Monthly Archive for March, 2009

The Post Office wants your 2 cents!

Published on March 19, 2009 in General. 2 Comments Tags: , , .

junk_mail_mailboxUnfortunately, by 2 cents they don’t mean your opinion! ;-)

Another year, another postage increase. When you think about it, 44 cents is not a bad price to mail an envelope any where in the country. But for those planning an event, that small increase really feels like it adds up, huh?

The important date to remember this year is May 11th, when the cost to mail a one-ounce letter increases to 44 cents each. Postcard stamps will go up to 28 cents each.

For those of you with RSVP dates in May, you have two basic options: use a forever stamp, or put the additional postage on your response envelopes. Keep in mind that even if your response date is in early May, it is still possible that your guests may be mailing back their RSVP’s for a week or two after the due date.

If your event is in mid to late July, your typical mail-out date would be after the rate increases … so if you order early and time allows, you may want to consider mailing your invitations the first week of July.

The blog heidzillas.com did a fantastic job of covering all of your options in detail, and with some really creative ideas … so I’ll just link you right to them!

If your local post office does not have the stamps you want in stock, you can always go straight to the source and order your stamps online directly from the post office. Check out their website here: USPS: The Postal Store.

Another option to consider is custom stamps from stamps.com or zazzle.com — but keep in mind that you will pay approximately 2x the postage rate (that’s how they make their money!)




{Q&A} How many invitations do I need to order?

Published on March 2, 2009 in Invitations and Q & A. 0 Comments Tags: , , .

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One of the questions we hear most frequently is “How many do I need to order?” … and many don’t know the proper way to find the right answer for them.

Getting your invitation quantity right is very important, and can save you a lot of money in the long run. The invitation manufacturers offer discounted pricing when ordering “additional 25s” with your order. Once your order is approved and sent to print, those discounts no longer apply. It will cost you a lot more to re-order 25 invitations after your order has been sent to print, because it will be considered a new order and the pricing is based on the initial price … and in many cases that initial minimum quantity of 50!

The first thing to remember is that everyone’s guest list is different.

The second thing to remember is that the # of people invited does not equal the # of invitations to order. If you are inviting 200 people, you do not need 200 invitations ;-) Probably more in the range of 100 to 125!

The third thing to remember is that tallying up your # of guests invited, and then dividing in half will most likely give you an incorrect count for your invitations! This is the way that many people initially think to get their invitation quantity, and there is a better way!

So … here it is … the right way to figure out how many invitations you need:

1. Count the number of households you need to mail invitations to. Remember that an Aunt, Uncle and 3 cousins does equal 5 people, but only 1 invitation. It doesn’t matter if you have addresses for everyone at this point, you just need to make sure you’ve accounted for anyone you plan to invite.

2. Add yourself to the list. Add your grandparents, your parents, and your siblings too. If its a wedding, add your bridal party too! Many have considered not sending invitations to these important people in their lives to cut costs and reduce their invitation count. I think these are the most important people to send invitations to! These are the people who will be beyond excited to receive your invitation, and will cherish it as a keepsake for years to come.

3. Now add about 10 invitations, for last minute additions. Those extra 10 invitations will also generally leave you with an extra set for the photographer, videographer, etc.

4. Ok … now round up to the nearest 25, since 90% of the invitation manufacturers only sell in multiples of 25.

And there you have it … your REAL invitation count! :-)

On last thing to consider is how you plan to have your invitations addressed. If you are going to have them addressed by a hand calligrapher or plan to address them yourself, you may want to order an additional 25 sets of *envelopes only* to cover any mistakes in addressing. You won’t need extra invitations for this purpose - just the envelopes (with return addresses on the flaps, and linings to match the rest of your order).