The Stationery & Invitations

Your wedding day is one of the most important life events that you will ever experience. It involves all the senses… from the touch of love to the aroma of bliss, the taste of sweet things, the sound of joyous laughter and the sight of beauty.

Your wedding invitation is one of the most important elements of your special day and provides you and your guests with a taste, if you will, of what is to come! 

Paper invitations

If you have never explored the possibilities of paper before, then printed invitations will open up a new sensory wonderland to you that will serve as a beautiful reminder of your wedding day. Paper invitations are a “work of art” that could be a very valuable keepsake to you and your closest family members. Some may regard printed invitations as a waste or a hassle to distribute, but do not brush this option aside too quickly. Many wedding stationery studios offer the option of crafting a smaller number of invitations and could easily carry over the design onto a digital platform for a small additional fee, in order to invite the rest of the guests.

If this is something you would like to investigate, you will be introduced to a delightful variety of material and finishing options. Before visiting a wedding stationery studio, you may want to look at what is out there and what has been done before. You might also want to consult the magazine Wedding Guide and its website (www.weddingguide.co.za) when choosing your colour palette. In this way you will be able to communicate a clear message to the designer about your likes and dislikes. Some stationery studios have a physical studio where you can view various paper types and textures on offer which include recycled, environmentally friendly, smooth and textured varieties. You may also be delighted to explore invitation options that include processes like embossing, foiling, digital cutting and clever paper folds or layering. 

But, as is the case with everything that is custom made, it takes time and testing. In some cases, the development of the invitations might take longer than expected and cause frustration.

The good news, however, is that the wedding invitation industry has evolved so much that it now offers many beautifully crafted ready-made paper invitations that have already gone through testing − even with all the bells and whistles! The benefit of this is that the ready-made invitation may already have matching stationery for the wedding day which will include personalisation on the text and colour, with selective graphic stylisation.

Digital invitations

The benefit of going digital with your invitation is that you get to distribute your invitation much more easily. A drawback of the digital invitation is that people might not diarise the event properly and therefore end up misplacing important information. One solution is to consider establishing a WhatsApp group with everyone who has confirmed their attendance. You could ask your designer to create a beautiful profile picture for you, as well as a few key graphics to remind your guests of important information or updates regarding the wedding.

Another option to consider with digital invitations is to include a link to a wedding website. This option’s benefits are that all your guests can RSVP online, you can easily update information about your wedding, and you can upload all photos to the website. You could also link it with your social media (hashtags). Your wedding stationery supplier or graphic designer will be able to provide you with a variety of wedding website packages. Graphic designers usually ask an hourly fee on small jobs such as these. Be clear about what you need help with so that they can work out a specific quote for you. Having the extra help would definitely put your mind at ease and keep your focus right for your wedding day.

In conclusion, whether you are planning to go digital or printed – or integrating both − your wedding invitation serves as a precursor to the great sensory experience of your wedding day and is most definitely a worthwhile investment.  

TIPS:

1. Your engagement party guest list should be used as a building block for your wedding guest list. Don’t invite people to your engagement party and not to your wedding.

2. If the guest is older than 18, they can receive their own invitation.