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 :)

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.

Monograms from Microsoft Word Part 1

Hi all,

Remember the last time I said we were going to make a simple monogram using Microsoft Word? Well here is part One.

If you have Microsoft 2007, the Microsoft Corp. has made is quite easy to create shapes, symbols, etc in word with just a click of a button. In the case on my left, I simply created two squares. One is an outlined square with a white space. The outline is dashes, while the smaller "Tiffany blue" square is a simple solid box. In this case I decide to go along the same color palate in different tints because for the DIY'er, its just easier that way. When getting into matching various colors, it gets a bit more challenging. So that's it so far, all we need now it the typography or font scheme. Keep in mind, the font scheme can be pretty, but if no one understands it, then what sense did it make in creating the monogram in the first place? So, the answer to that is keep the typography simple and legible.

Next time: Microsoft Word Monogram Part 2: Creating the font scheme or typography.

Oh yeah... P.S. If anyone needs help with the step-by-step of doing this portion on Microsoft Word for 2007 or 2003 versions, let me know by sending a comment my way or emailing me at soulmate_designs@ymail.com Toodles 'till next time!

Monochromatic Simplicity

Hi my DIY Wedding Sisters! (and Brotha's too!) Yesterday, I talked about using monochromatic hues in your color selection for your wedding. Here's a prime example to your left. Beautiful use of monochromatic blues in this particular monogram. Now, would you use this as a business monogram? No, because it wouldn't print the gradient properly if you had to fax it in black and white. However, in the case of a wedding monogram or logo, color is necessary to create visual beauty and appeal.
I have seen many brides use the color "Tiffany Blue" in the color concept for their wedding. Why not take "Tiffany Blue" and use it with "Navy Blue"? Okay, so you want a certain pop of color to it. Well it depends on your style because certain colors creates certain feelings when we look at them. Color Symbolism is a great asset to use when deciding on your color scheme for your wedding. To find out more about what certain colors symbolize, you can go to http:// www.sensationalcolor.com or just tune in to you feelings when looking at certain colors.

Next time: Don't know how or where to start with creating a simple monogram for your wedding stationery? I'll show you using Microsoft Word and Publisher! Stay tuned!

KISS: Keep it Simple, Sweetie!

As with any design, the primary key is to KISS; keep it simple, sweetie! (not stupid in this case just because we aren't stupid!) Too much of anything can detract from the overall message of your monogram or logo design. What is worse in a wedding when the bridesmaids dresses or some other details take away from the bride and groom themselves! Uggh.

Here is my mantra; less is better and more economical too. If you have the money to go all out, that's on you; have a ball. But if you are like me and other people who counts pennies (especially in this economy), then I say try to do some of the wedding details yourself,or have a wedding invitation put-together get-together! Nothing beats having food, some bubbly and some hands to help.

Next time: The simple wedding monogram.. DIY approved!