Once you’ve got your wedding venues and dates down to a pat, the next thing you want to do is to print out those invites! Wedding invitations are a very important part of any wedding as they are the first impression to your guests and will give them the first taste of your wedding theme.
In most cultures, Western or Eastern, the task of distributing the cards is usually bequeathed to mother of the bride who will prepare the guest lists, prepare the cards and then either personally hand them to friends and family of the bride or via post.
Typical card for Chinese weddings
You may think that wedding invitations aren’t really important because people throw them away anyway, but for people who truly care about you, these are mementos that they will keep on their desktop or pin them on their refrigerators for years to come. Even though E-Invites are becoming more common to the point some couples are even resorting to Facebook to send out invitations, we feel that traditional wedding invitations carry a different sort of magic and formality and even to this day, this writer feels a tingle of excitement everytime she opens an envelope containing a wedding invite.
Before you choose your wedding invite, consider what sort of wedding you’re planning to hold because the details of your invitation are your guests’ first impression of the type of event it will be, say a beach or garden wedding because it tells them that you want them to have fun and enjoy themselves. The colors and design of your invite will also give guests an indication of what they should wear and what to expect, don’t be afraid to stray away from formality and use warm and genuine language when writing your card.
A great way to create excitement and a wonderful first impression is the material and print quality of your invitation, from the envelope all the way down to the typeface. For a more personal touch, handwrite your invitations especially if you’ve got nice handwriting. Always make sure you get everybody’s name and title correctly. Here, we usually ask our friends in advance over the phone if they’ll be able to make it before asking them for their address and sending them over an invite to avoid “wasting” invitations. That’s Asians for you.
Your wedding invite can also reflect how you and your fiancé are as a couple. Some couples choose to incorporate images of themselves onto the card.
Make sure to include maps together with your invitations and to those who are coming in from out of state or country, consider offering to help them book accommodations and transportation if required. That’s about it! If both you and your husband are lacking in the creative department, look for a designer who is able to cater to your needs. Communicate your ideas well, show samples that both of you are leaning towards and get your cards printed as early as you can or else most of your friends might not be able to make it!
Image credits to ohsobeautifulpaper.com.
