A great invitation is the first order of business when planning a party. And, it's the first thing your guests will see to let them know they are invited to your party. So, shouldn't an invitation be as special, personal and as great as the party is going to be? Let your guests know they are being invited to the bash of the summer, the dinner party of the year or the first birthday of many with the perfect invitation.
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Making your own homemade invitation means no searching to find the perfect one. When you make your own invitation, you get exactly what you want. You get to make what you want and how you want it using colors, papers and words. You can express yourself using creativity and style you never knew you had!
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And, every invitation you make is always one of a kind!
Not only is it fun to make homemade invitations, but it is also cost-effective. Most of the time it is much less expensive to make your own rather than buy ready-made invitations or make your own online. Enlist the help of your family and make it a fun evening of invitation making.
You don't need a bunch of fancy tools to make great invitations either. All you really need is a good pair of scissors, a couple different papers, a paper-cutter, adhesive, maybe some ribbon and a little creativity!
To create the perfect invitation for your event, just follow these easy steps and tips, and you'll be on your way to beautiful homemade invitations...
1. Determine the theme
Identifying whether the party is for a birthday, anniversary, shower or house-warming should obviously be the first step in not only designing the invitation, but also planning the party. This is by far the easiest step in creating an invitation, but a vital one. Not only does the theme mean what the party is for, but it also means what the overall design of the invitation will look like. You wouldn't want to design an invitation that looks like it's for a 1st birthday party when it's actually for a bridal shower.
2. Decide on a color palette
Selecting a color scheme for your invitation is the next step in the design process. This also contributes to the style of your invitation. Color plays a big part in the overall look of your invitation, so getting it just right is very important. When choosing colors you need to first think about who or what the event is for. If the party is for a young woman turning 30, then design the invitation depending on her personality. Think about whether she is fun, out-going and full of spirit, or if she is more relaxed and simple. If she is more fun and out-going, then you would want to choose colors that portray that, such as a bright pink and black color scheme with maybe a zebra print paper. But if she is more relaxed and simple, then it would be a good idea to either choose a light floral scheme or maybe even a simple black and white scheme.
The same thing goes if you are planning a party for no particular person, such as a Super Bowl party or a summer get-together. You need to decide colors depending on the theme. For a Super Bowl party, obvious colors would be the playing team's colors. For a summer get-together, a fun red and white checkerboard design would fit perfectly with a picnic theme.
3. Choose your style
A style for an invitation basically means the overall layout and design of the invitation. Decide if you're going to use lots of layers or maybe a ribbon or even a translucent text sheet. Also decide if your layout is going to be vertical, horizontal or a folded card style. You can design some great invitations using any layout. For a vertical design, using a lot of layers works great. Adding a ribbon either at the top or through the middle looks beautiful too. For a horizontal design, try off-centering your text sheet to the right and adding a strip of printed paper to the left side. The offset text and the print sheet balance each other out and create a really great look. A card style invitation looks great for any party and there are a lot of design options. Layer the front of it with different papers and add a ribbon, or use some punches and create a beautiful eyelet trimmed edge. The possibilities are endless!
Before going to the store to pick out the papers you will use, sit down and sketch out what you think the invitation should look like, or what you want it to look like. Once you are at the store, it is easier to choose papers if you know what the overall design is going to look like. You can even make a few different sketches and then when you are picking the papers, you may end up liking the design more of one sketch rather than another. Keep your options open and look online and in magazines and books for inspiration.
4. Pick your papers
Now that you've chosen the style and layout of your invitation, the next step is to pick out the papers you will be using to assemble it. Picking the papers you are going to use goes right along with choosing your color palette. Once you have decided on the colors you want to use, you just need to actually find those colors on paper. You can find thousands of scrapbooking papers in sizes 8-1/2" x 11" and 12" x 12" at any craft or scrapbooking store or even online. The prices are very reasonable starting at about .29 a sheet and going up to .00 a sheet depending on the type of paper. And, you can usually get 2-3 invitations out of one sheet of paper. Watch for sales on scrapbooking papers. Stock up when you find one and the next time you need an invitation, you may already have enough paper!
If you plan on using a patterned or print sheet of paper with your invitation, then choose that first. You can choose the other colors of cardstock for your invitation from within that pattern. Choose a couple different colored sheets because layers look great. Try lighter shades and darker shades and determine which looks best with your pattern and the style you've chosen for your invitation. Don't forget the text sheet, which is usually a white or cream cardstock, but can also be a light shade of a color that is readable when printed with black ink. You can also use a translucent paper on your invitation which works well as an overlay sheet or directly as the text sheet.
5. Decide if you will use embellishments
Once you have chosen your papers, decide if you want to add embellishments to your invitation. Embellishments can include metal brads, gemstones, ribbons, stickers and more. Sometimes an invitation looks great without using embellishments, but then again you may think there is just something missing. If you want to use a ribbon, chose a color that coordinates with the rest of the colors or pattern. If you are using a translucent sheet, consider using a ribbon or some metal brads to attach it to the rest of your papers.
6. Write the text of your invitation
When writing the text or wording for your invitation, it is helpful to use a computer program, which is quick and easy. Or, you can always hand-write each invitation using calligraphy which adds a beautiful touch, but is very time-consuming. If you are going to use a computer program then decide if you need to print in a landscape or portrait layout. Landscape means horizontal and portrait means vertical. You can either do a page set-up using different margins and columns to create equal text boxes or you can eyeball it and test print to see if it is right.
When determining wording for your invitation, think about whether you want it straight to the point or if you want to add a little fun saying or quote in too. Remember to include who or what the party is for, when the party is, the time, the location and a "respond to" or RSVP name and phone number and/or email. Make the text eye-catching. Use fonts that fit the look and style of your invitation. Sometimes a large round font looks best with a child's invitation using fun patterned paper, but an elegant cursive font accentuates the beauty of a timeless bridal shower invitation. It also looks great when you use two different fonts. Be sure that the fonts blend well with each other. Try using a print font for the main body of the text and a cursive font for the name or event.
Once you have written the text, you need to test print it. Test print on inexpensive printer paper rather than your more expensive cardstock. Once you know it is correct, print all the text sheets at one time so they are complete.
7. Cut all papers to size
The next step in creating your invitation is to cut all papers down to the size they will be used. Most invitations overall size is 5-1/2" x 8" which is the size when one 8-1/2" x 11" sheet of cardstock is cut in half. Remember that you will get two invitations from each full sheet of paper. Depending on the style and layout of your invitation, you will need reveals or margins between the layers. Proportion is key to making an invitation look perfect. A good reveal size is between 1/4" and 3/8". In some cases, a 1/2" reveal looks best.
Make one complete invitation before cutting all the papers to size to make sure it looks exactly as you planned. You may need to tweak a size here or there and it is much easier to do on one sheet rather than multiple sheets. Once you know each layer is the right size, it is a good idea to cut all your papers down before assembling them. This makes the assembly process go much quicker.
8. Assemble your invitations
This is the fun step in creating an invitation! When assembling your invitations, be sure to use an appropriate adhesive. Suggestions are a glue stick, glue rollers, or permanent mounting squares. The mounting squares work well because they are repositionable for a short time and they are available in either white or clear. The clear is great to use when you need to attach a translucent paper because it is basically invisible.
Be sure to keep all layers centered and keep all reveals the same. Don't get sloppy. If you are using embellishments or ribbons, this is the time to add them. If you are tying a bow, make sure it looks crisp, not messy. You can look online to find help and instructions on tying a perfect bow.
Now that you've made your homemade invitation, it's time to hand them out! What a great surprise it will be for all the guests to find a beautiful handmade invitation waiting for them in their mailbox! You can just sit back and wait for the compliments to start rolling in. Oh, and maybe you should start planning the rest of the party now too!
How to Make Your Own Invitations
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