Tips for Printing Invitations at Home

Wedding invitations are one of the most popular DIY projects among brides. It’s much more cheaper than having them printed at a professional printer. Here are some tips for printing invitations at home.

Define a budget

Set a budget you can work within. You’ll save money with printing at home, but you still have to pay for ink and paper.

Pick a wedding style

Decide on a wedding style. Talk to your fiance about colors and wedding theme. Your invitations will be your guests’ first glimpse at your wedding – they should represent your vision of the special day.

Pick a printer-friendly design

Design should be slightly larger than the final cut size – this is called ‘bleed’. Standard bleed size is 1/8 of an inch, which means that the size of your 5×7 invitations will actually be 5.25×7.25 inches. When you cut your invitations, you’ll cut through the bleed – that way there will be no white edges around your invitation. Design should also have trim marks – for easy cutting.

Pick a paper

Don’t try to save money on your paper. You don’t want to end up with invitations that look cheap. If you are ordering paper stocks online be sure to ask for samples before you purchase – it’s always a good idea to test a sheet through the printer. Also, check out our post about paper types and how to choose the best one for your invitations.

Pick envelopes

For a classic look choose white envelopes. For that extra little ‘pop’ choose a color that matches your invitations. Don’t leave envelopes until the last minute. Don’t pick too dark color – address won’t show.

Plan your ink usage

Consider how much ink you’ll need. If you have a colored background you’ll use a lot of ink – that will affect the cost of your invitations.

Play with your printer

Make sure that your home printer is up to the job. Play with different printer settings until you find the one that works best for you. If you are printing double-sided invites, be sure to check does this function works on your printer.

Test print

Run a test print. Print on different types of paper. Print on different paper colors. Be sure to know what works best before you start the final printing process.

Then print away

Adjust the printer guides. Don’t put too much paper at once. Sit by the printer while the invitations are printing. Make sure that you have extra paper – you’ll make some mistakes. Have fun!

Take your time

Be patient! Printing takes longer than most people think. Double the amount of time you think you’ll need to get your invitations done.

Cut your invites

Don’t use scissors. Purchase a paper cutter, exact-o knife or a rotary cutter – that will give you a clean and even cut.

One last thing – mailing

Assemble your invitation suite. Take it to the post office and have it weighed to find out what your postage will cost. If your suite is too bulky and you’re worried about envelope not staying sealed – send it to yourself first. Address your invitations. Finally, stick them in the mail and send them out!

Do you have any tips for printing invitations at home? Write them in comments!

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