Wedding planning has kicked in full force as I round the two-month mark! I barely have time to blog, but as I promised, here are the details of what it cost me to create my wedding invitations.
The ribbon was Offray’s mint colored 7/8″ grosgrain ribbon, purchased at JKM Ribbon’s website. One roll included 100 yards of ribbon, which was plenty. To save on shipping, I also purchased 1/4″ and 1 1/2″ ribbon in the same color to use for my programs and miscellaneous decorating. I might give the thicker ribbon to our floral designer to decorate the church.
The pockets I used were the Vertigo style pocketfolds in Coffee Bean, purchased from the Cards and Pockets website.
Mr. Eggplant had our cards printed and cut to size on 80lb cover stock using four-color digital process by Fong Brothers Printing. I chose to have these printed and cut professionally because I did not want to take on the task myself, and I wanted to ensure that the cards were cut exactly to specific dimensions. The cards were cut PERFECTLY and I could not have done that with my home paper cutter. Fong Brothers was wonderful and gave us several proofs after I kept tweaking the invites and changing my mind on paper. As for quality, exact color matching was not a priority for me and the colors came out just as I wanted.
I purchased a pack of 100 sheets of rose pink cardstock from Paper and More for $29.99 plus a $5 cutting fee. The cards were cut exactly to my invite matting size, which was very convenient.
The size A7 linen envelopes in warm white were also purchased at Paper and More for $11.99 per 50 envelopes. It was the perfect thickness to feed through my printer. Anything thicker and they would’ve jammed.
The address labels that were done via mail merge were clear inkjet 2″ x 4″ shipping labels purchased at Staples.
My invites weighed in at two ounces per piece, so I used the $0.58 wedding stamp. It was a plus that they came in pink! Bonus: I didn’t have to purchase any stamps for RSVP envelopes because we’re having everyone respond online.
Once again, the hole punch that saved my life. Purchased at Joann and used for many, many wedding projects, including our favor boxes and programs. I LOVE THIS PUNCH.
And last but not least, slave labor: Rented for $free ninety-nine$.
This is so helpful. Thanks!
I really like your invitation Miss Eggplant.
Actually, I have a question. How much of the 100 yard ribbon roll did you end up using? Half? Almost the whole thing?
Slave labor: The secret ingredient!
rzblna: i used the entire roll for my invites! i made about 130 of the 150 that i planned, and the roll was gone by the time i was done.
Linda & acklesgrl: thank you! i hope the guests like them as well. 
Moi: my slave labor got tired after doing ten invites.
Not true! I did about 12.
What about the monogram circle you used to close this? What was that made of and how is that included in your cost tally? Thanks!
eck. i just noticed the math doesn’t add up right for the extra expenses. should be $122.20.
Michelle, the monogram circle was printed on my inkjet on a few pieces of 80lb white coverstock that we also got from the printing company. We purchased 250 sheets of coverstock for another project, so it didn’t cost us anything extra. hope that helps!
Miss Eggplant, how did you adhere the ribbon to the cardstock and the monogram circle?
Love the invites!
lindsey: thanks!
to adhere the monogram, i just used double-sided tape. i used a smaller piece for the closure, so that the invite would open without ripping the monogram apart.
I am really lovin these invites…..
I think this is my favorite DIY invite I have ever seen. Did you design the invite completely on your own? Where are the graphics from?
sl524: one of mr. eggplant’s friends designed our wedding website and i basically created our invite to match, so i had somewhat of an idea of what i wanted the invite to look and feel like.
i did the layout of the invite on my own just by looking at other invites and seeing what i liked/didn’t like. (e.g., do i like the font centered or right-aligned? do i like white space or do i want graphics to fill the empty space?).
the brown graphic element was purchased from istockphoto.com (try doing a search for “floral ornament” or “floral pattern”). i simply altered the color in adobe illustrator. i also created the flowers in illustrator using the circle tool and added them to the swirl design.
hope that helps!
This is so inspiring. I’m planning on DIY Pocket invites as well. You did a wonderful job!
hi ms. eggplant,
WONDERFUL invitations! I like the curlicue detail. Can you tell me where you got that? I have been looking for such for the longest time.
Thanks!
[...] do I care so much as to do something about it….So I’ve been looking at semi-DIY methods. This post on weddingbee (my wedding crack) is making me seriously consider choosing this route. I don’t [...]
Mrs. Eggplant, San Francisco
Age and Occupation: 28, Human Resources
Fiance's Age and Occupation: 24, Associate Marketing Manager
Engagement Date: January 19, 2007
Wedding Date: October 20, 2007
Blogging Since: May 31, 2007
Venue: Ceremony at a cement and stained glass cathedral and reception at a boutique hotel ballroom
About Me: I'm a shopping junkie who lives to discover great deals and a craft addict that loves to scrapbook and knit. My profile picture was taken on the day I got engaged which is why my smile is so huge!
they turned out lovely! Very pretty!