We’re so delighted that you are here with us today!
We’re so passionate about what we do & we love every bit of it – we sincerely hope you’ll are enjoying these insights & finding them helpful enough! 🙂
Today, we are going to talk about some basics you should try to have clarity on, ideally, before you get started on the design process or even meet your invitation designer!
These few tips & tricks will help you to speeden the process up, because your designer will eventually need this information from you before guiding you with a rough timeline on the turn around, an approximate quote or even a delivery date.
Let’s take each point one by one..
Also do visit our ‘Etsy Shop‘ for DIY Save the dates, Invitations & Stationery Templates that are available for quick edits and instant downloads:
Please click here : https://www.etsy.com/in-en/shop/CustomizingDIY
Approximate date & venue of your wedding
As basic as this may sound, a lot of couples inquire with us without having these two in place. Although that’s ok, and you maybe just doing your homework, but having clarity on this will set the groundwork of your overall timeline.
You need not have the exact date or the venue finalised, so long as you have an approximate idea, it should be fine to get the ball rolling!
Do you need to design a Save the Date & Wedding monogram / Wedding logo?
Most likely you’d like to work with the same designer for everything – right from creating the Save the Date, the monogram & to creating the main invitation suite.
This helps in maintaining the overall aesthetics well in place – which also means you need to approach them a little more in advance so you can get enough time to do all of it and at your pace.
Incase you have already sent out your Save the Date or already have the wedding monogram done before meeting the designer, you can cut back on that time!
You can also read our blog post on Save the dates & Wedding Logos / Monograms
Is this going to be a common invitation from both sides, the bride’s as well as the groom’s?
Many a times, couples choose to go with the same design for their individual wedding cards (the text may vary) or they may go for something entirely different!
While there is no right or wrong way of doing this, we always recommend having the same overall design, as it helps to cut cost on design & printing.
Since you will be clubbing the printing quantities from both sides, it can also overall bring down the “per card” price as well – the higher the quantities, the better the pricing.
Another thing you may want to figure before hand, is that, if you need any wedding stationery to be made later on. This includes items like luggage tags, menu cards, thank you notes, gift boxes, signages, so on & so forth.
If so, then be sure to decide whose design will take the lead incase both the cards are different in design / colour palette?
See an example below :
How many cards will you require?
This is super important, but a lot of us tend to go extremely off the mark on this one!
The quantity of cards you need to print will determine your final quote.
Giving an approximate number before you begin & close on the quote & later on increase or decrease the quantities, tend to have a major impact on the costing!
Over the years we’ve seen, that it is in this area where some couples / families have not a clue! There have been numerous times when the family estimates the print quantity to be of a certain number, & when they actually get to finalising the guest-list or during distribution of cards, they realise how much have they gone astray!
It is highly highly recommended to have at least a rough number in mind (with a pre-prepared outline guest-list), so there are no surprises at the end of it – neither for the designer, nor for you!
Another thing we’d like to draw your attention to is that, number of guests is NOT EQUAL TO number of print cards.
You are going to have families of 3 or more, couples as well as singles – so while working on your print count, you should assign only 1 invitation set per family / per couple / per individual.
Also, if you are having multiple functions (like most Indian weddings do) then, are you going to require an insert for each of them? If yes, are the print quantities going to be equal for each function?
By doing this exercise before hand, you will be able to determine how many cards you actually require – for the main set as well as for each function!
While tabulating your list, do ensure to count enough print buffer – you don’t want to have too many extras left & you definitely do not want to fall short. So be wise!
By when would you like to send out the invitations / By when would you like your guests to receive the invitation?
Having the answer for the above, will help the designer determine your execution timeline.
Incase it is a very last minute project, the designer may not be able to incorporate it in within the stipulated time & hence it’s always better to be clear from both sides!
On the other hand if you have enough time, you can look into minor details!
You don’t want to have the cards ready too much in advance – they may look lack-lustre before you actually get to sending them! Nor would you like for it to be a rushed process!
Are you planning on giving any gift along with the cards?
We’ve had families who’d like to gift something with the card, but are not being able to make up their minds on what it is they’d like to give. In this case, if your card is entirely revolving around the gift, then you may want to rethink either the card or the gift.
What we always recommend is – keep the card & the gift as separate identities.
It is a lot easier to do it this way! Trust us!
You can begin with work of the card design & print, in the meanwhile you can try to source the gift simultaneously. Once the gift is finalised, you can always make a box / bag / tray to match the card & to overall enhance the value of the main suite.
What is the most convenient way for you to send out the cards, once they are delivered to you?
What we mean by this is – are you planning on hand delivering the cards? Or shipping them out, mailing them or couriering it all?
If you are going to hand deliver the cards then, in most cases, the size, the shape & the weight may not matter, as you may be individually handing them out to your closest circle.
But what if most of your cards are going to be sent via mail / courier / shipping? That’s when the size, the shape & the weight are of utmost importance, as all that adds to cost of sending the invitations out.
If it is a high value gift, edible goodies or big sized boxes, it might end up being very inconvenient & it may not reach the guest in its perfect condition – all the effort you have put into the beautiful card may go in vain!
It is best to avoid cumbersome packaging in such a situation.
At times, it could also be a mix of all of the above, depending on your guest locations. If so, then you surely would want to keep all of the above in mind, so as not to incur high costs on mail / courier / shipping / duty.
Do you have an approximate vision / mood board of what you’d like the cards & stationery to look like?
Having a bit of an idea always helps – it can cut down on the back & forth!
You can choose to tie it in with your decor, your colour palette, outfits, etc.
Pinterest all the way!
What if you have no clue? That’s even better!
You can leave the creativity entirely upto the designer & let them do what they do best!
And the end result? A super design! Yayy!!
Oh & believe you us – we have absolutely loved doing this in the past & those cards have turned out to be the best! Always!
Are you going to be sending out any E-invitations?
Knowing whether you are going to be sending any E-cards at all, will help you decide if you are going to the need the artwork from your designer in a format that you can send via a messaging app or on e-mail.
You may need to tweak some content / designs / colours for the E-version as artworks tend to look different on screen, as compared to the printed versions.
Would you require other wedding collaterals (itineraries, menu cards, thank you tags, signages, etc.) that you may need during the functions?
OK this is one very important point!
Post the wedding cards are delivered, if you need any of the above wedding stationery (or more), you should try & aim at keeping all the overall design look & feel cohesive – it looks well thought-after & your guests will immediately make the connect when they see that everything around them as a certain aesthetic flow to it.
So if the designer is aware that this has to be done eventually, then he / she may want to design an element or an identity that can be easily carried forward on all formats & in all sizes.
See an example below :-
Do you have an overall budget in mind?
OK last but not the least! Everyone normally, does tend to have a faint idea of what they’d like to spend on the wedding stationery in total.
While deciding who to work with, you will be looking at this as one of the main factors!
If you have an idea of how much you’d like to put in – based on that, you can decide what you’d like to put your money on! The design, the paper, the customisation, the printing details, the paper stock, the gift, the packaging, so on & so forth…
#Protips :
– Getting your guests name calligraphed on the envelopes adds that personal touch – if you’d like to do so, keep your designer informed, so as to keep that time in mind.
– The addressing & the salutations on the envelope makes all the difference to your lovely card. Ask your designer to guide you on it.
– Get your cards assembled by your designer! That professional touch keeps the card tidy & neat!
We know & totally understand that the whole invitation process can be very overwhelming! But at the same time, we’d love for you to know that it is all going to be OK & it is going to turn out even better than what you’d ever imagined it to be!
Over the past decade, we have tried more than our level best to make such dreams come true & we’re look forward for you to #startyournewbeginningwithus
We hope we have been of service to you & helped you solve any queries you may have had!
If you’d like to get in touch with us for any further details, we’re always available for you!
We hope we have been helpful & informative!
Should you have any feedback or want us to cover any particular topic, feel free to leave your comments below.
We lovingly invite you to subscribe to our blog for upcoming articles & future blog posts.
For any further questions, we’re just an email away & we will try to help you resolve any queries you may have!
We can be reached on info@customizingcreativity.in
You can take a look at some of our latest work via these links :-
Website : www.customizingcreativity.in
Instagram handle : instagram.com/customizing_creativity
(don’t miss out on our IGTV series for further insight into this topic)
Facebook page : Facebook.com/dishamehtadesign
We’d love for you to #startyournewbeginningwithus
Until next time,
Disha & Harsh Munshaw
Customizing Creativity
Customizing Creativity Blog 