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Considering I originally wanted letterpress...I'm probably saving alot! I've spent about $200 so far for all the paper, tools, etc for 100 STDs (printed at overnightprints.com) and 50 pocketfolds (invitation, rsvp card/envelope, directions card, accommodations card, reception card, invitation envelope).
I plan on doing mine - the paper is going to be $150 total. That includes paper for the invite, reception card, response card, info card, invite envelopes, response envelopes....i am having around 120 guests. I know people that spend 500-600-700+ on custom invites...that just wasn't for me!
I have 150 invites that included information with for reception and 78 invites just for for the ceremony.. (differant layout)
I did them myself, so far the cost was 167 dollars for ALL invites and details. My original quote for the printer was 315AUD dollars and that wasnt including envelopes.
So ive saved myself 150 AUD dollars. However there were pros and cons to both.
If I would have rather had it professionally done, as it would have taken the hassle away or I would have had alot more time to do other things non wedding related. So sometimes it would have been better if I had it professionally done.
But im proud as punch with my invites knowing that I did them myself - first time at the paper stuff :) and saved 150 AUD dollars :)
For 150 save the date postcards that my friend designed, I spent about $40 from uprinting.com. Which is like .27 each. Pretty good, so far!
I'm DIYing mine. I'm going to the DIY pocketfold kits from Cards and Pockets. It's going to cost >$100.
We designed our own and had them printed on letterpress for under $500.
not including postage, we spent $86 for everything for about 100 invites. that's paper products (handmade paper with pressed flowers and vellum), twine, envelopes, and return address labels. we printed at home, and cut the paper and kinkos for free.
I DIYed everything. On the STDs I think I saved $50 because I used postcards, so I saved on stamps too. For my invites I did a 5 insert pocketfold with a letterpress insert (admittedly outsourced) and a closing ribbon with a wax seal and handmade envelopes. I didn't save ANY money on them, and may as well have paid $5 per invite for someone else to do them. I spent WAY too much time and money on them!
Where I went wrong:
Size: My envelopes were 6"x9" which dictated the size of the pocketfolds. A smaller size would have saved me on paper and postage! Start with a standard size envelope and build your DIY project around that.
Postage: My envelope size and the weight of all of my inserts caused my postage to be very expensive. Also, I pre-stamped all of the RSVP envelopes. I wouldn't do that again. No one even used them! I also ordered custom stamps for the outer envelope which I now think was a waste.
Information: Reduce your invite to the bare essentials to reduce the number of inserts you have. I had four double sided inserts, but all of that information was available on the website and almost NO ONE looked at it anyway! Only my MOH brought hers with her for the information it had. GRR! I also used a ton of computer ink printing all the inserts which is expensive in and of itself.
Time: I underestimated how much time I would spend on each invite and had to outsource one insert to a letterpress vendor on etsy. It probably would have been cheaper to just print that insert myself, but like I said, I didn't have time. I also wanted my DIY project to look a little more expensive and I thought letterpress would accomplish that.
Where I went right:
Outsourcing: I realized that my project needed pizazz, but I couldn't afford full out letterpress. Instead I went with an etsy vendor who letterpressed a logo at the top and printed the rest. It came out looking like a very expensive project because of it. My vendor was Letterpress Light. Great work on short notice!
If I could do it all again?
I would do the letterpress light invite insert, and an RSVP card with an envelope (NOT prestamped, no one used them!!). That is IT. Put that in a standard envelope with normal stamps (instead of customized stamps) and send that.
I spent $4.93 per invite when I could have paid someone else to do it for that price. I wish I could go back and either pay someone else to do the invites or limit my DIY project a little so that I didn't end up spending so much time and money on it.
MY DIY invites, envelopes and response cards were about $200 (for about 90 invites)... Like you, I wanted complete control over the look.... plus, I'm pretty sure we saved money. At least I hope so... 
I am saving about $4.50 per invitation. It also helps I am a super internet shopper for the paper and envelopes. LOL
this is awesomely helpful, thank you everyone! special thanks to MightySapphire for the breakdown!!
I searched and searched and searched for wedding invitations that I loved and felt represented FI and I but never found them. I decided to take a chance and design my own - I am soooo happy that I did! They are modern, casual, and fun... everything I wanted!
I design them partially in Word and partially in Publisher, bought cardstock from Hobby Lobby and Joann Fabrics, then paid a printer that my company works for to print and cut them. I ordered envelopes online. I spent about $300 for invitations, accommodations cards, rehearsal dinner invitations, rsvps, place cards, and announcements. I am extremely happy with the results! They are exactly what I hoped for!
I'm DIY-ing a lot of wedding items, partly to try and save some money, but mostly because I can't find precisely what I'm looking for. Invitations, centerpieces, favors, advice board, guestbook, programs, table numbers, signs for the wedding, wedding card box, even the music (we are having an iPod wedding). I know it seems like a lot, but so far so good!
Best of luck! DIY-ing can make your wedding so much more personal if you can make the time for it!
I just figured this all out for my blog so I have it handy. I did all of my own designing for both STD's and DIY pocket folds. I had Std postcards printed by Vistaprint so I didn't have to worry about envelopes or wet, running ink from my inkjet printer. Then I designed a approx 5" square pocket fold for our invites (I go into detail on how to make them on my blog) that are some what easy to make and 2 come out of 1 12" x12" sheet of card stock. My cost breakdown is like this.....
STD:
Total $44.57 or .45 ea
Invites (need 75 but bought supplies for 100, priced for 100):
Total $243.69 or $2.44 each with postage. Since they are square and I am going to need rsvp postage the postage figure is a killer. But all total our invitation suite including std's were only $2.89 each! I have more detail listed on my blog about who I used and where I got things if you want to check it out there!
I'm letterpress DIY-ing my invites and self lining my envelopes. I'll probably spend about $600, which includes about 60 pieces each of a 7-piece set (STD, invite, rsvp, two inserts, ribbon and tag with website info, thank you cards, and escort cards) plus 4 sets of envelopes. I couldn't afford the same quality, visual cohesiveness, and have the same amount of creative control if I didn't DIY.
It does, however, take a shat-ton of time. My fiance thinks it's neat and will take easy jobs to help.
We're spending $50. We are ONLY sending out Stds...our guests will be directed to our website for everything else.
We DIY our Invitations and saved a ton. The invitations I originally priced were in the $700-$800 range for 100. We ended up spending $3.37 per invitation including all postage (outer envelope and RSVP envelopes); inner, outer, and reply envelopes; invitation; two inserts; and pocketfolds! It was a TON of work but I was really happy with how they turned out.
I really wanted complex pocket invites, but the kind I wanted would have run in the $12 - $15 a piece range (!!!), and I need about 150. So I am DIY mostly. I will clock in around $4.50 a piece. Realistically, I never would have spent the amount it could have been, so I'm not actually saving money in that sense, but I am getting what I wanted for slightly less than I would have been wiling to pay otherwise.
The big splurge was on the pockets themselves, with matching envelope, because I wanted a certain style and price, and paid $12 for a pack of 10, coming in at at $1.20 per invite.
I bought cardstock in bulk for a total of $120, with shipping, but will have a ton left over to use for the wedding. I'll assign $0.75 for that to the invites.
I am paying an esty vendor $150 to design the invites (no talent in that area), so $1 an invite.
Printing will be about $1.50 per invite at kinkos.
Postage will be a little over $0.50 per invite.
The one thing not accounted for is assembly, which I am doing with a coworker of my fiance. She is a big scrapbooker, so she is helping me with cutting and assembly, so I'm saving on having to buy stuff. I'll probably buy $20 in adhesive. In exchange for her help we are making a sizeable donation to her Race for the Cure fund (she's doing a 100 mile bike race), but that is a charitable deduction, so I'm not counting that.
I am sem-DIY. I baught invites from target and I'm going to add a ribbon or rhinestone embelishments to give it some more pizaaz! I'll probably take them to Kinkos to get printed.
I just wanted to share a little story. I am a big scrapbooker, and I love this store called Anchor Paper. It's a pretty warehouse-y place that sells paper to mostly corporate clients, but they have a retail store too. A girl came in while I was there once, bought all her paper for her invites and envelopes, and it was $167.
The thing is, just had just come over from Archiver's, where the same exact things cost her almost $400.
So when DIY'ing, make sure you are careful about what you shell out for your supplies. Since I have a background in bookmaking and printmaking, I always buy my paper crafts stuff either from places like Anchor, or from artist supply stores. You can often buy a huge roll of acid-free tape at an art supply store for like $3.95, when the same amount would cost you $30 at Archiver's.
Our invites were DIY and came out to a little under $2.50 per person. I carved a lino block and printed the image on the front of each invite. A comparable quality invite would've been $5-7 I think. So I definitely saved money but man did 140 DIY invites get old fast!
We're spending hair under $300 on all our paper goods. Everything will be DIY and printed at home. Like you for design freedom. We wanted something very simple and modern.
Included in our $300 budget is a double happiness punch stamp, return address embosser, stamps for save the dates and invites, paper for ALL paper goods (save the dates, invites, programs, etc etc) and envelopes. Inviting roughly 200 guests. :)
I calculated that our Save The Dates including postage was about 80cts each. And invites will come out to about $1 each including postage. Our Save The Dates were a single piece of cardstock printed on both sides.
Invites will be a heavy red cardstock sandwiched between two pieces of vellum. One side will be in Chinese and the other side in English.
I was going to do our invites if I couldn't find the right invite and price. Then I realized COSTCO sells invites thru their website for 25% off. Not to mention free shipping since I ordered during a promo. They are excellent quality and just like the sample I had ordered. So, glad I went that route! I think for 75 invites, enclosures, RSVP's it was about $200.
From what I saw on Etsy, a typical two-layer 5x7 invite with rsvp and envelopes (and a STD if you're lucky) would run you about $5 per set. So I spent less than half that on supplies and had enough left over to make all my other paper projects. Totally worth it for me, just had to keep the details simple and not go overboard with it. It's worth doing DIY if you follow the golden rule of KISS (keep it simple stupid) and have the free time.
I managed 31 two-layer 5x7 invites with envelopes, STD's, rsvp cards with envelopes, custom maps, and 48 place cards, programs, favor tags and menu cards for $70 not including postage. All this was made of 2 kinds of cardstock and some stamps, so I didn't have to buy a ton of stuff and didn't drive myself nuts with endless details. Free clip art courtesy of google and thegraphicsfairy.com. Also, try to print at home, or maybe at your office, it's 50 cents for a color copy at my local Office Max :(
Whoever above mentioned 'start with standard size and build your ideas around that' is right on, the most important thing is to realize that some funky shape or size will cost you a ton in postage and it might be harder to find envelopes! Typical size is 5 inch by 7 inch.
A good tip: cruise Craigslist and the classified section of Weddingbee, I got my large envelopes and my pretty metallic cardstock for a bargain by purchasing another bride's leftover materials. Even found a gently used tag stamp to make my favor tags for very little money. Staples sells 250 sheet packs of 110lb carstock in a couple nice pastel colors, including ivory for $15. This paper is thick enough for rsvp cards and the top layer of a multi-layer invite, and it prints in any printer and looks great. Most Michaels craft stores have a $1 stamp bin, and they are really nice stamps! I used 2 of these in my set, totally worth the price.
Good luck, and post pics here if you diy!
STD were $7. I went to VistaPrint and got them for free, $7 shipping.
Invitations with reply cards about $75 including stamps, paper, rhinestones, and envelopes; or $100 including the color toner.
I spent $30 on my invites total! but that is not including stamps. AND..i have about 30 extra! i got mine at michaels. in the end it will take me 3, 8 hour days to complete them. but i had fun and it makes me feel more connected with my wedding :D
I strongly suggest it. if you have any questions about DIY invites please feel free to PM me
good luck
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i'm considering DIY-ing my invites. not only because i want to have total aesthetic control over them, but it seems like it might be possible to save some money that way. if you DIY'd your invites, do you have a rough idea of how much money you saved, and if not, about how much you spent on your DIY invites, in total? thanks everyone!