Invitations you order online and from invitation books are mass-produced, which is why they can sometimes cost less than custom, hand-crafted invitations. But you get what you see…there is little ability to customize them. You can’t pick and choose the elements you like from different invitations and put them together into “the perfect” design. Yes, you can personalize the details or change the fonts, but you’re stuck with the papers and design elements you see in the sample.

By comparison, when you order invitations from the Invitation Maven, you will get EXACTLY what you want. If you see a graphic element from one invitation but want to change the color scheme, I can do that. If you like the ribbon treatment from one invitation but the shape and papers from another, I can create an invitation that incorporates both elements. My job is to create “the perfect” invitation for your event.

I can work within any budget to design a unique and one-of-a-kind invitation that expresses your personality and sets the tone for your event. So “custom” does not have to be more expensive. To me it means giving my clients exactly what they want at the best price possible.

One of the things my clients struggle with is how to address the invitations we’ve so painstakingly created together. I provide an easy-to-use spreadsheet to assist in the process, but as you enter the names in whatever program you use, think about how you want the envelopes addressed. The primary question you need to answer is: Is your event formal or casual? The answer to this question will determine how you should address the invitations.

Here are some examples:

FORMAL

If married, use titles followed by husband’s first and last name:
Mr. and Mrs. John Doe

If the husband is a Doctor or other official, replace the generic “Mr.” with his title:
Dr. and Mrs. John Doe
Judge and Mrs. John Doe

If the wife is a Doctor or other official, replace the “Mrs.” with her title and include her first name:
Mr. John and Dr. Jane Doe
Mr. John and Honorable Jane Doe

If two adults are living together but are not married, list their names separately, with the woman’s name first:
Ms. Jane Smith and Mr. John Doe

If you are addressing the invitation to a single adult woman:
Ms. Jane Doe

If you are addressing the invitation to a single adult man:
Mr. John Doe

If you are addressing the invitation to a family with minor children:
Mr. and Mrs. John Doe
Master Jason and Miss Melinda Doe

If a parent and an adult child are living together, they would be listed on separate lines so as not to infer they are married:
Ms. Jane Doe
Mr. Jason Doe

CASUAL

If married, use the wife’s and husband’s first names, with wife listed first, so that husband’s name is not separated from his last name:
Jane and John Doe

If two adults are living together, list names separately:
Jane Smith and John Doe 

If you are addressing the invitation to a single adult female:
Jane Doe

If you are addressing the invitation to a single adult male:
John Doe

If you are addressing the invitation to a family with minor children:
Jane and John Doe
Jason and Melinda (it’s OK to just list first names of children)

If a parent and an adult child are living together, they would be listed on separate lines so as not to infer they are married:
Jane Doe
Jason Doe

One thing to remember is that these examples are just that: examples. What I would recommend to you if you were my client is to do what makes you most comfortable. The invitation sets the tone for the event, but part of setting the tone includes reflecting your personal style in how the invitations are addressed.

March 12, 2010

I had a meeting with a new client yesterday. We are designing her son’s bar mitzvah invitation. We spent a lot of time looking at different paper and cardstock options in a myriad of colors, as well as different fonts and invitation styles. But she kept gravitating toward two styles because, as she put it, “they are different.” And different they are! That’s what you get when you order a custom invitation from The Invitation Maven! Something different. Even if the invitation you like is based on one I’ve done before, each one is truly different because most clients change the paper and ink colors, fonts and sometimes even the graphic. But the end result is always the exact invitation my client wants. And that is always something different than what came before.

I am currently working on a custom wedding invitation for a beautiful couple in Ontario…Canada. I live in Los Angeles. One might thing that making invitations for people who live on the other side of the country, not to mention in a different country, can pose some logistical issues, but with the internet and websites, those issues are minimized.

In order to demonstrate the quality of my invitations as well as the range of papers and fonts I use and the styles I design, I sent this couple samples of invitations I’ve made for other clients. We then began a dialogue via email. My client sent me photos of invitation styles they liked and described the elements they wanted to include, and I got to work designing their perfect invitation. Within a few days, I designed exactly what they wanted, and from that I could then make an actual prototype.

I am sending their prototype in the mail today! I can’t wait for them to open the package to see how their ideas have translated into the perfect wedding invitation. As soon as we finalize all the invitation details, I’ll post it in my invitation gallery.

So I was at the Showcase of the Hall event at Bell Canyon, California last Thursday. It’s a vendor showcase for people involved in all aspects of planning a party. There were decorations specialists, lots of caterers, DJs and entertainment vendors, photographers, and party planners, but I was the only custom invitation designer there. I received many compliments on my creativity, style and quality.

What was really amazing was that a few people came up to me because they noticed invitations they had received as guests. They commented on how beautiful they were. It feels good to make an impression that lasts over time. Not just for me, but more importantly for my clients. When people recall my invitation, they also usually recall a memorable event that they attended, and that’s the focus of what I do for my clients.

It’s my philosophy that the party starts when the invitation arrives in the mail. But sometimes, even more important is the impression people take with them after they leave. If the party is memorable, and I helped make that happen for my client by setting the tone up front, then I consider my job well done.

I met the most wonderful couple today! Courtney and Jeff were introduced to me by my friend Alison and we hit it off right away. They told me that they’re looking for a wedding invitation to match the feel of their outdoor affair which is coming up this fall. Their wedding is being held at the lovely Orcutt Ranch in West Hills, CA (http://www.laparks.org/dos/horticulture/orcuttranch.htm), and they want to incorporate natural earthtones of green, brown and cream. These are not what first come to mind as your standard wedding colors, so the challenge will be to design with unconventional combinations of papers and inks to create their perfect wedding invitation.

Courtney and Jeff are having an outdoor wedding because they want a casual and intimate affair. They also describe themselves as eclectic. This opens up a lot of design options for their invitations. Not only do their preferred colors lend themselves to imparting an outdoorsy theme, but their invitation can also reflect their fun personalities and incorporate design elements that are a little different than the every day wedding invitation.

The beauty of a custom-designed wedding invitation (or any invitation for that matter) is that I can take elements that some may think would never “go together” and create an amazing design that is as perfect a fit as my clients. People like Courtney and Jeff would never be able to find what they are looking for in a standard wedding invitation book. No one would ever think to create such a thing, unless they knew Courtney and Jeff. During our meetings, Courtney, Jeff and I get to brainstorm. I then get to interpret their ideas into exactly what they want.

Now that Leslie has told me what her “dream invitation” for her daughter’s bat mitzvah should look like, I’ve got a lot to work with. She told me that she can’t wait to see the prototype. I’m guessing it will take about a week to make it, but I know she’ll be thrilled once she sees it.

A lot of people are “visual” learners. I’m one of them. We need to see what we’re talking about. We sometimes have trouble imagining what the papers will look like together, or how the fonts and ink colors will coordinate with each other to give us the feeling we want in the invitation.

That’s why the prototype is such an important part of the process. Leslie will get to SEE, TOUCH and FEEL what the invitation will look like, and she will be the first one to experience what her guests will experience when they open the envelope to Paige’s invitation.

I just had my first meeting with Leslie and her daughter Paige to start designing Paige’s bat mitzvah invitation. Most of my clients are either observant and want a traditional bat mitzvah invitation, or are more secular and want the invitation to reflect the theme of the party. Well Leslie and Paige want both. This is an interesting challenge, and is one that I relish.

When guests open their envelopes, the invitation that’s inside sets the tone for the entire event. That’s why it’s important to design an invitation that will not only make the guest want to attend that bat mitzvah, but excites my client as well. I love pulling in traditional elements of Judaism into the bar and bat mitzvah invitations I design, but it’s also fun to reflect my client’s personal style.

What Paige and Leslie want is an elegant traditional invitation, but with touches of their Academy Awards themed party. They have a strong sense of tradition, so we’ll pull in Paige’s hebrew name. But they also are full of life and excitement, so a combination of suede paper and metallic cardstock will address their sense of flair and elegance.

The colors of the party (red, black, and gold) are a wonderful combination because they will give the invitation a contemporary feeling and will tie the party in to the invitation without making the invitation solely about the party.

We’re using a rich red suede paper to reflect the Red Carpet excitement of the Academy Awards, and both metallic black and gold cardstocks to highlight the elegance and gold-star qualities of the bat mitzvah girl. This is going to be the perfect start to an Academy Awards night!

I can’t wait to sit down and design this invitation. I’ll keep you posted on how it turns out!