Let’s address the elephant in the room: Custom wedding invitations ain’t cheap. We stationers understand the importance of budgeting and we aren’t just selling you marked up paper. I want to spend some time outlining why custom invitations are so much more expensive than Shutterfly/Minted, and why it is worth the investment.

White Glove Service

When you order custom wedding invitations, you are purchasing both a product and a service. You get both the beautiful paper, envelopes, wax seals AND the personal service of a custom designer and etiquette master.

If you order on Shutterfly/Minted, you are choosing a mass-produced design and ordering through an automated system. There is rarely a real person emailing you, answering your questions and assuring you the wording on your RSVP card is clear. So while you are getting a product, you aren’t receiving personal support and guidance.

There’s a lot of time that goes into creating custom estimates, phone consultations, creating custom mood boards, sharing inspiration and ideas, going back and forth with design options, changing font colors a few times to find the one that works perfectly, curating a cohesive suite with coordinating envelopes – not to mention all the time spent creating a completely unique, custom design (see next section!).

Custom Art

Custom invitations means custom art! Stationers aren’t using the same art over and over again for custom invitations. We create art – paint brush to paper – scan it, digitize it, clean it up and then incorporate it into your invitation design.

Imagine walking into a local art gallery, approaching an artist and asking him to create a custom painting for you. Knowing you would be receiving something one-of-a-kind, made just for you, you’d probably be prepared to spend a pretty penny.

When you work with me as your stationer, I am creating many aspects of your suite by hand. I may hand letter your names to incorporate into your invitation card, or paint some florals for the background of your RSVP card. These personal touches make your suite truly reflective of you. They are a labor of love and ultimately create wedding stationery of heirloom quality.

Expertise

I can’t tell you how often my clients say “I am so glad I hired you. Invitations were the most stressful part of the planning process for me.” Ya’ll. I have spent hours upon hours studying stationery etiquette, learning about color theory, developing Adobe software design skills, ordering swatch-books upon swatch-books to analyze paper quality. There is an expertise element here. You are paying for the service of knowledge, experience and guidance on style + design and proper practices for wording, addressing, and mailing invitations. I am here to take all of these stressors off your plate.

Why the Investment is Worth It

It’s true that custom wedding invitations will be more pricey than purchasing online. There are a few reasons why the investment is worth it:

1. You are supporting a small business. I am a small-town mama with three dogs and a super awesome husband. I’m not a big corporation. I can’t mass produce wedding paper. Instead, I pour my heart and soul into each design. I run my hands over the paper when it comes and my heart lights up with excitement to share it with you. Every single time I receive a new inquiry, I yell to my husband “Guess what?! I just got an inquiry!” He responds, “Yeah!” and we pour two glasses of wine. Your choice to support my business supports my creative dream and helps provide for my little family. I’m so, so grateful for each one of you who has chosen to let me into your world and trust me with your wedding details.
2. Custom wedding invitations are YOUnique (ok, that was corny). But seriously, they are personal and meaningful and reflect your unique love story. My favorite part of the process is reading about your proposal story and why you love one another so much. I take these stories and tell them through the art and motifs in your design. It’s a beautiful thing and your guests will smile ear-to-ear when they open that envelope and see stationery that makes them think of you.
3. The quality is unmatched. I have ordered swatch books and researched the quality from suppliers all over the country. You can rest assured that you are getting high quality paper, envelopes, and other details.
4. Saves you time and stress! I am here to listen to your ideas + vision and bring it to life. You get to be a part of the fun and leave the rest to me! From color palettes and typography to envelope addressing and assembly, it’s all taken off your shoulders.

If you’re interested in partnering to bring your wedding invitation dreams to life, check out my website to see my portfolio, average pricing per 75 suites and complete the form for a free price quote!