You’ve got a list a mile long of all your wedding to-dos; in fact, you’re pretty sure there are 37 additional things you forgot to put on the list that MUST be completed in the next 6 months. So, where to start? After you’ve nailed down your ceremony & reception site and wedding date, you’re ready to getting moving on invitations!
Shop Around: Take a week or two to visit stationers in your area. Also, be sure to look online as many boutique designers, such as Wedding Invitations by Wedding Paper Divas have full-service websites. If you can’t quite decide between your top 3 choices, most paper companies offer to send samples so you can get the full effect – but keep in mind that it can take up to two weeks for some samples to arrive. Places like Hobby Lobby, Michael’s, Wal-Mart & Target have also begun to offer easy-to-personalize wedding collateral lines.
Place Your Order: Once you’ve found the perfect invites, don’t waste any time ordering (and try not to order any later than three months before your wedding date). Allow up to 6 weeks for delivery (most companies deliver in 2-4). It’s important to order wedding invitations as soon as you are able for this reason: mistakes happen. If you allow a “cushion”, you won’t have to freak out if your save-the-dates are a different color than your invitations or if they spelled “Catherine” with a “K” instead of a “C”. Note: If you do end up with a stationery snag, don’t be a brat when you call the company. Yes, this is your big day. Yes, you’re paying good money for their product. But the fact of the matter is that the 19-year-old receptionist had nothing to do with the misprint and you’ll catch more flies with honey.
Envelope Stuffing & Labeling: Unless you’ve been a bridesmaid in the past, you’ve probably never experienced the tedium of delicately cramming the invitation, RSVP card, direction card, registry card and that flimsy little sheet of tissue paper into the inner envelope - and then into the outer envelope…250 times. It’s not a bad idea to begin this process 8-10 weeks before you plan to mail the invitations. As busy as you’ll be balancing work, family, and wedding planning it’s wise to plan ahead and give yourself some extra time – or rope in your ‘maids, mom, and sisters for a night of assembly line fun (she with the best penmanship should be reserved for the actual addressing). Don’t forget the stamps! Your local post office offers special postage specifically for weddings, so be sure to ask for it! Note: Though food & drinks make any pre-wedding activity more fun, keep them as far from your assembly line as possible. That red wine stain won’t come out of 250 pearl and ivory invitations.
Mailing: You’re almost finished! Since we all know that the postal service delivers top-notch precision and accuracy when handling our mail, you would be wise to mail out-of-town guests’ invites 6 weeks before the wedding date. In-town guests can typically be mailed 4 weeks out – but I say, why make TWO trips to the post office? Just dump them all in your nearest blue box at the 6 week mark to be safe. That gives everyone a little more time to RSVP – which means fewer last minute calls to your caterer to up your dinner count.