):

I do not consider myself to be a creative person, so in no way can I take credit for the originality of my boarding pass invites. But  I am a very detail oriented and I have gleaned so much insight and inspiration from the ladies of BDW which resulted in my DIY success. Without this forum, Google image search, and perusing invite galleries on Etsy, my boarding pass invites would have never come to fruition. So, I say thank you to everyone.

DESIGN:

MS Word 2010, it’s what I’m most comfortable with and I used the Aylee Bits Template which is in Word. The only change is that I made my boarding pass width 3.5â€.  My luggage tag RSVP is the end result of messing around with different angles and length to width ratios. All images are from Google.  My final invites were my fourth design attempt and my Fi actually liked them.  And thank God, because I don’t think I had it in me to try again.  The pics below are my first test run, and there are minor things that I still need to address. I will assemble 20 invites.

CARDSTOCK:

If you’re not in a rush, I suggest ordering samples since colors can be really hard to discern on a computer screen, especially metallic.  I received 14 samples which was a huge help since my colors are very specific and I like to have options.  You would be amazed at how many white metallic/pearlescent cardstock options exist and how the same color from different manufacturers can really vary. 

Paperpresentation.com – Great inventory and good customer service, but not the cheapest prices you will find.  I was only okay with this because I came in under budget for all my tools. They were also the only vendor that I found who carried no. 10 envelopes in the metallic color that I wanted (Curious - Lime Metallic)  I order my no. 10 envelopes, 4Bar RSVP envelopes and 110lb cardstock for the boarding pass and sleeves from this vendor. Boarding pass is printed on Stardream – Crystal Metallic 105lb cardstock.

I bought the remaining card stock for the bellyband and miscellaneous trim from Michaels (Recollections - Sparkling Merlot Metallic 65lb cardstock).  A few things to note: Michael’s specialty cardstock is sold per single sheet (retail $.59 and up, but purchased at $.13 w/ discounts and promos). Potential downside depending on use and personal preference is that it’s only finished on one side, the 12â€x12†dimensions and it’s a 65lb cardstock. I don’t know if these stats apply to the Bezel cardstock that they also carry.

PAPER CUTTER/TRIMMER

XACTO Paper Trimmer 26358 – this is a guillotine style (arm w/ blade) which I used for cutting multiple sheets, strips and anything that didn’t require exact precision (okay if off by an 1/8â€) and it has guidelines for cutting at specific angles.  My company has an abnormally high number of these and a couple new units in stock. I figured I had nothing to lose, and asked if I could borrow one.  Definitely made my life easier, huge time saver,  also very accurate.

Fiskar 12†Surecut Deluxe – Borrowed from a friend and purchased replacement blades at Michaels at 40% off.  I used this for cutting my boarding passes.

EK Success Small Corner Punch – This had the highest and most consistent review on amazon, so I went with it. It performs quite well, and the rounded corners are the perfect radius for boarding passes. $4.99 + free ship on eBay.

MISC

Adhesive – Zips double sided permanent adhesive lines 1/8â€x32’ purchased at Michaels at 40% off.  I was nervous to use glue, I thought I would get sloppy and inconsistent results. I also purchased 10 yards of wine pearlescent raffia ribbon $4.50 + free ship on eBay and regular raffia ribbon from Michaels at 40% off . My wrap around address labels are just the Stardream Crystal 65lb cardstock cut to 8.5â€x2.2â€strips. I didn’t use a bone folder, my butter knife was just fine.  I might be forgetting something so let me know if you have any questions.

1 DIY project down, many more to go.. Onto the pics!

I’M USING MY DROID AS A CAMERA, AND THE COLORS ARE REALLY OFF, BUT I WAS TOO ANXIOUS AND WANTED TO POST. 

These are gorgeous! Amazing job!

Love the attention to detail. The raffia, luggage tag rsvp, wrap around address labels. Great job!

Originally Posted by Dominican Ally 

These are gorgeous! Amazing job!

Thanks for the compliment Dominican Ally!

Originally Posted by 780chick 

Love the attention to detail. The raffia, luggage tag rsvp, wrap around address labels. Great job!

780Chick - I really appreciate the PM with your constructive critisism.  I'm glad you like my invites!

These look fantastic!  Your guests will be impressed!

Great job!

These look fantastic!  Your guests will be impressed!

Great job!

these are absolutely beautiful!  love..LOVE..love them!!!!    can't wait to see the rest of your DIY creations...  happy planning!!  R~

Those are fabulous!  They are some the best passport invitations I have seen.  Great job!