Weddingbee Blog

Thank you for all the kind compliments you’ve given to my handmade invitations! It almost makes the sweat worth it.

I was able to mail it all with a 39 cent stamp. The reason being, I used a traditional RSVP-sized card for my invitation, and a place card as my RSVP card. I felt the small size would contribute to the intimate theme of the wedding, and it was a lot cheaper too! The only downside is you’re not able to fit as much writing (which is why most of the information is on the wedding website Mr. Tomato and I created from scratch).

I wanted to answer a few questions that came up regarding where my materials came from and how much they cost. Here’s the breakdown:

I purchased the outer envelope, medium vellum envelope and vellum from envelopemall:

Classic Crest 4-3/8 x 5-3/4″, (A2) Envelope 100 Pack, Classic Cream
Price: $11.50

Translucent Clear 3-5/8″ x 5-1/8″ (4Bar) Envelope 100 Pack
Price: $10.50

Translucent Pattern Sheets 8-1/2 x 11″, (30 lb) 100 Pack, Gold Vine on Clear
Price: $18.95

* Shipping costs are reasonable, but it’s dependent on order quantity

I purchased the notecards (also known as “Announcement cards”) at Aaron Brothers art/framing store, but they are actually cheaper at dickblick:

Strathmore Blank Cards and Envelopes
Box of 10, Ivory/Ivory Deckle (deckle means the “torn” edge)

Price at Aaron Brothers: $3.99/box
Price at dickblick.com: $2.48/box

I purchased the small yellow RSVP cards and glassine envelopes at Paper Source:

Butter Placecard, 50 Pack
Folded size- 3 1/2″ x 2 1/2″

Price: $7.00/pack

Glassine Envelopes, 50 Pack
Folded size- 3 1/2″ x 2 1/2″ (not available online)

Price: $6.00/pack

Total Paper Cost: ~$120 (this includes the extra I bought in case of printing blunders)

I bought the glue gun sealing wax and brass seal at Nostalgic Impressions. Their “wedding kit” for $22.95 includes 5 wax sticks (in the color of your choice) and your pick of 18 different brass seals. I saved a few dollars this way.

As I mentioned before, the ribbon I purchased at The Ribbonerie was about $30…I probably could have gone to Michael’s or Joann’s, but the ribbons here are just so special!

Total Accessories Cost: ~$55

For 55 invitations, I ended up spending around $175. Factor in the stamps, and the total cost was around $200. Not the most frugal route, but because I’ve designed wedding invitations for friends before, I wanted to do my own (plus they were expecting nothing less from me!). It was the one area in my wedding I really wanted to personalize.

If you have more questions, feel free to email me at tomato@weddingbee.com!