My Invites Done! Pics!

[CourtneyV]

Wow, Susan!! Are thesea DIY project?? You might have to help me along when I start making mine! They look absolutely amazing!

[RaydensMama]

Wow those are amazing!!

[SusanK]

Yes, they were a DIY project. I went to a great paper store in Milwaukee (Broadway Paper) and looked through some of their sample books (they literally have THOUSANDS of invites to choose from) for inspiration. I always knew that I wanted to do them myself (with the help of one of my BMs that has done invitations for other friends before). I also knew that I wanted a pocket-fold invitation because I liked the look and because of the amount information that I needed to include. When I found a pocket-fold I really liked, I went from there. I knew I wanted some "beachy" colors, but wanted to keep it somewhat formal. I went with a shimmery ivory cardstock (dark brown for the matting)-which I later ordered in bulk online for much cheaper. I did order the pocket-fold from Broadway-I looked into cheaper options online, but couldn't find anything I liked nearly as much (These were $2.25 each, but I got a 10% discount because I ordered over 100). And I fell in love with the ribbon, so that became the "pop" color.

Once I had all the pieces, I went home and started designing. I made several...different fonts, different sizes, different spacing, different starfish, etc. Once I had the invite perfect, I used the same theme for my side-pocket cards. The starfish became our "logo". I printed everything with a laser printer on 8x11 cardstock. I was able to get 2 invites per pages and more for the smaller cards. Now the tricky part is cutting everything to size (with an exacto knife and ruled cutting board). The invites have to be cut 5.25x5.25, the dark brown matte 5.5x5.5. Each individual side-pocket card has to be cut to size and then the three have to be trimmed together to get a perfect fit (they are all the same width, but the height increase 1 in. for the middle card and 2 in. for the bottom card...to get the accordian effect). The logo square on the front has to be individually cut and matted, as does the square for the guests' names. The ribbon has to be cut, wrapped, and secured. So it is a lot of work, but there definitely is a sense of pride and ownership as well.

We ended up postponing the assembly line today...because some of us were at a Cinco de Mayo themed bachelorette party last night....it was a little too much fun, and I'm still feeling the effects of all the partying..Don't think my head and hands would have been up for all the tediousness today.

[TATrisha]

Susan they look lovely! Good thing you live so close to me! I'm recruiting you when it's time

[PaulaV]

Wow! They are gorgeous Susan!

[Natalie Z]

Susan, those look so cute! I'm sure your guests will love them!!

[Mrs.Morley]

Susan, those look amazing!

[ajncooter]

wow those are awesome!

[Jessalyn]

Your invitations are beautiful! Great job!

[wkbroome]

We finally received our invites and mailed them today. Whew!!! One more thing to check off the list of things to do. For some reason, I still can't figure our how to post jpeg files. Oh well....... I copied and pasted pics to a word document. Check them out!

 

 

Destination Wedding Invites.doc