Paper, Color, Wording, Fonts, Graphics and A Little Creativity

Pictured above, I very recently designed these invitations to fit the moods of two very different events – the one on the left for a casual summer barbecue, the one on the right for a formal bridal shower. Naturally, because these invitations were designed for such different events, they are quite different in overall appearance and feeling. However, with my two designs recently in front of me, I realized that although these invitations are not similar, the process of creating them was nearly identical. When it comes down to it, both are simply combinations of three pieces of paper, a printer, and a bit of experimentation and creativity. Read on to learn how your choices in paper, wording, fonts, graphics, and color combinations can turn three blank pieces of paper into an invitation customized precisely for your event.

Choose Paper to Fit Event Tone & Theme

It goes without saying that the paper you choose for your invitation layers will have a huge impact on the overall appearance of your design. It is important to note that invitations serve as a preview of your event, providing guests with expectations of its overall tone and theme. In a nutshell, you are simply searching for paper that will complement this tone and theme properly.

This sounds fairly simple, yet with so many specialty papers and pre-cut blank cards to choose from, choosing the right paper for your invitation may feel more overwhelming than you would expect. However, to help you along in your paper choice, take the following factors into consideration.

Specialty Paper Color Combinations

Keep in mind, if you have specific colors you wish to incorporate, whether it is due to a theme, or simply preference, you can always search for specialty paper by color, or blank invitation cards by color. This is the easiest way to view our extensive variety of colors, and the various sizes they are available in.

If you do not have a specific color scheme in mind, just remember that bold, vivid color combinations often allude to whimsical events, whereas invitations with more subtle or classic color combinations typically allude to events that are more traditional. Of course, this is not a rule set in stone, because as I will discuss later, paper finishes, fonts, graphics, and invitation wording also has a lot of impact on the overall tone of your invitation.

Take My Two Invitations As Examples:

For the barbecue invitation, I was going for a overall tone of casual summer fun, which immediately made me think bright, bold, festive colors. With this frame of mind, I chose a vivid combination of crocum yellow, fuchsia, and white to portray the personality of the party.

For the bridal shower invitation, it was necessary to use the theme colors of the upcoming wedding – charcoal with accents of “Carolina Blue”, so deciding on colors was not an issue. As this is an invitation to a fairly formal event, the more muted color scheme is suitable to the tone of the shower, as well.

Paper Texture & Finish

Just as the color combinations of your paper can portray personality, so can the paper finish. Whether your paper is smooth or textured, matte or metallic, finishes can really work to enhance an invitation’s tone.

For my summer barbecue invitation, I chose to combine a textured Vice Versa backing card with smooth, matte finish decorative and printable layers. As Vice Versa has a striking linear texture, I figured it would add a bit of flare to the otherwise flat invitation. Since none of the matte finish stocks I chose are overly elegant, they fit well into the barbecue’s casual theme.

For the more formal bridal shower invitation, I chose Subtil metallic card stock for the backing card and decorative layer, and the same smooth, matte white stock as above for the printable layer. As metallic finishes typically allude to more opulent events, this stock provided the extra touch of elegance I needed to achieve a slightly more formal tone. Of course, as papers with matte finishes work for any event, using them here would have been appropriate as well. However, a metallic finish for my barbecue invitation would have been inappropriate, so you can see here how finish can affect your invitation’s overall tone.

Paper Weight

Although it is not as important as color and finish, the weight of the paper you choose can impact the overall tone of your invitation as well. Traditionally, elegant, formal invitations use heavy stocks, where lighter stocks are more suitable for casual events. However, this is certainly not a rule set in stone, but rather a factor to consider. Just because an invitation is not made up of layers of premium weight stock, it does not mean it will look too casual for your formal event.

Invitation Wording to Suit your Event

After you have chosen paper for your invitation layers, you are ready to start personalizing your invitations. As mentioned above, the wording on your invitation plays a large role in overall tone and appearance. You may wish to write your own custom wording, or work with various invitation wording suggestions. In either case, a good rule of thumb is to phrase your invitation in a way that you are comfortable with.

Experiment With Fonts, Graphics And Print Color

After you have decided on wording, you are ready to type it out, and customize it by experimenting with colors, fonts, and graphics.

To illustrate this process, I will use the barbecue invitation design and Microsoft Word 2007.

To begin, type your words into a custom sized Word document.

Learn More about Printing Custom Sized Documents

For this invitation, I chose to center the words on the card, but feel free to experiment with various layouts for a unique look.

Change Font to Fit the Mood

I felt the default font was a bit dull for the the theme of this fun invitation, so I selected all of my text, previewed a few different fonts, and chose one that was more suitable for my wording, and for the invitation in general.

Experiment with various fonts and sizes to find a look that complements your design. If you are creating a formal invitation, script fonts, capitalized fonts, or a combination of the two look very elegant, such as on the bridal shower invitation. If you are creating a casual or whimsical invitation, simply find one that fits your theme, or that matches your own personality. Notice as you scroll through the various fonts how different your invitation looks each time – font really does make a difference!

Change Font Color to Complement Invitation

Just as font can impact an invitation, so can color. You can change the color of your font to match one of your layers, complement your color scheme, match your envelope, or bring in an entirely different color all together. Play around, and see what works for you.

I chose to change my wording to a fuchsia color to match my fuchsia decorative layer.

Add Graphics or Photos

Wording, fonts, and colors you choose can transform blank paper into a beautiful, custom invitation. However, if you feel you need something more, graphics are a great addition, as they can dress up your card, as well as incorporate theme.

On my barbecue invitation, although I felt the bright colors, wording, and fonts certainly alluded to fun summer party, I wanted a bit more. I chose to add the flip flops graphic so that even before reading, guests would immediately think summer. Clip art is available in your word editing program or on line. You may also choose to insert photos for a more personal touch.

There you have it – with a few alterations in colors, fonts, graphics, and with a bit of creativity, you have transformed blank paper into a beautiful invitation!

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How to Video: Creating Invitations with Blank Cards in Word