Wedding Breeze

Green can have a much different meaning than just the color of your wedding invitations. A hot topic these days in wedding planning is ‘going green’. When it comes to your wedding invitations, you will be happy to know there are a number of easy ways to be more environmentally conscience, some of which may even save you some money.

The most obvious way is to have your invitations printed on recycled paper. Designs on recycled papers have come a long way in giving you some gorgeous choices.

Another way to ‘think green’ with your wedding invitations is to simply reduce the amount of paper used for your invitation ensemble. Suggested ways to save on paper include:

• Select an invitation style that comes with only one envelope for mailing thus eliminating the familiar inner envelope. An example of this style is a self-mailer invitation where the envelopment wraps around all of your pieces and seals up to become the actual mailing envelope. An additional benefit of using only one envelope is that you will save on your handwriting time. This style may require extra postage depending on its overall size.
• Choose a smaller sized single-panel invitation card instead of a larger folded or layered style.
• Use a response postcard to eliminate the need for a return mailing envelope and to save on postage.
• Include your reception information on your invitation to eliminate the need for including a separate reception card (having less weight in your envelope may even save you from purchasing extra postage). If there is enough room for extra lines as part of your main verse printing, your dinner and reception details can be added as the last few lines. Another option may be adding a corner copy to your invitation (3-4 lines that appear in the bottom right or left corner usually in a smaller font size) for those details. There may be a small extra charge for corner copy which is not recommended for narrow or tea length styles.
• Opt for a seal and send wedding invitation which gets mailed without a separate envelope. This economical all-in-one design folds up and seals into its own self-mailing piece. This style also has a response postcard attached for easy removal and mailing back by your guests.
• Set up a personal wedding website to give your guests easy access to online maps, directions, area hotels, gift registry information, etc., instead of printing extra invitation insert pieces.

Making eco-friendly choices when it comes to your wedding invitations is easier than ever today without sacrificing quality or style. Every little bit helps when it comes to saving our planet and some of your choices might even save you some ‘green’ (money) in the process.