My DIY Invitations!

[Jaci]

Alright, I began with a Signature C pocketfold from www.cardsandpockets.com in Ivory (though it reminds me of those filing folders, I think it's the same material) and I also bought Pine invitations mats there.

Total of $120.50

I bought all of my ivory colored cardstock and matching envelopes from www.paperandmore.com (200 sheets of 8.5x11 Sand #80 cardstock and 150 Sand envelopes).

Total of $85

Then I brought them all in to be cut at Kinkos.

Total of $30

I printed them all off myself at home, and glued them together. My ink and materials I will estimate.

Total of $15

So I made 110 pocketfold invitations for $235.50. That is about $2.12 a pocketfold, with five inserts. Plus I didn't have to spend hours cutting, and I barely wasted any material (I used less than 100 sheets of cardstock for all five inserts!).

So yeah, those are the logistics, on to the photos!

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v643/pwrpufgirlz/invitations%20and%20programs/invite01-1.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v643/pwrpufgirlz/invitations%20and%20programs/invite02-1.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v643/pwrpufgirlz/invitations%20and%20programs/invite03website.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v643/pwrpufgirlz/invitations%20and%20programs/invite04reception.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v643/pwrpufgirlz/invitations%20and%20programs/invite05response.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v643/pwrpufgirlz/invitations%20and%20programs/invite06lodging.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v643/pwrpufgirlz/invitations%20and%20programs/invite07directionsf.jpg

Sorry, I stopped caring about color balance after the initial invite photos. I'm not sure what happened to my Map Card photo, it dissapeared.

[mrrr]

Everything looks great!

[*heather*]

Great job Jaci! Very professional looking! It must feel good to be done with them, eh? You've been working on them a long time. :)

[nikkiana]

Those look AWESOME, Jaci! Great work!

[njbride06]

They look great! Very professional looking. I like how they seem very clean cut. Could you tell me what the symbol means? Is it a Scottish symbol?

I did mine from scratch and it was a lot of work. If I could've found the pocketfolds in the color I wanted, i probably would've went that route, but of course, I had to be difficult! That's a great price for the invites!

[carolinalady67]

You did a great job.

[*Tanya*]

Holy crap, I LOVE them. Great job, Jaci!! :thumbsup:

[lizaanne]

LOVE the wording on the response card!!! No filling in 5 when only 2 are invited!! Good job!!

~Liza

[Jaci]

They look great! Very professional looking. I like how they seem very clean cut. Could you tell me what the symbol means? Is it a Scottish symbol?

I did mine from scratch and it was a lot of work. If I could've found the pocketfolds in the color I wanted, i probably would've went that route, but of course, I had to be difficult! That's a great price for the invites!

The symbol is a celtic symbol :) triskel, sometimes called the triskelion (a version of a spiral). Most celtic knots don't have an exact meaning applied to them, but I found this on a site:

Spirals - usually reflects personal spirit, and an individual's attainment of balance in the inner conciousness and outer self. May also represent the cosmos, heavens, and water (waves). A common spiral type pattern would be the Triskel, thought to represent the Holy Trinity or the Triple Gods/Goddesses of the ancient Celts like the Trinity Knot.

Liza - I have discovered a bad thing about it though...people will sometimes mark that they are attending but then they will only put one name down when they have three seats available, so I don't know who else is coming! Most assume that I'll just automatically figure out that all three people on the invitation are coming, but not all :P

Thanks to everyone for commenting :D

[Uma]

I wouldn't dare add up how much my homemade invitations ended up costing. That's brave!

[kate]

Jaci! They look fabulous!

[Kirsten]

They look even nicer in person. They are absolutely lovely, Jaci!

[lizaanne]

Liza - I have discovered a bad thing about it though...people will sometimes mark that they are attending but then they will only put one name down when they have three seats available, so I don't know who else is coming! Most assume that I'll just automatically figure out that all three people on the invitation are coming, but not all :P

Some folks just don't have a clue, do they? Sheesh!!

~Liza

[lmhcmm]

Great invites, Jaci. Very professional looking. :)

[Aramelle]

Jaci, they are awesome! You did a great job; I would never have guessed they were DIY.

[rowanmayfairs]

I love your invites !!

They look so PROFESSIONAL .. Would of never known they were DIY :)

Great job !!

[Mimzy]

Wonderful! Love the colors.

[*Sarah*]

Jaci! Your invitations look wonderful!! About how much time did you spend creating and assembling them???

[~LeAna~]

Wow!! They look fantastic!!!

[Jaci]

Thanks everyone!

Marshall2be, I would say they probably took about 5 hours printing everything off (I could hit "print 100" but not leave it alone for very long before a printer jam, but I was doing other stuff on my computer too, so it's not 5 continuous hours) and then me and my mom addressed and stuffed them all at the same time and it took about three hours maybe? That seems a little long though, maybe about two.

[QueenElizabeth22]

Jaci-WOW! They look great! Awesome job...I hope I can get mine to look as great as yours! :)

[Hughto]

Jaci- They look great and very professional. Since you got the signature C pocketfolds and got the envelopes from Papers and More, what size envelope did you get to fit the pocketfold? I was looking and couldn't figure out which one was the right fit.

[Jaci]

I can't remember the exact one it is, but it's around 5.25 to 7.25 inches. It's one of the A ones though :P

[Cindy]

I believe that is called an A7 envelope.

[KathyandJer]

Jaci - beautiful beautiful job! Again, I :bow: down to you and your skillZ :)

[Jaci]

Kathy, you sure like spending your time one your knees in front of me :D

[*Diane*]

Jaci, I know this is one really stupid question but bear with me- sometimes I am really stupid. I am making invitations for my IL's 50th anniversary party. I bought all the paper, etc. Do I print before I take to Kinko's to be cut or after? Thanks! :hug:

[*Diane*]

bumping up in hopes of help!

[KathyandJer]

Diane - I would think print first, then have them cut. But perhaps call Kinko's and see what they recommend. But I would think that printing would be easier before cutting!

[Emily]

wow...they turned out great!

[Jaci]

Diane, oh my goodness, I'm so sorry! Anyways, I had them cut and then printed, because I didn't know how spot on Kinkos would be, plus I wasn't ready to print, but I was ready to cut, you know? I would think though, that you could print and then cut, Kinkos did a really great job cutting mine!

[*Diane*]

Thanks! I think I am going to chicken out completely and take them to a local print shop; have them print it and then cut it, too. :blush:

[Jaci]

you gotta do what you've gotta do!

[purple_octopus]

I'm printing mine with a 5% grey border (very thin) that I can use as a guide to make sure I'm square when I'm cutting. I'm thinking of having Kinko's print, too. At least the envelopes (doing in 5% grey, then going over with a calligraphy pen -- I can have people help that way).

[*Diane*]

Okay, just to let you know how much of an inspiration you are, I am in the process of printing as we speak. :) Thanks, sweet friend!

[Jaci]

Diane that's awesome! I can't wait to see how they turn out :)

heather, you are cutting them yourself? If so, that's a great idea about the border (though you don't need a border if Kinko's is going to cut them).