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RE: How much are diy invites??

tjrocks — Sat, 10 May 2008 13:31:59 GMT

[quote][b]amanda2007 (5/10/2008)[/b][hr]I'm in Toronto, I'd LOVE to do DIY invites, I just don't know where to start! Where can I get the paper, envelopes, guides/templates, etc. Thanks![/quote]

My suggestion is start by looking at sites like this and others for images that you love. Save them, and then once you have enough, look through them and try to pic a style/look that best suits what you're going for. Here's another great inspiration link: [url]http://tinyurl.com/2tvabx[/url]

Get some regular printer paper, and some construction paper and a glue stick from the dollar store and make a mock up of your invite....this is the best way to figure out whether your idea is in fact feasible, and using it, you can figure out how long it will take you to DIY, as well as exactly how many materials you'll need so you don't overspend.

Then, start looking at specifics...pick invitation wording, print layout, what software you're going to use, how you're going to print them, what sort of things you'll include with the invite, etc.

The web is the best place for research and the more testing you do up front, the more realistic you'll be with the end result.

As for materials, loomis carries paper, as does paper-source.com, the paper place in toronto, and michael's (though way overpriced). Staples sells plain cardstock, as does costco. Ribbon and accessories can be found anywhere...including the dollar store and fabricland. If you frequent stores other than craft/wedding stores, you're generally going to get a better deal.

Picking fonts and stuff can come after you've got an idea of what you want, because the style of a font will be essentially in the style of your invite (you don't want to use say, Century Gothic, if you're going for a Victorian style invite. That being said, www.dafont.com and www.urbanfonts.com are good places to start.

If you feel inundated by the amount of work, or feel like you don't really know if you can do it, think about buying the pieces of an invitation and putting them together. cardsandpockets.com as well as paper-source.com sell enclosures that are quite pretty. Staples, Zellers and Michael's all sell invitation kits that come with templates that you can then embellish to your heart's content. You can also hire someone to do the design and then print them yourself.

And when in doubt, ask your questions here, because chances are we've all tried something at least similar, and can help.

Good luck!

RE: How much are diy invites??

anchor31 — Sat, 10 May 2008 09:01:40 GMT

I got my DIY kit from Michael's and I bought some extra cards for reception and additional information cards. They cost us about 1,50$ each, which I think is a great price. My mom printed them and put them together for us and she said it wasn't very hard and didn't take a long time.

RE: How much are diy invites??

amanda2007 — Sat, 10 May 2008 07:32:58 GMT

I'm in Toronto, I'd LOVE to do DIY invites, I just don't know where to start! Where can I get the paper, envelopes, guides/templates, etc. Thanks!

RE: How much are diy invites??

kittybeans — Sat, 10 May 2008 01:47:22 GMT

I think its worth it but then I have 2 years so I am making many things including all candles (including tealights), thank you's, RSVP cards, and some paper chains for my wedding. Our invites we priced out at $5something each including postage, but then added about $1 in ribbon and got all my paper cheaper so who knows what its costing. But eitherway its exactly what I want, lots of layers, lined envelopes etc and its definatly cheaper than having them made.

RE: How much are diy invites??

A+J=<3 — Thu, 08 May 2008 18:00:30 GMT

OH I wanted to post pics of them.

RE: How much are diy invites??

mindym — Wed, 07 May 2008 19:29:34 GMT

Let's see... mine are pretty simple, no pics to post though! d'oh!

I spend about $50 on the cardstock, and like PP it was way to much. (actually, I'm using the rest for my programs!)

I spent about $7 on paper for the inside of them, and again, that's enough for the pograms too.

And I spent about $23 on the pictures that are going on the front of them.

So in total, that's $80 for 100 invitations and programs! ( the invites include direction sheets and RSVP's! Mind you, I didn't include return evenlopes because I'm getting ppl to call or e-mail the RSVP's) So I saved some money on that and I also don't have to spend on extra stamps)

RE: How much are diy invites??

A+J=<3 — Wed, 07 May 2008 10:17:49 GMT

I think it is definatly worth the effort and time! Makes it so much more personal, and we got EXACTLY what we wanted. the cardstock cost us about 50 bucks (but we bought WAY too much, we only needed half of it) and printing the insides cost us 4 dollars (we went to Kinkos) We went to a scrapbooking store in Kingston to have the shape for the invites cut, that cost 5 dollars. The rsvp cards cost 20 dollars for 40. So the ended us costing about 1.75 per invite. And it was fun!!!

RE: How much are diy invites??

tjrocks — Tue, 06 May 2008 21:00:42 GMT

[quote][b]nenid (5/6/2008)[/b][hr] I have to say that everytime I see these, I can't believe how amazing they are- what a great job!!![/quote]

Thanks!:D

RE: How much are diy invites??

klempey — Tue, 06 May 2008 10:31:10 GMT

I got a great deal on my invites in the states.

100 invites = 32.00 (Gartner Studios Invitation Kit)
wax stamp: 8.00

crystal embellishments, ribbon, and charms: 15.00

Plus basic postage...not a bad deal!

Champagne/Silver Shimmer Cardstock jacket, cardstock black edged invite and rsvp border.

RE: How much are diy invites??

melissa85 — Tue, 06 May 2008 09:45:30 GMT

I created my DIY Pocket folds, and it cost $3 per invite, not including the two stamps (invite & RSVP).

I ended up using Text Weight Card Stock so it only cost me the $0.52 to send them. Here are some pictures of them. Only thing different now is there is Raffia wrapped around them.

[IMG]http://i203.photobucket.com/albums/aa207/melissagilbert85/WEDDING/100_3397.jpg[/IMG]
[IMG]http://i203.photobucket.com/albums/aa207/melissagilbert85/100_3282-1.jpg[/IMG]
[IMG]http://i203.photobucket.com/albums/aa207/melissagilbert85/100_3277.jpg[/IMG]

RE: How much are diy invites??

nenid — Tue, 06 May 2008 00:22:44 GMT

[quote][b]tjrocks (5/5/2008)[/b][hr]These were ours:

[img]http://i120.photobucket.com/albums/o173/tjrocks_bucket/HPIM5380.jpg[/img]

Without taxes and shipping, the supplies cost us 70 cents per invite (not including envelopes)....All in, I think the were around $1.50 each...whick you can't really beat for a pocketfold....unless you buy one of the michael's (or other) kits.

Our process was mostly painless, because I'd made a few mock ups before we were set, so I knew exactly what to do before I started. It took a couple nights to make 60 pockets (so probably around 8 hours...the first few took around 10 minutes, and by the end we could do one in under 2 minutes). Tech issues aside, it took dh a day to cut all the parts and me a day to assemble it all. But again, something will always go drastically wrong, and you will get frustrated...We were trying to print our inserts at DH's work, but their network was down one day, and the following saturday, someone printed a bunch of tracking schedules on the paper we'd put in the copier for our invites (they sure did look dandy though).

So, like the PP said, there is a trade off in time and stress, and if you're not craft or tech savvy, then getting them made might be an option. Though, check out the kits they have at zellers, michael's and staples. You may find an appealing design, and the kits are dead easy to use.[/quote]

I have to say that everytime I see these, I can't believe how amazing they are- what a great job!!!

RE: How much are diy invites??

novalt — Mon, 05 May 2008 23:45:31 GMT

About 3.50 each, but will require a 96 cent stamp.

This costs includes the outer/inner/RSVP envelopes, cardstock, ribbon, ink (bought a brand new colour cartridge when I started), a cricut I bought (highly recommended - walmart for 9.99) and glue/two sided tape, taxes/shipping (on the envelopes).

I'm still working on mine.. they are ever so time consuming. Not just the cutting/assembling, but the formatting and measuring.. and now after using two sided tape/photo mount things to hold my fold down, after stuffing them all with the RSVP, map, guest info card and RSVP envelope, they are all popping open.. so I'm actually probably going to have to go through them all and find a better glue and stick 'em back down.

Yes, I put an obscene amount of work into my invitations but I did save money and I don't regret doing them.. although I can see why people DO pay to have them done now!

RE: How much are diy invites??

BbyGrl2008 — Mon, 05 May 2008 22:11:43 GMT

I bought my invites from the Brides collection at Michaels....I am happy that I made my invites myself instead of ordering it. It really gives you a personal touch.

I bought the chocolate pockets and 30 came in the package and I paid $49.99......

RE: How much are diy invites??

saraht76 — Mon, 05 May 2008 19:55:46 GMT

I think it depends on how DIY you want to be. If you are making pocket folds and inserts or just buying the kits where you can print them on your own printer. Yesterday I bought invite kits from Brides Magazine at Michaels.

RE: How much are diy invites??

tjrocks — Mon, 05 May 2008 18:16:27 GMT

These were ours:

[img]http://i120.photobucket.com/albums/o173/tjrocks_bucket/HPIM5380.jpg[/img]

Without taxes and shipping, the supplies cost us 70 cents per invite (not including envelopes)....All in, I think the were around $1.50 each...whick you can't really beat for a pocketfold....unless you buy one of the michael's (or other) kits.

Our process was mostly painless, because I'd made a few mock ups before we were set, so I knew exactly what to do before I started. It took a couple nights to make 60 pockets (so probably around 8 hours...the first few took around 10 minutes, and by the end we could do one in under 2 minutes). Tech issues aside, it took dh a day to cut all the parts and me a day to assemble it all. But again, something will always go drastically wrong, and you will get frustrated...We were trying to print our inserts at DH's work, but their network was down one day, and the following saturday, someone printed a bunch of tracking schedules on the paper we'd put in the copier for our invites (they sure did look dandy though).

So, like the PP said, there is a trade off in time and stress, and if you're not craft or tech savvy, then getting them made might be an option. Though, check out the kits they have at zellers, michael's and staples. You may find an appealing design, and the kits are dead easy to use.

RE: How much are diy invites??

jwick7 — Mon, 05 May 2008 17:50:33 GMT

I did my own and it ended up costing me $3 per invite. (I have a post in this same category with pictures). This included all my enclosures (map and RSVP) as well as the envelopes.

It was definitely worth it, because i have EXACTLY what i want. The closest sample to it was going to cost $9.50 per invite, plus envelopes. (Yes, i picked some crazy papers) And it wasn't everything i wanted.

Don't get me wrong, it was time consuming, and sometimes frustrating, but in the end ... so worth it. I am now actually considering doing it on the side. It's frustrating to watch stores pillage poor brides.

Anyways, best of luck!

How much are diy invites??

navywife2b — Mon, 05 May 2008 17:39:30 GMT

I was looking into this and wondering how much people are spending? is it worth the time/effort?