This article is brought to you by Cristina Ashley Beauty, a Brides of Long Island Preferred Vendor!
It’s the first impression your guests will get! Here’s how to choose invitations for your Long Island wedding
Image courtesy of The Stationery Bar
There’s just something so magical about wedding invitations! The beautiful artwork and calligraphy, the ornate lettering, the thick envelope you get in the mail — they set the tone of your wedding months before the big day.
Choosing your invitations can seem like a big task, especially given all of the options you have. Do you splurge on the fancy stationery and wax envelope seal, or do you go digital and save yourself some money (and future frustration)? Do you do a combination of both? How do you find a vendor that can deliver exactly what you’re looking for?
Brides of Long Island is here to break down how to choose invitations for your Long Island wedding.
Image courtesy of Violet Invitations
Search Brides of Long Island’s Preferred Vendors
Brides of Long Island Preferred Vendors are some of the most well-reviewed and well-respected wedding pros in the business! And our Preferred Invitation and Stationery Vendors are no exception.
These artists and designers take great pride in your vision, your tastes, and your unique love story. They understand that your invitations are a stylized “sneak peak” of what’s to come. Not only that, but your invitations have to convey a lot of information in a relatively small package.
These professionals know exactly how to merge style with sustenance. They listen to you and your fiancé and create the kind of invites you’ll want to hold on to forever!
Start your search for invitation vendors here.
Image courtesy of Dolce Press
Think about your guests
Now that digital invites have become more and more common, you may be faced with a decision: go digital, or stick with traditional paper?
If you find yourself struggling to decide, one of the biggest things to think about is your guest list demographics. Most brides will invite friends and family that span a wide range of ages and experiences. One of the downfalls of digital invites is the technical aspect — some older adults in your family may not be familiar with QR codes or have trouble typing in long website addresses in order to RSVP.
On the other hand, some of your younger guests may find it much easier to pop onto their phone and check a box rather than keep track of a paper RSVP card, find a stamp, find a mailbox, and remember to do all of those things before a certain date.
As with all things wedding-related, there’s no right or wrong answer. But it does give you something to think about as you weigh the pros and cons.
Image courtesy of Inklinations
Read reviews on BOLI’s Brides-Only Facebook group
It’s where Brides of Long Island was born: our brides-only Facebook group! This private group is one of the best resources to read real, honest reviews of our area’s most talked about wedding professionals. You’ll hear about the experiences of brides just like you, and learn about the vendors that truly made their days magical.
All you need to join our brides-only group is a Facebook profile! Once you’re in, you’ll have a wealth of information at your fingertips. Just search for “invitations” and start your research!
Image courtesy of Fairy Tale Affairs
Scroll social media
Instagram, TikTok, and Facebook are all good resources for some invitation research. Not only can you gather inspiration for your own invites, but you can scope out vendors doing the work that resonates with you and your fiancé.
Start following some of your favorite vendors to get an idea of their specialties, styles, and how they work!
Image courtesy of Red Letter Day Invitations and Design
Ask friends
There’s nothing like a personal recommendation! If you still have your friend’s recent invite hanging on your fridge because it’s just too gorgeous to throw away, ask about them. Who was the designer? Where did they purchase them? Would they recommend them for your invites? You’ll get first-hand intel you can trust.
Again, that’s another reason why the BOLI brides-only Facebook group is so valuable. Think of having almost 30,000 friends who can give you their recs!
Use a search engine or chat bot
Honestly, a search engine or AI chat bot is probably the last resource to use when looking for an invitation vendor. Businesses can pay money to land at the top of your Google searches, and their placement has nothing to do with the quality of their work OR their real-life reviews. And as easy as ChatGPT is, it can be wrong quite often — it may give you the name of a “top rated” invitation vendor…that’s been out of business for a decade.
Still, Google and AI are still ways of finding invitation vendors, both on a local and national level. Just be sure to do your due diligence with any information you find.