When it comes to cutting expenses from your already growing wedding budget, a great way to save a few dollars is to make your own wedding invitations.

There are so many great ideas out there on the internet and cheap, readily available DIY kits, for even the most imagination challenged person to be able to create some stunning DIY wedding invites from their living room.

There are a few options when it comes to DIY wedding invitations. You can opt to create the entire design from scratch yourself using a program like Microsoft Publisher or Adobe inDesign. However this software isn’t cheap and if you’re only going to be using it once then the expense isn’t really justifiable.

In my opinion the best DIY wedding invitation ideas are those that not only save you money but don’t have you pulling your hair out wrangling with a piece of computer software which you don’t have time to learn to use, or figuring out how to align the font in just the right place so everything will be perfectly centred!

This is where DIY wedding invitation kits come in. You can buy a pre-prepared template and design and with a few simple steps you can customise them with all your wedding details then print them out from your home computer or take them to a local print shop and have them printed out professional for only a few cents!

There are wedding invitation kits ranging from very basic designs to kits including ribbons and other elegant accessories to make your invites seem as though they cost hundreds from a professional designer!

You can buy different size kits depending on how many guests you will be inviting. A usual package will contain 25 invitations with envelopes, and depending on what kind of kit you purchase, RSVP cards with envelopes and of course enough ribbons and accessories for each invite. These DIY kits cost a fraction of the price of professional invitations starting anywhere from $25 per set. Take a look at some examples below…

Here are a few of my favourites

Masterpiece Studios Brown Swirl Folder Invitation & Note Card Kit

This elegant invitation kit includes:

• 25 x Invitations
• 25 x Lined Envelopes
• 25 x Folders
• 25 x Note Cards & Envelopes
• 25 x Bonus Seals

Each invitation is 5.5″ x 7.75″ and the note cards are 4.875″ x 3.375″

They are Inkjet and Laser printer compatible so are perfect to print out from your home computer.

Wilton Pearlized Flourish Invitation Kit

This modern and stylish invitation kit includes:

• 25 x Invitations & Envelopes
• 25 x Reply Cards & Envelopes
• 25 x Belly Bands
• 25 x Ribbons
• 25 x Pre-tied Bows with Pearl Studs
• 25 x Adhesives
• 6 x Test Sheets

The invitations come in a lovely White & Purple colour scheme which will match perfectly with many wedding themes.

Wilton Pressed Floral Lavender Wedding Invitation Kits

This wedding invitation kit includes:

• 50 x Invitations & Envelopes
• 50 x Reply Cards & Envelopes
• 50 x Handmade Paper Wraps
• Pre-tied Bows & Adhesives
• Ribbons
• 3 x Test Sheets

These invitations are a soft yellow colour which is a great neutral tone to go with any colour scheme. The Invitations measure 5.5″ x 8.5″ and the Reply Cards measure 5.5″ x 4.25″

Wilton Vintage Ivy Wedding Invitation Kits

These stylish wedding invite kit includes:

• 25 x Invitations & Envelopes
• 25 x Reply Cards & Envelopes
• 50 x All Purpose Cards
• Ribbons
• Pre-tied Bows & Adhesives
• 3 x Test Sheets

The invitation is displayed on one side of the folder and the accessory cards are tucked into the pocket on the opposite side of these ivory and brown invitations.

Cathy’s Concepts Premium Self Mailer Invitation Kit

This quality invitation kit includes:

• 25 x Invitations & Envelopes
• 25 x Reply Cards & Envelopes
• 25 x Ribbons
• Test Sheets
• Instructions & Template Information Details

These cream and chocolate invitations measure 5″ x 7″ and are made from #80 cardstock.

A wedding is arguably one of the most important moments in a woman’s life. And even though men usually downplay the role of their weddings, they’re usually important to them too. Everyone involved wants it to be a one-time occurrence, so it’s worth it to spend many hours of planning and preparation to make it a remarkable day to remember.

But not everyone has the money to make their wedding as lavish as they’d like. Despite what you see on TV and in magazines, most people have limited wedding budgets. So, if money can be saved on any aspect of the big event, it can make a difference. If your parents are paying for the wedding; they’ll definitely appreciate it if you save them some money. And if you’re paying for it yourself, then any savings will really hit home. After all, no one wants to begin their marriage by being seriously in debt!

Thankfully, you don’t have to sacrifice the integrity of your wedding day just to save money. With the help of some judicious shopping and following the suggestions below, you can have a terrific wedding or commitment ceremony at  a price that won’t make you wish you had eloped:

Make your own wedding invitations
In years gone by, you would have been laughed at (or pitied) if you wanted to make your own wedding invitations. But nowadays handmade wedding invitations are actually quite chic. Not really a crafty person? Don’t worry. There are an array of free printable wedding invitations that you can download and produce on your home printer. If you want to keep them simple, you can just print and mail them. But if you’re feeling more creative, you can decorate them with purchased three-dimensional embellishments, ribbons, vellum and other extras. As long as you keep them looking clean and classy, just about any style is fair game.

Make your own wedding favors
Try giving your guests something handmade, instead of pricey store-bought wedding favors. Free wedding scrapbook paper can be used to make elegant origami paper sculptures, which will be guaranteed to be one-of-a-kind. If you’ve never made origami sculptures before, don’t worry. There are many wonderful origami templates available for no charge on the web. Make sure you begin well before the wedding, though, since it will probably take a while to generate enough sculptures. To accelerate the process, get your bridesmaids and family in on the act.

If origami wedding favors don’t suit your style, you can use the wedding scrapbook paper and a gratis envelope template available on the Internet to make custom packages for Jordan almonds or even bird seed for your guests to toss as you depart the church or wherever you’re holding the wedding.

If you’re creative, I’m sure you can find many other techniques to cut corners that won’t diminish the ambiance of your special day. In fact, if you decide to “go handmade,” chances are you’ll only add to the charm of your wedding. The Internet is full of money-saving ideas and projects for wedding ceremonies and receptions, so some online research done beforehand can save you quite a bit. that way, when your family is established decades from now, you’ll be able to tell your kids that your wedding was both cost-effective and fashionable.

Wedding invitations can be a big decision, even though you might think something so small would probably be fairly insignificant, your wedding invitation sets the tone for your whole wedding. If your guests receive a hand written supermarket piece of paper they are probably expecting a very casual affair, where as if they receive a immaculately designed and professionally printed invitation set complete with info sheet and stamped RSVP cards then they would surely see that you’ve gone to a lot of expense therefore your wedding is expected to be a more up market affair.

Just because you choose to have DIY wedding invitations doesn’t mean they have to look second rate. There are literally thousands of couples who have made their own wedding invites that look professionally made, so don’t despair if you haven’t got the budget to pay for custom designed invites!

Here is a great example of a couple who hand made their invitations, yet they still looked professionally made!

If you’re wondering how to make that fabulous pocket fold to store your invitation bits and pieces have a look below for some detailed DIY instructions.

Pocketfold invitations are very popular at the moment, but purchasing them in any great number can get very costly. Making them yourself is a great alternative if you have a strict budget and plenty of time up your sleeves before it’s time to send out the invites. This pocket-fold is constructed from a single sheet of 30cm x 30cm scrapbook card and cost me less than 40¢ to make. You’ll need to visit your local wedding supplies shop, or stationery outlet to get the supplies you need. It definitely makes a difference using good quality card or paper and accessories. The best way to make your DIY wedding invitations look good is to use the best wedding stationery that you can afford.

1. Start with your sheet of 30cm x 30cm card or paper and use a paper cutter to cut it down to 17.5cm x30cm. Keep the remaining piece for making the pocket.
2. Using a Scor-Pal, or a scoring blade and a straight edge, score the paper at 6cm and19cm.
3. Fold along the score lines and use a bone folder to create a crisp crease. Voila! You have the outer folder!
4. To make the pocket, take the remaining 12.5cm x30cm piece of card stock and cut a 9cmx19cm rectangle.
5. Score the rectangle at 1cm on both 9cm sides, and at one of the 19cm sides.
6. To get a nice, clean fold without overlapping, you have to miter the corner. To do this, take your scissors and cut the two bottom corners (where the score lines intersect) at an angle.
7. Fold in the three sides. The edges of your mitered corners should meet, but not overlap.
8. Apply double-sided tape to the 1cm sides.
9. Adhere the pocket to the inside of the folder.
10. Decorate the pocketfold with a strip of paper to create a bellyband to hold it all closed.

And there you have it! One pocketfold ready to house your wedding invitation and accompanying inserts.

Photo Wedding Invitations

What better way to personalize your invitations than by making photo wedding invitations? A picture of you and your other half would be a nice change for your guests to receive, rather than a ‘stock standard’ printed invitation.

If you are having engagement photos taken professionally you won’t even have to go to the expense of another professional photo shoot, as the engagement pictures are perfect for your invitations.

If you can get the photos in digital format then it makes it easy to send to your invitation designer to integrate into the whole invitation theme. If you only have a hard copy, don’t worry as designers can still work with this by scanning it into a digital format.

If you’re on a budget (as most brides are) then you might like to make your photo invitations yourself. Ask a friend or family member with a good quality digital (SLR is best) camera to take some photos for you. If you’ve already got a picture of the two of you that you love, then great! You’re one step ahead.

Once you have your photo in digital format on your computer, simply insert it into whatever software you’re using and continue with the design just like you would any other wedding invitation.

If you’ve decided to make your own wedding invites you might be stuck on deciding the perfect wording for wedding invitations. There are many good websites on the internet that are full of love poems, traditional wedding etiquette invitation wording and tons of funky ideas to make your invites special and unique.