Hi there! If you’re reading this post you’re likely engaged (or soon-to-be) and I send you a big congratulations + all the good-feelings! Wedding planning can be an exciting and stressful time (as I’m sure many have told you). We’re in a wedding-world where Pinterest gives us infinite ideas but can be so overwhelming and doesn’t give us realistic goals when planning is already so intense! One of those big stresses can be wedding stationery.

There’s so many invitation options - I’m overwhelmed!

How many pieces do I *really* need in a suite?

What about Save the Dates?

When do I send my invitations?

How do I know my budget?

I’ve been illustrating and designing for 7+ years and been a part of the wedding industry in Memphis for 10+ years. I’ve personally witnessed 50+ weddings (either working or as a guest) so I’ve seen trends come and go, but one detail that will always remain constant is inviting your guests. It seems simple, I know, but no matter how many pieces are in your suite, vellum inserts or white-ink printing - ultimately, the goal of your invitation suite is to inform and invite your guests.

I didn’t introduce myself before, but I’m Ashley Presley of Ellywise Studios. I work with couples on custom wedding suites and often hear the same questions listed above. I give my couples an introductory booklet that has a lot more detailed information, but when Kelsey from Connor & Co Events reached out for a guest blog post (yay!) I thought it would be perfect to address some of these stationery woes for everyone!

Let’s start with the Design Process

Relevant Designs

Holy moly, there are so many invitation options now! Custom, semi-custom, template design - you can be as involved (or not) as you want to be. Although it’s not for everyone, personally, I love the custom process.. you know, bias. When I work with a couple on a completely custom suite, the sky’s the limit! We’re creating something that no one else has and it’s 100% about the couple and their wedding. I often incorporate their venue, floral selections, color swatches, personal details like pets etc.

Whether you’re doing a custom suite, semi-custom or template, the first item you need for your visual-wedding planning is a mood board. This is something I create for all my couples and we work together to perfect it before starting the first sketch. The mood board is a visual guide for the overall vibe of your wedding. It’s something that we use a lot through the entire process so it’s super important it’s accurate! A mood board should be 8-10 images that are like “ahh it gives me the feels” and should include details like flowers, color swatches and overall-vibes. I acknowledge it can be pretty difficult to pare down that Pinterest board, but it’s vital to really focus on a few key details instead of ALL THE THINGS. Even if you’re selecting from templates, this board will help you wade through all your invitation design options and choose what is best for matching your wedding overall.

Loflin Yard Memphis Wedding_Ashley Benham Photography-15.jpg

Printing FAQ’s

It’s All in the Details

“How many pieces do I need in my invitation suite?”

At a minimum, you need to have a printed piece as your invitation and a mailing envelope with postage with some way for your guests to give notice of their attendance. I also remind my couples they need Thank You cards as well - all those wedding gifts need a good handwritten thank you note!

“What are response cards? Do I really need them?”

Response cards are the traditional way to ask your guests to give you notice if they plan to attend your wedding. They include a “return by” date, a space for the guest’s name(s) and, if applicable, their meal selection. Your caterer/rentals vendor needs a final headcount by a certain date before your wedding so you want your guests to be able to give notice as easily as possible. This (and the etiquette of not making your guest stamp their own RSVP) is why your response card should include postage. Because of the added cost of a printed piece, an envelope and postage, I’ve had several brides opt out of the traditional response cards and choose to have either a postcard RSVP or a link on their wedding website where guests can check ‘yay’ or ‘nay’.

“When do I send my Save the Dates? Invitations?”

Your wedding planner and stationery designer will walk you through your specific timeline and keep everything on track, but if you’re DIY’ing, stressful wedding planning happens and schedules *can* run behind.

Ideally, this is the timeline you want to send your guests their materials:

• Save the Dates: 6 months prior to wedding date

• Invitations: 2 months prior to wedding date

• Response Card Return Date: 4 weeks prior to wedding date

“I’ve seen such amazing suite details online! Vellum, gold foil, wax seals - does that fit in my budget?”

This is a question I get a lot (thanks, Pinterest!) and I’m glad to set a general guideline. Pinterest, Instagram and brides without budgets (ha!) often set unrealistic expectations for wedding details and now that I’ve worked in the stationery world I’ve quickly realized that stationery is a really big piece of that! I am constantly seeking new vendors for printing types and have some really great ones that I work with for my business. It’s important to me to offer my clients great printed quality while also trying my darndest to not break the bank.

However, you have to realize that each additional printed piece IS A PRINTED PIECE! Even if it’s just a vellum sheet to sit on top of your invitation with your crest on it, the printing cost is going to come close to (if not exceed) the price of your actual invitation. Therefore, right off-the-bat, you’re doubling your invitation cost. If you’re a die-hard vellum-lover and you’ve got to have it, I’m here for it! But if you’re looking to save a bit on your stationery budget, you may have to pass on the extras (womp wahhh).

Vellum

Vellum paper is a translucent sheet of paper made from cotton and wood. This trend is one of my favorites right now! It’s such a pretty detail to add to your suite - printing on a 5”x7” vellum sheet as your invitation, using a vellum sheet between suite pieces or using a large sheet to wrap around your entire suite - there’s so many ways to use it! One detail with vellum you have to keep in mind: it is translucent, so if you’re printing your invitation on vellum exclusively, make sure to add an additional piece behind it so your guests can read it easily.

Foil Printing

Foil printing is super popular in the “extras” of wedding stationery printing but the process of foil printing is a bit more complicated than most realize and, therefore, is far more expensive than most realize. The proper foil-stamped design requires a die stamp to be created and then a very specific machine stamps each invitation individually with foil. For a pricing scale, I digitally print my clients’ stationery pieces so I can keep the cost of each piece down anywhere between $1.10-$2.00/piece, the custom foil printers I work with average $3.00-$7.00/piece!

Wax Seals

My love for wax seals knows no bounds. It’s such a pretty detail to add to your suite! Either on the outside envelope sealing it closed or incorporating it into your design of the invitation - it’s a gorgeous add-on. The economical option for wax seals is to have a custom stamp created and melt wax and stamp each one yourself - if you’re hardcore about wax seals and you’ve got the time, it’s definitely the way to go! If not, there are some wax seal options out there that are pre-stamped and come with a sticky on the back you just peel like a sticker (they’re the BOMB!). These guys usually run $1.25/seal!

The Big Mistake Most Couples Make

+ how I ended up with 100 extra Save the Dates!

I cannot stress this enough: Your invitation quantity is not the same as your guest count. You’ve got an excel sheet somewhere with your guests and addresses. Let’s use Boy Meets World as an example: The Matthews House has Alan, Amy, Eric, Cory and Morgan. On your guest count of mouths to feed that’s five (5). That house receives one (1) invitation. You can accidentally order double (if not triple) the amount of invitations you need if you’re not counting right!

Thank you so much for hanging with us and reading up on stationery hints! If you have any questions feel free to message me - if you’re currently engaged and considering a custom stationery design for your wedding give me a shout. I’d love to chat about your vision or answer any questions you may have!!