Post Number 100! So why are my knickers in a twist?
April 19th, 2011 § 8 Comments
Woo hoo!
It’s celebration time today as this is officially The Invitation Blog’s 100th post. It’s been 9 months of hard work, wondering if I was talking to myself, stressing over just how “honest” to be and being so thrilled at the feedback from engaged couples as well as stationery industry peeps. Now, around 16,500 views later, I’m a super-proud mama!
So, for post number 100, I wanted to talk about something important and meaningful, I was looking for something that defines what The Invitation Blog is all about; and, right on schedule this week, I got my answer.
I’ve heard it before, and I’ll hear again, but this past week I seemed to hear it everywhere – online forums, twitter, from potential clients – and it really gets me fired up (and not in a good way). It makes me honestly want to punch something. Anything. Even though I know it’s not personal, considering what I’ve dedicated my career to, it might as well be a knife in my heart.
“Why would I spend so much money on invitations when they are just going to end up in the garbage?”
You know the sounds of nails screeching on a chalkboard. Or that feeling you get when you chew on aluminum foil? That’s the feeling I get when I hear that statement.
Y’all know me by now, right? You know I could write a book on this subject. On how wrong I think this statement is. But, for today, I’m going to keep my rebuttal simple, so here it is:
Wedding are by nature about consumption. At least 90% of the money you will spend on your wedding will go to things that are about “experience” rather than permanency. When your wedding day is over, nothing remains but your photographs and video – oh, and probably your invitation.
Think about the big budget items when it comes to weddings…what’s the biggest? Food and beverage. And I apologize in advance to those delicate souls reading this blog, but…we all know where its final destination is. And yet I somehow doubt that a venue manager has ever heard “why would I spend so much on food and drinks when it just ends up in the toilet?”. Why? Because food and beverage is about the experience your guests have, the enjoyment (albeit fleeting) that they will get from consuming it. Can they keep it? Nope. Even if it is the most spectacular meal of their life, there is nothing that remains.
What about decor? Flowers? What’s the value – all it does is just sit there. Why would you spend money on that. It doesn’t even *do* anything. But you do spend money on it, because it is all about the experience. Transportation, entertainment, even your wedding day attire – same thing. You are basically left with nothing.
But invitations, and wedding day stationery, that is *something* that remains. Something you can keep, and something your guests can keep, as a reminder of that day. I got married in 2002, but I still have family and friends that kept not only our invitations but also all of the paper goods from our ceremony and reception. I have brides that tell me that their friends and family still have their invitations that Hip Ink created, years later. And to be honest, I have brides come in all the time with envelopes and folders full of invitations – they got them somewhere. So no, wedding invitations don’t all end up in the garbage.
Now, I know some of you are thinking it – that this is me trying to justify the cost of custom invitations, trying to convince everyone that a $10-15 invitation is what you really need, etc. But that couldn’t be farther from the truth.
It’s not about how much you spend on your invitations, but it is about how much you invest in them. When someone tosses out the old “they are going to go in the garbage anyway” argument, it’s a sign that they don’t get it. They don’t understand what an invitation really is, what it means to your guests. It may just be paper, but it is all about the experience for those special people who will receive it. If you could care less what you send them, what kind of message do you think that sends?
Your wedding invitations need to be personal – you *need* to care. Your guests want to know they are valued, that your wedding will be special, and I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again – your guests will judge your event, based on the invite. Does that mean you need to send a $20 custom invitation. Not at all. But you do need to send something personal, something that reflects you, something you will be proud for your guests to receive – not something that you’ve already earmarked as “garbage”.
Why do I take it so personally? Because I have given up so much over the past 5 years to do what I love – to create invitations that are beautiful sneak peeks into couples’ big days. Yes, I get paid – but probably not enough. I miss out on family events, time with my husband and my children, and any kind of real sleep. I get paper cuts, I work when I’m sick, I stay up all night when I have to. I do all of this because I love creating invitations – and I love creating invitations because I love the look on couples’ faces when they see their invite for the first time, their names and wedding date in print, when it becomes so real to them. It’s a magical moment, and I wouldn’t trade it for the world.
So when someone intimates that what I do basically amounts to creating garbage…I get crabby.
Everyone is entitled to their opinion about how much is the “right” amount to spend on invitations, and I would never say otherwise; but, just because you yourself wouldn’t spend XX amount on something, doesn’t mean it doesn’t have value to someone else. It may be easier to tell yourself that something is not important if you can’t afford to spend much on it, but that doesn’t make it true. If you have a modest budget will you need to be more creative? Probably. But what you can do, that doesn’t have to cost a thing, is make sure that you are sending out something personal, that shows your guests you care about them and are hosting an event that you are proud to be inviting them to.
So, what’s my final word for those who think invitations aren’t important, because they’ll just “end up in the garbage anyway”?
Not if you do it right.
You hit the nail on the head- so often I hear “It’s just paper” or “it’ll end up in the garbage” and it’s so, SO much more. Thanks for laying it out there!
Thank you Sarah! I agree 100% with all that you’ve said… and I’m super glad that you’ve said it!
I look at invitations as ‘the window’ into a couple’s wedding…and even more so, who they are as a couple..why? Because it speaks to their personality, their creativity, their thoughtfulness…etc. etc. etc. No matter what the budget is, invitations should always be personal.. if that weren’t true, everyone would be sending email invites (and well, we all have our thoughts on that…). So…Kudos to you for highlighting the importance and meaning!!
BRAVO, Sarah, BRAVO.
Great post, the invitation is the first glimpse a guest will get of your wedding….my response is always the same to someone who says invitations are just paper that my guest will throw out…….”if you think someone would throw out your wedding invitation then they should maybe have been put on the B list”
Perfect, perfect, perfect. I literally got chills when you said the nails against the chalkboard. Couldn’t agree more with everything you’ve said. Congrats on post #100!
Some of this I hadn’t even thought of. Best post yet, this #100!
it’s like peeking into my brain & writing away what you saw! bravo, as usual.
[...] HipInk and I’ve been thinking about it. She recently celebrated her 100th posting with this “Post 100: So Why Are My Knickers in a Twist?” If you haven’t already read this, hop over there for a read. I love Sarah’s [...]