Thursday, October 21, 2010

Clever Ways to Personalize Your Wedding

I recently received an invitation to my cousin’s wedding in the mail and once I got past the absolutely impeccable calligraphy, I noticed something that I wish I thought to do for my wedding. In the upper right corner were two stamps with my cousin and her fiancé smiling at each other!

With so many invitations printed on heavier weight paper and in shapes needing more than your typical 44 cent stamp, this is a great way to showcase you and your fiancé even before your big day begins! Zazzle.com has tools to help you create a personalized stamp by uploading your own photo, or you can select from one of their many wedding themed designs.

Another great way to personalize your wedding is to design your own stationary as it sets the tone for what your guests can expect on the wedding day. Now, I know that many brides these days don’t even have enough time to plan a wedding, let alone design their stationary...but, with the help of online resources, designing your wedding stationary isn’t just for your amateur Martha Stewarts out there.


For those of you who are hesitant to embark on this potentially time consuming task, start with your Save the Dates. You may uncover a new talent you never thought you had!


The same cousin who put her face on a postage stamp used a great online resource for her Save the Dates called Premium Postcard. This website is a USPS Approved Postal Provider, so not only are you able to design a beautiful Save the Date card with just a few clicks of your mouse, but you can also upload your guest list to the website and they mail everything out for you...talk about a time saver!



To create a one of a kind post card, simply upload your favorite photos of you and your fiancé to the available spaces on the card and add the particulars using the site’s text editor. Now, I have to admit that my cousin is a professional graphic designer and the image on her card is her own design, but you don’t have to be a professional to create a lovely design using the website’s available tools.

Here is a sample
announcement post card I quickly created:


As an added bonus, using post cards instead of the traditional card and envelope cuts down on your paper consumption…and Mother Earth appreciates the gesture!


By designing your wedding stationary, programs, menu cards, etc., you can also tie together a common theme from start to finish. As you can see with these invitations, my cousin was able to carry the bird theme
from the save the date to the invitations and through to the overall wedding design, and this gives her guests a little taste of what to expect on the day of your wedding.


However you choose to personalize your wedding, it should be a reflection of you and your fiancé and the love you share together.




Many thanks to my cousin, Beth, and her soon-to-be-husband, J.R., for allowing me to post their clever ideas, and to Jade McCully Photography for the announcement card photos.