Eight invitation Mishaps You Can Avoid

Hey all,

Just wanted to share this article that has some great information about the do's and don'ts of wedding invitation etiquette for all my DIY wedding invite makers out there. So, save a penny and your sanity by implementing these great tips! ------> Click here for article's website!

*Taken from Aisle Dash.com*

Eight invitation mishaps you can avoid

by Caroline Humphreys on Jun 2nd 2008 11:00AM

Filed under: Invitations, Etiquette

You can be perfectly within the boundaries of style and etiquette when you avoid these common mistakes with your invitations.

1. Do not include gift ideas or registry information. In terms of proper etiquette, it's just tacky. Instead, arm your family and attendants with helpful information. Everyone knows they need to get a gift, and word will get around.

2. Do not print "No children" or "Adults only." The way you address the envelope should make clear who is invited. Afraid your invitees won't pick up on it? Again, arm your family and attendants with this information. If you send a package of local tourist information to attending guests, including childcare options in this information should reinforce the point.

3. Do not dictate dress. Guests can decipher the appropriate dress code from the time and place.

4. Do not post your invitation on a bulletin board at work or school (or anywhere else). This one is for your own mental health. When an invitation is posted, anyone reading it may assume they can come, along with their spouse, kids, cousin, sister-in-law and adorable new puppy. Don't do it.

5. Do not use address labels. An occasion such as your wedding calls for handwritten envelopes. If ink pens give you a cramp, enlist family and attendants to help or hire someone.

6. Do not include choice of entrée on the invitation unless the reception venue requires this information prior to the event. If the venue can handle allowing guests to choose as they are served, this is the better option.

7. Do not indicate whether or not alcohol will be served; this is your wedding and guests will come to see you, not the bar.

8. Most of all, don't send last minute invitations. It is offensive to guests to be an after-thought and you don't want to spread that kind of ill will.

Make Sure its Scalable!

Hi all,

Yes, its been a while, but hey I've been quite busy lately, but I do have a tidbit for all DIY'ers out there when it comes to your wedding stationery and any other favors you have in mind. Make sure your monograms or logos are scalable before printing because saving your logos as a JPEG or GIF image can make your lovely logo into a bunch of small square dots called pixels if you try to enlarge or decrease the size the logo for other stationery. A logo may look very nicely done when it is small, but if it is enlarged for, let's say, a sky light on the dance floor; then if that logo is not a vector-based image (an image created with mathematical lines) then the logo would look pixelated. You might be saying, "Okay Lauren, I have no idea what you are talking about especially with all these computer talk." Here is an example of what I am talking about:



As you can see in the example above, the smaller version of this beautifully done logo is great and the details in the typography (fonts) and the dots in the monogram are crisp and clean. A very nicely done image. However, when enlarging the monogram to a bigger image for any other stationery being done, the picture becomes fuzzy and the graphics look like small square blocks. This is because this particular logo was saved as a GIF image and not as a vector based image such as Adobe Illustrator or a SVG (Scalable Vector Graphic) file. I'm sure the creators of this logo already have this logo as a vector image for purchase, but for webpage purposes have used a GIF file.

So what is the lesson to learn: If you are doing your own wedding stationery with graphics and monograms, be sure to transfer the image to a SVG file or AI (Adobe Illustrator) file so that you can use it for a variety of your wedding print and web goodies. What sense does it make to go through all the trouble of creating beautiful stationery for your wedding when Grandma can't make out the fuzzy words? Take time to find a friend that may have Photoshop or Illustrator vector it for you or hire a low-cost graphic designer who specializes in wedding stationery to help you out. Your stationery will end up as a keepsake for yourself and for your friends and family, so make sure you put some effort into keeping your special day memorable.

P.S. If you really like doing your own vector based monogram, then check out Inkscape (http://www.inkscape.com). This is a SVG program that is free to download on your computer that will allow you to create your monogram in a vectored image; dare I say again that it is FREE! Music to a DIY bride's ears :)

African Art Monograms

And behold, there are African symbols! Yes, my Black bride and groom, you too can express your ethnic-based love in a simple monogram with beautiful hues of color.
For example, check out the monogram on the right. Simple shapes of circles which provides the ambiance of unity and infinity (circles are unbroken and continual..much like your wedding rings) But in the background of one of the circles is an Adinkra symbol. It's suddle, yet effective and mixed with the sophistication of a script font. Now the hot color for this wedding year is Pantone color called "mimosa" which is the color featured here.
Also as I stated earlier, this color could be used in a monochromatic style, which is also another hot trend for 2009. But the choice is all yours. Now this monogram doesn't have to have just one inital, it can have both, but the balance(visual symetry) must be taken into consideration when doing that.
If you have any questions or comments about this monogram, please feel free to email me at soulmate_designs@ymail.com. Its a great way to infuse your African heritage into your wedding.

Wedding Stationery Trends for 2009

Well its 2009 and the trends reports are out.

--Question: Did I forget the next session of the Microsoft Word monograms? Nope.. it's done, just have to do some tweaking before the next blog post. So, if you are a DIY bride or groom(yes I know some grooms are out there too) it will be posted soon, so keep reading...

So back to the trend reports. Check out the following link for new wedding stationery trends.. tell me what you think.

http://www.mygatsby.com/invitations/invitation_trends/top_10_2009.jsp

http://www.celebration.co.za/wedding-articles/articles/87/1/Wedding-Invitation-Trends-for-2009/Page1.html

http://www.mypersonalartist.com/weddingcolors2.html


*PSA Please!: Yes, I know most of these sites have mentioned brocade or damask-styled invitations as the hot trend in invitations, but must we always follow fashion? Why can't we create new trends for 2009? You know it is, once one does it, everyone and their grandmother does it. Then the trend gets boring and outdated. Please don't let this happen to damask or brocade, its too pretty to do that. --Thank you for reading my public service announcement.

Put down the Damask and Back Away Slowly....

Enough already with the damask, my bridal DIY'ers! If there is another wedding where black and white, teal and brown or some other worn out color combo of damask is used on stationery or reception decoration, I think the damask itself will scream.

Yes, its pretty; its supposed to be pretty. However, quite frankly, its getting pretty worn out. Designers are not letting this pretty, patterned graphic get breathing air to re-create other patterns and stationery in the world of the wedding industry. Especially for the DIY bride, what is easier than finding a ready-made damask background in Photoshop and creating your save the dates from that?

Actually it is quite simple, but its so simple that's been done over, and over and over again. So what can you use as elements in your stationery and decoration? Explore your relationship, I say. Look at all the places you have been or even better take a look at some photos of you and your lover together and grab some colors from those events. Shoo, if you really like grab the photo itself, make it opaque as your background, place your legible typography on it and you have yourself a personalized save the date, invitation or whatever else you may want to use it for. Does it have to be a color photo? No, use shapes or lines of color behind the black & white photo to add your splash of wedding colors!

So you don't want to use your photos? Okay, no problem. What about nature, when is your wedding date? Spring, summer, winter, fall? What elements can you use like color, texture, graphics (flowers, ocean, sand, snow, leaves) into your stationery?

Okay.. as you can see I could go on for a long time about inspirational places to get your design from for your wedding stationery which not only would have more of a personal touch from you as a couple, but also appeal to your guest in understand you more as a couple.

So, Please Please Please.. put down the damask slowly and explore your relationship and see what designs you can come with.

Simple Modernism

Okay, I promised something very easy in terms of creating your own monogram and here it is. This is as simple as reciting your ABC's! It's just using basic shapes of a circle and a rectangle as your base. The ampersand is your focal point or emphasis in this case because you want to show union of you and your -to be as one.

I used these colors because 1. Brown evokes a warm sensation, orange is a energy feeling while blue provides a calmness. Now would this be your colors for your wedding? Probably not, but it don't hurt to play with colors you are not used to seeing everyday. Consider when your wedding is; is it during the summer, spring, fall or winter? Or, what is you and lover's favorite colors? Many times I've seen brides trying to "match" a color they've chosen. especially for their bridal party, stationery and reception. Why not use the same color, but in different hues? Monochromatic colors can bring out a lot in a wedding just as well as complimentary colors.

I suggest trying your hand at some monograms... I'm here to help! If you are running into some trouble, comment or email me! Try it.. I'm sure you will like it!