The Agony and the Ecstasy
July 7th, 2008 @ 6:44 pm by Mrs. Cookie
It only took me two weeks, three tubes of brown ink, a few paper cuts, and over 1,500 presses but OUR INVITATIONS ARE DONE! Hallelujah! And as I dropped off the invites this morning in the mail, not only did I feel the relief of finishing our invites, but goosebumps crept over my body! It was a special moment between me, the invites, and the mailbox! Then I promptly rewarded myself with a Tall Iced Mocha from Starbucks – total coffee addict!
I’m really happy with the final product, even though it was a lot of work! Each piece is unique, because of the quality of the press, and a labor of love! I did however have help along the way…
Mama Cookie spent a few nights cutting our damask envelope liners, while I pressed and hand addressed each invite. Mr. Cookie also helped by collating and placing stamps on our RSVPs and envelopes.
Without further ado, I give you our invitation suite!
Envelope and Liner
Invitation
Our postcard RSVP. You can’t see it very well in the photo but it says, “Write a Message to the Lovebirds” with space for guests to write a personalized message.
The front and back of our directions, lodging, and pig roast invite
The Gocco and Gocco supplies have commandeered our dining table for the past few weeks. With the completion of the invites late last night, Mr. Cookie echoed a sigh of relief this morning knowing that we will not be eating dinner on his “man couch” for a while. Yes, there are more Gocco wedding projects to come, but for now I am just happy that these puppies are finally in the mail.
How did you feel once your invitations were off in the mail?
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44 Responses to “The Agony and the Ecstasy”
They look great! That makes me very happy that I’m getting a gocco for my birthday. I know that I can figure out how to use it and it will be great! Congrats on the invites. They are soooo PRETTY!
Your invites are ABSOLUTELY GORGEOUS!!
I know exectly how you feel about getting the invites done - it felt like a disease by the time I sent mine - just needed them OUT of the house!!
Now you can look forward to all those RSVPs!
oh my goodness, you ambitious little thing! your colors and the birdies and the amazing attention to detail and calligraphy=droooooooool! i’ve been putting off doing the “calligraphy” (aka my chicken scratch cursive) on our invitations because i’m afraid of messing them up and running out of envelopes hehe. you did an amazing job and it looks gorgggggggggeous.
Wow those look great. I think you guys will go into the invitation making business after this wedding.
Fabulous!!!
beautiful! did you gocco that map too?
ohh are those sage green envelopes? Can I ask where you purchased them?
Oh my goodness they are beautiful! May I ask how you got the ink to print so solid on your mountains? My gocco still prints all patchy, am I doing something wrong? Do you need to clean the screen between flashing and the first inking?
sooo purdy. You should open your own invite shop..I would buy from you! I’m in love with those envelopes.
Every detail is amazing! I am especially impressed with your handwriting! Your guests are going to be proudly hanging those babies up on the fridge:-)
Stunning! I looooove the bird-and-branch design. What fun to get something so beautiful in the mail.
Beautiful! Where did you get the damask papers, especially in a piece that big? I’m looking for something in black and white and seem to have no luck.
All that with a 42-cent stamp??? That’s pretty good! I had to buy the 59-cent ones…=(
gorgeous!! love the birds and the damask lining!
unbelievable!!! So absolutely stunning. You definitely deserved that mocha. 
Your handwriting looks fantastic. Did you do anything extra-special to make it look so good? What kind of pen did you use?
gorgeous!!! this past weekend, we made all the envelopes. our invites came in today from the letterpress folks, so i’ve got a hot evening of corner rounding ahead of me… one insert to design, print, cut & round, then the assembly begins. i can’t wait to drop these babies in the mail!
These turned out great!! Were you using the PG-11? I am having the hardest time tracking one down. Great job! I’m sure you’re relieved to have one more thing done on your list!
can you share where you got that paper you placed in the envelopes?
As if I didn’t have gocco envy already. 
Wow the envelope liners make a big difference! They make your invitations pop! I love it!
They look great, Cookie! Where DID you get those papers?
They look really great!
I am so excited about the day we send invites out… SO excited!
Beautiful! Your guests will be so excited when they receive these.
I’d like to know about the calligraphy, too–did you use a special pen and do you have a recommendation for a good how-to book?
Oh, you guys are making this Cookie blush! I’m going to attempt to answer every question, so bear with me!
@misssweetart: Yes, I did Gocco the map. I was really, really worried that the intricate detail would not burn correctly, but I am so happy that it did! I can’t take credit for the design. It was the venue’s map that I was able to open up in Illustrator.
@jaime: @puffykins@Katinkabella: They are actually a Tiffany Blue. I bought the paper from Xpedx Paper Store in Denver, but they are located throughout the country. http://www.xpedxstores.com/StoreLocations.aspx. The paper brand, Artco, I would highly recommend to any DIY invite bride because of the color selection!
@Brooke: You shouldn’t need to clean the screen after flashing and printing. Actually, don’t touch it at all. I’ve found that the oil in your hands can sometimes impede ink from printing correctly. To be honest, I waste a lot of ink because I really ink up my masters. Then I do several presses on scrap paper to check for quality. However, I always have a few prints that don’t press right and are patchy in every project.
@furelysse: The paper is wrapping paper that I found at The Container Store.
@Karin: It’s actually only three cards. I was shocked and surprised when I weighed it at the Post Office and the postage came out to 42 cents. I was so skeptical that I weighed it again, and sure enough it was still 42 cents.
@GorgesViola: The pen is a Sharpie Ultra Fine Point in red.
@Abbie in CO: I bought mine from Judy of Northwood Studios http://northwoodstudios.tripod.com/goccoprinters.html. On her website she says that she just got a shipment of PG 5 and PG 11 printers in! I love my PG 11 because of the registration capabilities.
@design-phan: I just used a Sharpie Ultra Fine Point and exaggerated my own handwriting. I have a weird fascination for computer typography and I’ve done a lot of lettering in scenic painting. I recommend finding a vintage typography book to look at varying scripts.
Miss Cookie you are a force to be reckoned with. How can I ever reveal mine when I have this to live up to? They are just gorgeous.
These are simply stunning!!!!!!
Wow! those are absolutely amazing. I’m always so surprised to see what the gocco can do. I’m stil afraid to touch mine but you give me hope! Simply stunning.
I’m blown away…and jealous. I want a Gocco so bad!
I just bought the pg-11. I actually bought the machine itself from print addict and then the expansion kit from northwood, it came out a little cheaper that way. I’m a little scared but this post gives me courage. I’m very confused about the envelope liners. Can you explain how you did that? Did you glue them in? Where did you get the envelopes? Please help!
Thanks!
Well worth the effort, I’d say. Absolutely beautiful! I’ve never seen anything quite like them. And I love your choice of stamp - the color compliments very well.
@Autumn: Miss Sundae has an awesome tutorial about envelope liners that I would suggest http://www.weddingbee.com/2008/07/02/invitation-liners/. I did glue them in with a glue stick. I got the envelopes at Xpedx Paper Store.
Ten Mile Station wedding seen here: http://community.livejournal.com/reallifewedding/147083.html#cutid1
[...] turns to the DVD extras in order to reveal the movie magic. And after my post on Monday about our invites, I got a lot of questions about Gocco printing. Although there isn’t an exact science to the [...]
Your invites are beautiful and look well worth the time and effort - all you bees who have shared your gocco adventures have turned me into a gocco-obsessed bride-to-be…I’ve even shared your stories on my wedding blog to hopefully inspire others who are looking for something a bit unique…thanks!
I love your invites! Did you print the lettering/copy of the invites using gocco too, or just the images?
I’m wondering if the copy/wording on the invites I am doing might look cleaner if I print them on the cards first, then gocco the images and art onto the cards after? what do you think I haven’t used my gocco yet, so your advice would be awesome!
@Mel: Everything but the calligraphy on the envelopes is gocco. I think the copy comes out a lot cleaner on the gocco than sometimes the images do. Unless your invites are oversized, don’t be afraid to do everything on the gocco!
[...] back when I printed our invitations, I printed the bird and branches which I got from istock on both the cards and envelopes in order [...]
Mrs. Cookie, Denver
Age and Occupation: 25, Nonprofit Fundraiser/Theatre Designer
Fiance's Age and Occupation: 27, Financial Analyst
Engagement Date: September 2007
Wedding Date: September 2008
Blogging Since: May 8, 2008
Venue: Ten Mile Station
About Me: With a degree in Theatre I never realized that planning a wedding was a lot like Theatre Management, until I started planning my own. I am a coffee addict, especially Starbucks' Grande Mochas, yummy! I love to cook (especially chocolate chip cookies for my honey), travel to exotic places, and be creative. As a couple, Mr. Cookie and I are extremely practical, down to earth, and children at heart. We live in a cozy abode with our adorable Pomeranian, and love to play board games and watch movies into the evening.
Wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwow! They look FANTASTIC!!!!!!!!