My First Completed DIY Project: Save the Date Postcards!

Okay, so this post isn't going to "wow" some of you more craft-savvy hive members. But darnit, I'm proud of myself! I successfully printed off 85 save the date postcards and sent the little boogers on their way. And only a few were "casualties" of my first official DIY wedding project. Not bad, eh? I bought my postcards from Etsy seller turnofthecenturies who offered to create a design with our information and print them for an extra $30. But I decided that I could manage on my own and save the extra money. Here's the blank canvas I had to transform:

I started off by visiting Dafont.com to find some unique (& free!) fonts that would suit the feel of the postcard. I ended up choosing "Scriptina" for the main font and "Champagne & Limousine" for the supplementary font (which was the closest I could get to resembling the font on the front of the card). I chose to do our names & website info in the same green from the front of the card and the rest of the type in black. As it turned out, my FMIL's printer wouldn't print in black even though the cartridge is full. She and I spent about an hour trying to figure out why it was doing this to no avail. I finally decided to use the 80% grey option and it worked perfectly to give a more "antiquish" look to the printing! I didn't use any fancy equipment for the STDs, just good ol' Microsoft Word.

The formatting took FOREVER. I'm no whiz with a computer, so it was just a lot of trial and error. I basically held the real postcard up to the screen of the computer while in 100% view mode to roughly measure the card (I didn't have any other measuring devices handy at the moment). It ended up being a great jumping off point! I printed my trial runs using scrap paper and then placed the paper on top of a postcard to see if it was aligned correctly. When I was sure I had it perfect, I fed the first card through (remembering to turn it upside down and aligned on the right side because that's the way it prints!).

But alas, my second obstacle awaited! Although the alignment was on point, the printer chose that moment to start running out of ink! It figures. So I had to abandon my efforts and resume the task at hand the next day (after saving the template of course!). When I finally restocked the ink (thanks to FMIL Lab beating me to the store after work and graciously buying replacement cartridges), I began hand-feeding the postcards into the printer 10 cards at a time. In no time at all I had these simple little beauties:

I then began the tedious task of hand-addressing each invite. Because many of the guests are couples, I ended up using way less than the total 100 postcards I ordered. But it's better to have some left over than not have enough! The extras came in handy for the "boo-boos" and as a keepsake for our wedding scrapbook!

I hand-delivered* as many of the postcards as possible to save on postage costs (most of them to local family and co-workers). Because my small town's post office apparently doesn't operate at times when people can actually stop in *cough*Saturday afternoon*cough*, I'm going to have to mail the rest of them this week. But at least postcards are cheap to mail at $.28 a piece! Woo-hoo! I just hope the post office has a semi-cute stamp for them since the only ones I saw online at that rate have a polar bear on them (not that polar bears aren't cute, but they're not exactly wedding material).

Cost Breakdown!

Postcards: $.85 x 100 = $85.00 (down from $2 each b/c I bought in bulk!)
Shipping to me: $5.00
Postage: $.28 x 50 = $14.00

Grand Total $104 \ 100 = $1.04 each
ACTUAL Total: $104 \ 85 = $1.22 each

*Yes, I said "hand"-something 3 times in this post. haha

And the Winner for Mr. & Miss Lab's Save the Date is...

The vintage Savannah postcard! They'll be customized with our information on the back, a circle around the square we're getting married at in the front, and will be super easy to send (just a stamp and they're off!).

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The voting was very close between the Funky & Fun and this one. In fact, the Pose Print came in first with 40% while the postcard garnered 38% of the votes. I really appreciate everyone helping me make a timely decision.

I ended up going with this choice for a few reasons. First off, I was already leaning towards it before the voting even began. I was just wanting people to ease my mind on the idea of such a different STD. Then, I found out right after I made the post that the seller was willing to negotiate the price! As soon as I found them on Etsy, I sent a message to let her know that I was on a tight budget and she wrote back to say that because I was ordering so many, she could offer them at $.85 each! So that definitely helped seal the deal.

Finally, some of you voters gave me a good idea on how to essentially have all three designs throughout the wedding process! I get the postcard for the STD, I can use the Pose Print for a shower or party invite (which does seem more appropriate), and I can use the damask print for the actual invites and other wedding paper (menu, program, etc)! Having my cake and eating it, too! ;)

So hive, thank you for all the help! I'm sure I'll be coming to you many more times before November. Does anyone else have important decisions that they couldn't make without the hive's help?

Save the Date Options

We've already hit our 6 month mark on the wedding countdown. Because only 2 people on our guest list live in our wedding city, we need to send out STDs* to inform friends and family of our "destination wedding" SOON. But I keep going back and forth on possible STD options. How can something that's supposed to be so simple be so hard to pick out? I'm definitely gonna need the hive's help on this one.

I've been bored at home all day because of the down time between the end of classes/work and my internships. I took this rare free time as an opportunity to narrow down the choices to 3 (for now). Here they are!

Option 1: Simple & Classic

This option would ideally coordinate with the rest of the wedding paper details. Because a damask print will be incorporated in the wedding decor, why not use it on all the wedding correspondence? This option would also be perfect for incorporating an engagement photo. The particular design shown is only $16 for a digital file and I could print them anywhere, making it the cheapest option by far.

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Option 2: Wedding City/Venue Theme

With this I would incorporate the city of Savannah or our venues. Maybe a train motif to symbolize Savannah Station? Or a postcard like this one from Etsy's turnofthecenturies that features Savannah's historic squares where we'll be married? I could customize the back with the essential information myself.

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Option 3: Funky & Fun

But who says the STDs have to incorporate a detail from the wedding or its city at all? Maybe they can just be full of personality and completely different from all of the other wedding stationary? This is a mock up of a Pose Print STD featuring me and Mr. Lab!

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I love each one for different reasons and can't choose by myself! So hive, which one do YOU think I should choose?

[Poll]

Option 1: Simple & Classic
Option 2: Wedding City/Venue Theme
Option 3: Funky & Fun
Option 4: None of the above. I have a great idea for a STD that fits your "Romantic Southern Charm" theme and will explain/post a link in the comment section!

*I never fail to let out a giggle when abbreviating save the date!