All Your Wedding Stationery Questions, Answered (Hurrah!)

I'm very aware that there are a lot of questions that engaged couples, like you, have about wedding stationery. For so many couples I work with, this will be the first time they have got engaged, and planning a wedding is new. Despite all the weddings of friends and family you might have attended, there are lots of choices and decisions to make.

You might be wondering about timings? Or colours? You could have explored how to make your stationery more personal, but have come to a standstill. You might wonder what is essential stationery wise, and what is an added extra? Or you might be wanting to know how to fit everything you want into your budget, and where price-cutting can be made. You might be thinking of card types, formats, and postage—or even if you should do everything digitally and forget physical stationery—it can feel like a lot.

You might have noticed on Instagram and Facebook that I’ve started a little series of posts answering questions like these, and I’ll be continuing the series to cover all areas of wedding stationery. I’ll be sharing helpful advice and answering the questions you need, drawing on my 11 years of experience as a Wedding Stationer.

To begin with, let's ask this one:

What stationery questions to ask a Designer, before ordering?

Here are some vital questions you should ask a Stationery Designer:

Question:

What is your lead time?

That is, how long will it take you to design, print, and deliver the stationery you would like to order.

Why ask this?

This is important because if you are on a tight turnaround you will need to see if the Stationer can work quickly enough. Not only that, this will help you to plan ahead for the next elements of your wedding planning. Some stationery can take a matter of weeks to design, but some can be months, and talking to a Stationery Designer will help to give you a clear understanding of the timescale of designing, printing, and delivery.

Eve and Chris's wedding invitation and welcome pack. Photo: Tom and Lizzie Redman

Question:

What can you draw?

Why ask this?

Ok, I get that not everyone wants a drawing, painting or illlustration on their wedding stationery, so this is a bit of a specific one; however, understanding how much your Wedding Stationery Designer can and can't do tells you what options are available. If you're at the save the date stage, you may only want a simple, typography-based design. However, later on in your engagement, you might decide that you would like to incorporate a painting of your venue on your table plan, or personalise your table names with your favourite biscuits, holidays you've been on, or places you have lived. You may decide including a personalised monogram, with your initials, and drawings of your hobbies, interests, and icons of how you met surrounding it is a great idea, and knowing that your Stationer has the ability to make this for you from the moment you say yes you would like to book them, is priceless.

Question:

When should I send my stationery?

Why ask this?

You may have the situation where half your guests will be coming from abroad and need to book plane flights, or your wedding is in fact abroad. You might feel like you have left it a bit late and you need replies soon, or you're getting married on the same date as another wedding in the area and you're worried about accommodation. It could in fact be none of those, and you have a pretty straightforward wedding, but it is important to speak to a Wedding Stationery Designer because there are lots of mixed messages online about when to send save the dates and particularly, invitations. A Stationer will be able to link the dots and give you personalised, professional, and experienced answers.

Question:

How much will it cost?

Why ask this?

With the cost of living really hitting home, so many couples are finding that this is a question that matters most, and good for you! There are lots of options with printed stationery that can reduce (or in fact increase costs if you're looking to do so!)—from card choices, to formats, hand-painted versus digitally illustrated, bespoke to templates, the colours used to physical or digital. Tell your stationer your budget. You might be a little nervous about doing this, but giving us a clear understanding of your available money means we can recommend what will fit within your budget, and also give you options. Be clear about whether this will be your overall wedding stationery budget, or if it's just for your wedding invitations, and x amount will be for your on-the-day stationery.

Question:

Can I change the quote?

Why ask this?

This is another great question! The answer is most likely yes, however, you might end up stumbling upon a minimum order quantity (FYI: I don't do this for any couple I work with!), or depending on when you ask this, there might be an order deadline due to the amount of work a Stationer has got on.

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What other stationery questions do you have that I could answer for you? I would love to make this series helpful and personal.

Please email or DM me your questions. I will of course answer straight away, but it would be great to open your question up to others who might be asking the same thing.

If you would like to chat through anything I have mentionned above, or anything else, please get in touch. You can message me, call or book an online video call

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Next's weeks blog post

In my next blog post I will be answer your questions about RSVPs.

Have a great week everyone!