It really depends on what card stocks, envelopes, and other items you think you’ll be printing on. Your first question might be, “Should I consider an inkjet printer or a laser printer?” Please see our articles:
What are the differences between a laser printer and an inkjet printer?
Should I buy a laser printer or ink jet printer?

Finally, please see this short FAQ, What are some special tips on choosing a printer?

I am trying to start a very small invitation business. what type of printer would you recommend?

I think I remember talking to a customer using an HP printer who had a similar problem. If you have already gone into the print driver, set the custom paper size, and are still having the issue, you may try placing the card in the center of your printer tray. You shouldn’t have to, but who is to say why the printer is printing in the center instead of adapting to the dimensions you have inputted into the print driver? While you are testing, you can cut down copy paper to 5 1/2 x 5 1/2 as test sheets.

I think you’re referring to the Wood Grain Paper – Tindalo, Limba, Bubinga Savanna Paper video where I printed invitations, brochures, and business cards on Savanna Woodgrain Card Stock. I used an Epson R1900 Inkjet Printer which has never had any trouble printing the heaviest card stocks that we carry at LCI.

In choosing a new printer, one key specification you’ll want to pay close attention to is the maximum paper thickness the printer will allow. Savanna Woodgrain Paper is 111 lb card stock. Also especially relevant to you is the article, What is the appropriate paper thickness for my printer?

This video shows you how to create a printing template in Microsoft Word and size it to your card. This certainly works in Windows 7, but it assumes you are also running Microsoft Word. The video also shows you how to communicate your card size to the printer by entering a custom document size in the print driver. After watching the video, if you have specific questions, please let us know exactly where we can help.

You bring up a great point in that printing card stock and envelopes in a printer that has a significant bend in its paper path can be problematic, even damaging to the cards or envelopes being printed. We generally prefer dedicated printers as opposed to all-in-ones and specifically, printers that feature a straightforward path, loading from a top tray and feeding through to the front, allowing gravity to come into play. Speaking of inkjet printing, Epson, Canon, and Lexmark are brands that we frequently recommend with top-loading trays. Each of these brands should have no shortage of models that work with Macs.

When it comes to metallic finish paper printing, laser printers produce sharper and more saturated text, and drying time is not a factor. LCI Paper’s Barry Levine has worked with many laser printers and he likes the Ricoh brand. He owns and uses an SP421 DN, although he says there are more recent Ricoh models that may produce richer results. He believes they are a quality manufacturer of color laser printers. Barry would like note an issue with most laser printers. When printing on envelopes, they will often show an impressed area on the envelope seams caused by the intense heat of laser printing. This is an industry wide issue that has not yet been perfected.

Although inkjet printers are considered more versatile than laser printers, they generally do not do as well printing on metallic stock. The wet ink does not adhere as well as an inkjet’s toner. Inkjet printing may also require extended drying time and extra care in handling each printed item.

You may be interested in our answer to this specific question, Should I buy a laser printer or ink jet printer?

Here are a couple examples of successful or at least acceptable printing on Stardream metallic paper:
Can I Print Stardream Paper in an Inkjet Printer?

You may want to watch these printing videos as well:
I want to print metallic specialty paper. Should I use an inkjet or laser printer?
I want to print on Metallic Stardream paper. Should I use a laser or an ink jet printer?

Finally, please see our impressions of two printers that we have tested:
Canon Pixma iX7000 Large Format Ink Jet Printer Review
Epson Stylus Photo R1900 Ink Jet Printer Review

Our easiest to print cards are our Blank Computer Invitations. You get two invitations on every 8 1/2 x 11 sheet and you’ll find easy to follow printing instructions.

We’re glad you found us! We are a warehouse / order fulfillment center / office. We are not a retail storefront. But if you’d like to visit and see some things, please give us a call and set up a time so that we can have items ready for you.

Here are a couple great articles about booklet invitations:
Tan, Brown and Cream Floral Booklet Invitation for Autumn Wedding
Inspired To Create A Custom Booklet Invitation

Printing on folding cards is not very difficult. Just get in touch with us when you’ve decided on the dimensions of your card and the paper stock you’ll be using so we can help you.

The card shown in the video is made with our LCI brand Radiant White card stock. This is a smooth finish, bright white card stock available in different weights.

You can adjust your spacing by adding line breaks to your text. Use the Enter key to drop text down a line.

You can also adjust fine line spacing in Microsoft Word. This is demonstrated at the 3 minute mark in the above video.

Click Format > Paragraph. Click the Indents and Spacing tab. In the Spacing section, enter a number in the At field. Decimals are fine. The default spacing would be 1. For tighter spacing, try .8. For more spacing, try 1.2. Experiment to achieve the spacing that looks right.

Thanks for your compliments on the tutorial. We cater to people that order our blank stock, then use their computer and printer to print invitations at home. Of course we are here to help you, with printing templates, how to videos like this one, and even help over the phone. Please let us know if you have any specific questions about the process. We actually do not offer a printing service, however, there is a gentleman here who occasionally takes on customer printing jobs. Contact us if you’d like to inquire about this. But we all get more satisfaction helping you save money and print at home.

It’s hard to say without knowing more information. Please give us a call so we can discuss this in detail, starting with the card you are printing, the template you are using, your settings in the printer driver, etc. Looking forward to hearing from you!

You may also be referring to Letterpress printing which is a more expensive printing process, again, only offered by professional printers, but with Letterpress equipment.

Neither or these processes are available in consumer grade printers.