DIY Wedding Invitations

Gocco Printers

ccoyle — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 14:13:44 +0000

Even though Gocco Printers are no longer made, you can find them online and in some stores. They are great little machines that produce really professional looking results. You burn a film with your design, apply ink to the film and then press your paper and the film together in the machine. You can get many prints out of one ink application (and the film will last forever) so it’s not only a lot of fun, it’s also a very affordable alternative.

Image Transfers

ccoyle — Thu, 30 Oct 2008 15:53:48 +0000

To get a really nice, antique look, use image transfer to create your invitations. I think this looks especially nice when you include a photo in the transfer. Tilano makes kits for transferring on a variety of surfaces, or use your inkjet and print your design onto copier transparency film (not the one for inkjets, very important), then immediately transfer it onto the card with the help of a brayer.

Use Old Invitations And Paper Scraps

ccoyle — Tue, 28 Oct 2008 14:29:00 +0000

I always save scraps of paper – Christmas cards, greeting cards, Kleenex boxes – anything with a nice design element, or anything that comes on an especially nice paper (handmade, etc.). And then, when I want to make greeting cards or invitations, I use them by cutting out shapes where I stamp my text or design, and glue them to a standard size card. Remember that even if the entire front of a card is printed with text you don’t want, you can always use the back if you like the card stock. If you’re not a paper collector like me, go to paper stores or manufacturers and ask if they have a “scrap box”. Many do and are happy to let you have the pieces they won’t use for free. It does take a bit of time to put invitations together this way, but it’s a lot of fun, they will most certainly be unique, AND you’re helping the environment by reusing and repurposing materials.

Rubber Stamp Designs

ccoyle — Mon, 27 Oct 2008 16:16:41 +0000

Making your own design using rubber stamps is a fun and creative way to add a personal touch to your invitations. Print the text portion of the invite first, and then do the stamping (you don’t want stamped ink smeared all over the inside of your printer, nor all over the cards). There are tons of cute stamps and fun ink colors to choose from (my favorite is metallic anything).

Inkjet Invitations

ccoyle — Sat, 25 Oct 2008 14:35:59 +0000

These days it’s so easy to make your own invitations. Many companies sell blank cards, card with a design already on it, and entire kits including save-the-date, programs etc. and all you have to do is the layout on your computer and print it. I’ve also seen lately that some sell the entire design, which you download as a pdf, change the wording and print, which is great, since there is no limit to how many you can make that way.