DIY and CIY (craft it yourself) is so popular at the moment for weddings. But it’s making some of our brides feel overwhelmed with crafting projects and creativity.
Anyone who isn’t a creative talent or simply doesn’t have the time, shouldn’t feel compelled to stay up until the wee hours of the night for six months before their big day making paper flowers.
Here are some pros and cons for designer wedding stationery and DIY, and most of these work from other areas of your wedding to0 – your wedding Bomboniere and favours, wedding decorations, cake and so much more.
Designer Wedding stationery
Pros
* You provide inspiration for a couture design or choose from an existing design created by a professional designer
* The designer will give you a hand with wording the invitations, wishing good cards and other tricky stationery pieces
* Once you choose your wording and guest list, you just email it off and it is all done for you. No mail merge hassles!
* It’s the perfect solution for anyone who isn’t creative or doesn’t have a lot of time on their hands
* You have the time to dedicate to other important areas of your wedding planning
* Samples are available for your invitations, so you can see what they will look like before you buy
* Designers are usually ahead of the trends, so you know you can create a design that is up-to-the-minute
Cons
* Can be more expensive than DIY
* Your range may not be completely unique if you are choosing your design from a catalogue
* After you’ve placed your order, if you make changes, you will probably be charged
* Your invitations will take time to be made and be delivered to you.
Do It Yourself Stationery
Pros
* Saves you money as you aren’t paying for labour, which means you have more money to spend on other parts of your wedding
* You can create stationery completely unique to your wedding theme and style
* You have a sense of personal accomplishment as you’ve personally contributed to your wedding
* You get to control the budget and how much you spend on paper, embellishments and craft equipment
* It’s the perfect solution for anyone who is creative and has a great imagination
* You can make more invitations at any time, and make changes to your designs without incurring a charge
Cons
* If you’re not an experienced crafter, the process of cutting, pasting and generally making your stationery look professional can be time-consuming and expensive, as well as frustrating
* It is very time consuming – don’t underestimate how much time construction and design can take
* If you aren’t creative, your vision may be difficult to achieve and make come to fruition
* DIY may not represent a saving if you need to buy all of the equipment from scratch and if you make lots of mistakes
I believe you need to make a decision about DIY versus designer stationery based on your talents, time and budget. Don’t feel pressured to do either. Really, it’s up to you!
