As both a photographer and a graphic designer, I’m a total sucker for gorgeous design, be it a business with incredible branding, the cover of Taylor Swift’s new album cover, or the invitations I get to photograph at a wedding.
The wedding design process can feel overwhelming at first, but with the right tools and knowledge in your back pocket, you can actually make it super fun and easy! This guide breaks down exactly how to DIY your wedding stationery, from curating an inspo board on Pinterest to printing & mailing ‘em off to your guests.
Ready to put pen to paper and make it happen?! (paper pun fully intended)
The Impact of Beautiful Design on Your Wedding Day
Documenting details, flatlays, and stationery is often one of my favorite parts of the day—and so often, I sadly see stationery falling to the bottom of the priority list!
So if you’re questioning why wedding stationery is so important, you’re not alone (and I take no offense 😉): that’s what I’m here for! Let’s break down what wedding stationery really is, and the impact it can have on your special day.
what is wedding stationery?
Just to be clear: we’re talking stationery here, not stationary. So if you were looking for a way to somehow make your wedding day stand still and, well, stationary, I’ve got nothing for you… except for photos that can basically freeze time ;)
Ok ok, but back to the stationery of it all: wedding stationery refers to any paper goods used for your wedding! Stationery can be used before, during, and/or after the wedding day itself, and is often used to communicate important details to guests, wedding party members, etc.
This could include:
- Invitations
- Save-the-dates
- Ceremony programs
- Rehearsal dinner schedule
- Day-of schedule
- Custom menus
- Meal placecards
- Seating charts
- Table number cards
- Day-after brunch schedule
- Thank-you notes
These are typically printed paper goods, but digital stationery has become more and more popular in recent years, such as sending digital invites, save-the-dates, or thank-you cards after the fact.
Why is wedding stationery so important?
Your wedding stationery may just seem like a few pieces of paper that you’re handing out to guests, but trust me: it is SO much more. Wedding stationery sets the tone for your celebration before it begins, and invites your guests into a curated, unforgettable experience.
Think about it: when was the last time you received a physical, hand-addressed invitation in the mail for an event?! It’s probably been a while—we just don’t do this as often as we used to as a society, now that we have digital tools to help us do so. Don’t get me wrong, I love a cutesy Partiful text invite as much as the next person, but there’s something about tangible, printed goods that is so special.
Plus, how FUN is it to be a part of something so curated, intentional, and heartfelt?! I’m even thinking back to the birthday parties I used to attend as a kid, where a friend’s mom would pass out adorable invites, and every part of the party would be themed to the heavens.
From the moment you send out your initial save-the-dates to the moment you hand out favors and cards at the end of the night, your guests have enjoyed an incredible experience from start to finish. What a gift for everyone involved!!
All in all, having something beautiful to hold in your hands—whether it’s an invitation to your bestie’s wedding, a menu custom-printed with your name on it, or a thank-you note handwritten by a person you love—is something that can NOT be understated. And in an age where we’re craving more connection than ever before, I truly believe that is priceless!
Tips for DIY’ing Your Wedding Invitations & Save The Dates
Now that you know why wedding stationery is so important, and the impact it can have on your entire experience, let’s go over a few key tips if you’re going the DIY route!
step 1: Start With a Pinterest Board
We all love a good Pinterest rabbit hole, right?! So this one should be fun: start by creating a dedicated Pinterest board for designs. Or, if you already have a big board for your wedding, add a new design-specific section where you can really go ham with the ideas & inspo!
Start by searching for broad, general terms like “wedding stationery ideas,” “wedding design inspo,” or “save the date examples” —then feel free to get a little more specific by adding in the location/venue of your wedding, the vibe you’re going for (if you know already—such as “coastal” or “garden”).
There are no rules here, you don’t have to know why you’re drawn to a photo to Pin it. Just save it and you’ll likely start to see a theme or pattern along the way!
Step 2: Choose your aesthetic
Once you’ve got a solid library of Pinterest inspo built up, look through it to see what sticks out, and what different images have in common. You’ll probably see similarities in colors, fonts, types of signage, design elements, illustrations, vibes, etc.. This will help you determine what your overall theme or aesthetic could be—! Or, if you already have a theme chosen, this will help you figure out how to really showcase that in your designs.
Let’s say you’re having your wedding in a gorgeous garden: consider including foliage and floral elements to your designs. Maybe you feel like all the typical neutral, minimalist invites aren’t your vibe: instead, look into a cool retro design that better fits the two of you as a couple!
You can use your Pinterest inspo to inform not only your overarching wedding theme/aesthetic, but also the little details and decisions you’ll have to make regarding your stationery.
For example…
- Do you like stationery with embossed or foil text?
- Would you prefer thick, heavy paper or thin?
- Do you want the edges (trim) of your paper to be clean and straight, or would you prefer a little texture?
- Speaking of texture… want smooth paper? Textured, rough paper? Matte or shiny?
Don’t worry too much about the tiny stuff just yet—that’ll be something you pick down the line, when it comes time to start designing OR if you hire someone to design your stationery for you.
Step 3: Save time with pre-made templates
If you are making your own invitations or save-the-dates, I highly recommend making use of templates! Many wedding websites and directories like The Knot, Minted, and Zola offer templates for free. Some even have gorgeous envelopes and labeling options!
These will be huge time savers as you design your stationery, and can really help take the guesswork out of where the heck to start. I always use a template to begin, and then go from there. Always be sure to customize templates enough to make them your own!
How to Design Your Wedding Stationery in Canva
While sites like The Knot can be great and really easy to use, Canva is my personal favorite tool for designing wedding stationery! The best part is that it’s totally free, unless you want to use their premium tools & have access to a larger library of elements/designs. ( Which I totally recommend investing in for your bridal year- then cancel once you're done with wedding DIYs!)
As an avid Canva user for manyyy years, I’ve gathered my top tips for designing your wedding stationery in Canva below!
Font Selection
As a retired graphic design student, I know how tricky it can be to find fonts. But please, please, for the love of god, don’t use the Brittany or Signature font! Those are the most overused fonts for everything (even beyond wedding stationery), and we want your designs to be UNIQUE and fit the two of you! There are plenty of other great script fonts in Canva if you take a little time to look. Search with keywords like “script,” “elegant,” or “wedding,” and you’ll find ‘em!
Pro Tip: Type out your full names multiple times on one page, and test out how they look with different fonts. Seeing your options side by side will be super helpful for comparing what you like and don’t like!
Elements & Illustrations
Next up are the visual elements and illustrations you’ll include in your designs! If you have a certain color palette or general theme/aesthetic, browse the “Elements” section of Canva to find illustrations that you like and are drawn to. Just type the vibe you’re looking for into the search bar—i.e. “Wedding icons,” “retro,” “garden party,” “tropical,” etc.
Let’s say you find an element you LOVE: if you want to find more from a similar artist or style, you can click on the three little dots on the image, click “Info,” and then “See more like this” or “View collection”!
Now I know what you’re wondering: What about photos, Kaitlyn??
I know you’re dying to show off your engagement photos to everyone you love! But in my opinion, I suggest only including your photos on your save-the-dates (if you want to include them at all), and focusing the rest of your stationery on design so it doesn’t get too repetitive.
Pro Tip: Hand-drawn wedding elements are always adorable and can add a personal touch to your designs!
Wording & Structure
Finally, you’ll find a ton of different ways to word your invitations as well as structure them. There are more ways to say “please save this date” than you’d think!
You’ll want to match the tone of voice on your stationery to the vibe of your wedding; e.g. if your wedding is black-tie formal and super elegant, your wording might be a little bit more posh or sophisticated. If you’re going all-out retro, 80’s, and colorful, your language will probably lean more casual, eccentric, and upbeat. This can apply to any of your stationery, but will likely be most prevalent with your invitations.
Here’s a great article by The Knot featuring a ton of different ways to word and structure your wedding invitations!
How to Print & Mail Your Wedding Stationery
Moving on to the final part of the design process: printing your stationery, specifically your invitations!
Whether you choose to DIY your invitations or hire someone to design everything for you, you’ll need somewhere to print them. I’d recommend either printing through my printer of choice, VistaPrint, or printing via The Knot, Zola, or wherever you have your wedding website to make it easy & seamless.
And don’t forget that you’ll need something to mail them in! To elevate your invitations just a tad (with barely any added cost), you can order special envelopes on Amazon or Etsy, as well as unique envelope liners for an extra touch.
Why You Should Invest in a Full Wedding Invitation Suite
At this point, I’ve told you alllll about wedding stationery and the different elements you might want to include, but let me show you where the magic REALLY lies: invitation suites.
Invitation suites are full collections of multiple stationery elements, designed together and seamlessly coordinated to match one another. Typically, invitation suites will include the essentials such as invitations (duh), save-the-dates, and RVSPs, but can also include other fun pieces such as rehearsal dinner schedules, day-after brunch invites, or custom menus!
Invitation suites are really wonderful for more intentional, curated storytelling, as well as providing a unique and seamless experience for your guests. However, they’re a bit harder to DIY, as they take significantly more time, design, and coordination.
If you plan to invest in an invitation suite, I suggest hiring me or another talented graphic designer who can really dive deep into your vision & bring it to life through beautiful designs!
You can see that there are a TON of options and ideas out there for your wedding stationery & design, but the most important thing is that you make it customized to you and your style. Don’t feel like you have to do what everyone else is doing, or what you see on Pinterest—this is your chance to really showcase who you are and the tone you want to set for your big day!
And if you’d like support from someone who knows their way around an invitation suite veryyy well, I truly love combining my passions and working with couples to craft custom stationery for their wedding day. After all, you deserve something that was designed specially, uniquely for YOU.
Design can be added to any elopement or wedding package and may include pieces such as save-the-dates, invitation suites, signage, and more! Get in touch through the contact form on this page, and let’s create something magical together ✨