Wedding invitations are the first impression your guests receive regarding the style and tone of your ceremony. While there is no hard and fast rule about wedding invitations, you might want to consider how they reflect on your wedding as a whole. With so many styles of paper, clipart, lettering and layout, selecting an invitation is not usually a quick process. On the bright side, with all these choices, you are sure to find the perfect representation of the two of you as a couple.
One of the first things to consider is the style of your wedding. If you are having a black tie evening wedding, cartoon graphics and lightweight paper won't convey a formal first impression. Think about gilded lettering, heavyweight paper or cardstock and formal RSVP cards. However, if you are having a barefoot beach wedding in Gig Harbor, formal invitations would feel out of place. Lighter papers, more artistic graphics and subtle lettering might fit the overall tone of your wedding. Feel the paper samples, look carefully at the graphics and run your fingers across the lettering. Imagine yourself receiving this invitation. Does your choice feel like it fits with your wedding?
Another consideration is the wording on your invitations. Gone are the days when parents must announce the upcoming nuptials. This is certainly appropriate if it is your wish, but any wording is acceptable today. Many couples use verses or poems on their invitations. Here is a place to really let your personalities shine through. If your wedding is planned in the Cascade Mountains, look for poems and verses which highlight the alpine beauty as well as your lifelong devotion to each other. If you have your heart set on a traditional verse, see if the lettering style can match your location. Flowing lettering in pale blue can mimic the waves for your seaside ceremony.
Color is another big decision. Often, the bride and groom will select ink and graphic colors which match the wedding colors. But in all honesty, if your colors are black and white and you really want maroon on the wedding invitations, this isn't a problem. Choose the colors you want and which bring you the most joy. The entire reason for the invitation is to invite friends and family to your wedding celebration, not to see if you can match everything in the wedding perfectly.
Lastly, when choosing your invitations, have some extras printed. For example, if you have invited 250 guests to your wedding, plan on having at least twenty extra invitations. In all the hoopla of wedding planning, someone your mother thinks must attend will be overlooked. Coffee will be spilled on an invitation and your fiancé's brother might start dating a new girl. You also want to keep an invitation for the wedding album.
Choosing wedding invitations together is a fun and happy process. Somehow, once the invitations are ordered, the whole idea of your marriage becomes more real. Use the invitations as a way to express yourselves as a couple. This is your big day and your invitations can reflect the spirit of your celebration.