Make the Most of your Post

You've just licked your last envelope flap and you breathe a heavy sigh of relief that you are finally done! But wait, you have one last very important step to seal the deal and make the most of your post. Before you purchase any stamps, please take your finished invitation to the post office to be weighed. If you have several cards, museum board invitations or even a square invitation, you will need more than the standard "Forever" stamp.

By far my favorite way to add postage to your invitation envelopes is to use vintage, unused stamps. They come in every color and in every denomination from one cent and up. You can mix and match different styles and colors to come up with an effect that works with your color palette. One of my favorite vintage stamp vendors is Virginia Sauder at Verde Studio. You can choose from a variety of themes like history, nature, love, botanicals etc. She can also put packages together for you if you tell her your needs.

Your next option is to purchase new stamps from the post office. Their "love" themed stamps are not my favorite. To be honest, I don't find them imaginative and vintage enough to my liking. But I do love many of their historical and botanical themed stamps. If you are having a very vintage wedding, you might use a mix of their WWI and Classics Forever series.

The last option is to have your own custom stamp designed. You can use your couple's logo, an image from your invitations... anything. The main drawback about this is that a standard .55 stamp can cost up to $1.30 each. More importantly, they come with a very unsightly black and white QR code on the design. You can purchase these from Shutterfly, Minted, Zazzle etc. I say stay clear from these-- you can spend the extra expense elsewhere and the black and white code is really a drawback.

Once you drop your lovely little packages off at the post office, they are going to be machine sorted and stamped. To ensure your invitations do not bend or smudge, you can ask your postal worker to hand cancel each one. This ensures that they will not rip or tear in the stamping and sorting process. If you are using wax seals, this is a must. Hand canceling can only be done once you have sealed, stamped and addressed your envelopes. Hand canceling does take a bit of time and some post offices may charge for this. Make sure you ask which day is the least busy at the post office.

But before you do any of the above, please take your finished invitation to the post office to be weighed. If you have several cards, or one of my pocket folders, you will need more than the standard stamp.

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Vintage, unused postage

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Ceremony Programs - To Do or Not To Do

Are wedding programs necessary? I get this question all the time. My answer is always the same- it’s entirely up to you! Tell help you decide if you need them or not, let’s look at a few reasons why you might want to consider them.

You have a very long wedding.  If you are having a longer Catholic wedding or any type of religious wedding where guests from different faiths will be present, you might want to have a program letting them know what is happening. They may not understand some of the customs and it’s helpful to have a guide for them to follow along. This is especially important if you are having an interfaith or multi-cultural ceremony.

You have family members and friends you would like to acknowledge for their dedication, hard work and love.  Perhaps it’s the friend that introduced the two of you, or you have endearing friends and family that have been your rock in hard times. In addition, listing your bridal party on a program is a nice way to say, “Hey thank you for being an integral part of my wedding!” Whatever the case, the program card is a great way to let those important to you know that you care about them.

You have a special song or poem that has significant meaning. Printing the lyrics to your favorite song or the prose from a lovely poem can help set the tone of your ceremony. It’s cute and sweet and a nice souvenir as well.

If you are anticipating a very hot and humid wedding, in say, Atlanta in August, or planning on a major dance floor boogie fest, you can go with an old-fashioned hand fan. Your sweaty Aunt May can fan herself after she gets down with her bad self. Fans are great because you can print your bridal party members, a small thank you, or just a lovely quote on the back and they are actually very useful, not to mention, pretty cute for photo opportunities.

And you can ditch all of the above if you have a small budget and a simple wedding where everyone knows each other. My motto— it’s entirely up to you and your vision for your special day.

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Wedding program hand fans by Gilded Swan Paperie

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