I had the chance to meet with Jordin and I was fascinated with her beautiful custom wedding invitations.  She was kind enough to share some advice for all the brides to be!

Hi, everyone! My name is Jordin, and I am the owner of Unica Forma, a stationery boutique in Columbus, Ohio. Wes wanted me to come on here and share some of my most frequently asked questions as a stationer, and give some advice to his readers, so I am going to ahead and dive right in!

1. When should I send out invitations and save the dates?
   Save the dates typically go out six to eight months before the wedding. These can include your wedding website (and should, if you have one and are ready to share it) to give guests as much information as possible. Invitations typically go out six to eight weeks before the wedding; however, if you are having a destination wedding it is recommended that you send out invitations at least 3 months ahead of time. I usually recommend sending everything out a big before these deadlines. Guests aren’t going to be mad about having “too much time to plan” for your wedding, but if you send the notice out too late they might already have made commitments elsewhere.
   

(Andrew Weeks Photography)^

1. When should I have my guests RSVP?
   Find out when your caterer or venue needs a final headcount and do at least before then. You 100% will have to reach out to people on your guest list that do not reply yes or no to find out if they are coming or not. So give yourself enough time to do that and get the information to the appropriate vendors.
   

1. How do I politely tell my guests “no kids allowed”?
   There are a few ways you can do this. Traditionally, you would have the outer envelope addressed to the home and the inner envelopes include the names of the guests invited. Buuuuuut, a lot of times this isn’t clear enough. You can put “adult only reception to follow” where the invitation typically says “reception to follow”. This is also something you will want to reiterate on your wedding website.

   

2. How do I inform guests about our dress code?
   For a formal affair, this information typically goes on the bottom right corner of the invitation card. You can also direct your guests to your wedding website and include this information there. (Wedding websites are pretty crucial now-a-days).
   
3. Can I put my registry information on our invitations?
   To put it bluntly: no. It is still considered to be impolite to include your registry information on your wedding invitations. It implies that gifts are mandatory, and that is a no-no. You can put this information on your wedding website, and tell your closest friends and family members. They will relay the message to other guests.

   

4. When should I order my invitations if I am getting them custom designed?
   For Unica Forma, we require at least a month of work/production/ship time. Depending on how quickly and thoroughly you maneuver through our design process and give feedback, that portion of the timeline can be short. Printing styles and assembly will be the biggest factors on your stationery timeline. Flat printing can be produced quickly, while letterpress, foil stamped and engraved wedding invitations require custom plates to be made and hand fed through the printer to be produced.

If you order invitations that require assembly you will also have to consider this into your timeline too. Envelope liners require an extra 2 days for assembly, while pockets will add an extra 3.

It is best to talk to your designer about your specific order and get a timeline from them! Our clients always have about a 4 day time-frame of when they will receive their invitation suite!

1. Is it okay to use preprinted labels?
   No. You are sending the message to your guests that you are just trying to get this process over with. This is the first part of your wedding and planning your guests will see. The labels are not proper and do not reflect your style or the style of your wedding.

   If you want to save money, try hand writing the addresses yourself, or gather your bridesmaids together and have them help you one weekend. It will be a good bonding time and hand-written envelopes show that you care to make your wedding a memorable occasion.

   

1. Do I need to tell my guests that there won’t be a formal, sit down dinner?
   Yes. Give the guests all the information they need. On an insert card or on the wedding website you can indicate that light refreshments and appetizers will be served and when. I always encourage my clients to also spread the word about this by word of mouth.
   
2. How do guests choose their dinner option on the invitation?
   If your caterer needs to know a count ahead of time, you should include this portion on the RSVP cards. There are a few ways you can word this, the following is our most popular option:

   Please initial an entrée choice for each guest below:
   Chicken: ____
   Beef: ____
   Vegetarian: ____

   This is a sure way to know who ordered what rather than know how many of each entrée to cook. (Helps with serving purposes).

I hope you found this Q&A session helpful, and if you have any other questions, feel free to reach out! If you are interested in working with Unica Forma on your custom wedding invitations, you can find us at www.unicaforma.com

Stop by Jordin’s website to learn more about custom wedding invitations and stationary designs.

Also stop by my website to inquire about your professional wedding photography needs!

http://www.wesleyforbesphotography.

info@wesleyforbesphotography.com