Weddings are expensive. Noone can argue that. According to data from The Knot, the average wedding in 2019 cost $28,000. That number has come down a bit to $22,500 in 2021 but that’s still a lot of money and with the cost of inflation these days, everything seems to be more expensive.
One of the ways many couples choose to cut back on expenses is by DIYing their wedding stationery. There are a lot of reasons that couples pick this area to save but what they don’t always realize is that even just a few simple mistakes can end up costing them even more money and time!
Here at Raspberry Creative, we have always felt strongly that wedding stationery may not be the best place to try to DIY especially if you aren’t prepared to do some research. Sure, you could argue that I’m biased as someone that has made it my life’s mission to create beautiful stationery for one of life’s greatest moments but there are real reasons for this stance.
For starters, the internet is a massive, bottomless resource for inspiration for wedding stationery but just because you see it on the internet doesn’t make it right. What I mean by this is wording etiquette. Rules on wedding invitation wording etiquette have definitely loosened in just the 15 years I’ve been creating wedding stationery but there are still some basics that every couple should follow.
It’s also easy to forget to add important information, especially if your wedding requires details that aren’t just like every other wedding. If you forget something, you may find yourself fielding a lot of phone calls, texts and emails in the weeks leading up to your wedding. That’s the time you don’t want to spending extra time responding to questions when it should have been clear from the start.
Other things like ordering the right quantity, when to start, how to print and so much more are all other really good reasons why DIYing your stationery may be a bad idea but if you are still determined to make your wedding invitations and other stationery a money saving place in your wedding budget then I have some tips for you to you can avoid wasting extra time, extra money and most of all, STRESS!
Start with a good template.
It pains me to say this but you can actually download free wedding invitation templates from the internet. all I can say is DON’T. There is a reason they are free and just because you can, doesn’t mean you should even if you are on a tight budget. Instead, seek out a reputable company or designer that sells wedding invitation pintables. Like anything else, wedding invitation templates will range in price a bit but typically are extremely affordable and when buying from a reputable company, if you do have questions or need help, you know you have a great resource already.
Templates created by experienced designers will include basic wording that you can follow for all the pieces you plan to use in your template. Of course you can customize your wording as much as you want but generally, good templates give you a solid starting point so you know exactly what information you need to include on your wedding stationery.
Shop Etsy for Complete Packages
DIY wedding stationery has a HUGE market on Etsy. It’s a great place to shop for wedding stationery templates and often you’ll be able to find all the matching pieces you need from one shop. Some, like here at Raspberry Creative, even offer wedding stationery bundles where you can purchase all the pieces you’ll need and more with just one purchase. It’s so easy and everything has been designed to coordinate perfectly!
Editable PDF vs. Online Editing Tool
If shopping wedding templates is the direction you are going, I strongly suggest going with templates editable in Templett or Corjl. These online editing tools are super easy to use and allow the customer to make many more customized changes to their designs compared to the more traditional downloadable PDF which often only have text boxes to edit words only.
Here at Raspberry Creative, we use Templett. Templett allows our customers to change fonts, text colors, add or remove backgrounds, upload their own photos or graphics, add a back side to their design if it doesn’t already have one and so many more options. All the editing is done inside the app and then only after the customer is done editing their design do they download their printable file.
Downloads can be created in PNG, JPG, PDF with or without bleeds and trim marks. That means that you can download a file version to work for virtually any printing situation. You just need to know what your printer of choice requires prior to downloading.
Pay attention to etiquette and take time to find good resources
Whatever your template of choice is, there may be situations where you have questions about wording or aren’t sure what to include on a piece of your wedding suite. When trying to figure this out on your own, be sure to seek out reputable resources like The Knot, other wedding stationery company sites (Minted) or our own resource library here at Raspberry Creative.
Don’t rely on asking a friend or just anything you find online. Again, just because someone else did it a certain way, doesn’t mean it’s correct or should be done that way.
Pay a professional
When it comes to printing your templates, it’s always best to let the pros do it for you. Home printers have very limited options when it comes to compatible papers and inkjets will use a ton of ink which will end up costing you as much as paying a pro to do it.
Office supply companies like Staples offer printing and it seems to be a popular choice with many template customers of ours.
There are also a wide range of online printers that make the process easy. We partner with a great online printer for many of our template customers that we also highly recommend.
- You can find them here: https://printsoflove.com/raspberry-creative-llc/
- Please note: this link is an affiliate link. As an official partner of Prints of Love, we receive a small commission on any print order you place through the link provided. This commission is at NO additional cost to you.
Like the personal touch? If you have purchased templates from our shop, you can also order printing directly from us. We use the same high-quality heavy stocks we use for all our custom and printed stationery so you know you are getting only the best quality. Plus, you don’t have to do anything. We can download your files directly from Templett and print them and when they done, we’ll ship them to you.
DIY Templates from Raspberry Creative
Coming later in 2022, you’ll be able to shop all of our diy templates directly from our website. Until then, our expansive collection of digital templates can be found in our Etsy shop. Whether shopping for wedding invitations, other wedding stationery or invitations for any other major life milestone, we’ve got your covered. Beautiful, high quality designs created to the same standard as our printed stationery but at a fraction of the cost for those looking to DIY.
Shop our invitation templates here.
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