Like I said in my first post about going green, we're going to do what we can to be eco-conscious during our wedding planning. We already do so in our regular lives, so why should it be any different for the wedding? Some things aren't going to be possible, like for example, I'd love to serve organic food during the cocktail and reception, but we're getting married at a place that has its own caterer so we have to go with what they have. We'll do what we can otherwise.
One thing we CAN control are our invites! So to save paper (and $$), we've decided to send save-the-date emails. I love paper products like the next bride and I'm excited to have actual paper invitations, but for the save-the-dates this seems right for us.
The Perks (besides helping the Earth, of course):
a) An email will bring our guests right to our wedding website with a simple click of a button, so they will definitely see it and use it for their planning. We're working hard on this website so we want everyone to take advantage of it.
b) It's free! Yeah, we could send save-the-date postcards and spend very little, but even $100 of savings is helpful and can go toward something else.
c) Most people these days are electronically oriented--our guests can bookmark our email in their iPhones, Blackberries, etc. and mark their electronic calendars (I already have my MOH's wedding next year marked in my Google Calendar, with a reminder and everything...not that I'll need it since I'm IN the wedding...) Even if they don't have a physical piece of paper on their refrigerator, it'll be hard for them to forget about their plans for 10.11.10.
If we weren't doing emails, we'd probably do magnets because people usually reuse those after the wedding, for at least a while. We got a magnet for one of the three weddings we went to over the summer, and we still have it on our fridge.
Anyway, back to emails!
In terms of how to do this, I had a few ideas. First, I read a New York Times article a while back about an online stationary company called Paperless Post, where you can design your own save-the-date or invitation on their site and pay a small fee to have them emailed out ($8.00 for 100 "Stamps"). Click here for another article about it on brides.com. I think the concept behind this is pretty cool. The "paper" looks really nice on the screen; you can see the texture and everything. I signed up and did a sample one just to try it out. Here's what our guests would see if we sent these:
Image from Paperless Post
I love how it actually shows you an envelope that you have to click to open. It's a nice touch!
Image from Paperless Post
Here's what I designed in our wedding colors. It's hard to see here (I had to take a screen shot to post this) but when it's on your screen, you can really see the texture of the paper and the shine of the text and the border. I also love this font, which they appropriately call Whimsy!
If this were an invitation and not a save-the-date, guests could even RSVP by clicking on this invite itself. To see a preview of the whole thing, click here. Impressive, huh?
As awesome as I think Paperless Post is, we've decided not to go with it because we want the save-the-dates to include a picture of us (from our engagement shoot) and we also want the design to tie-in to our wedding website.
I'll share what we decided to do in my next post!
What do you all think? Have you ever received a save-the-date email, and would you consider sending one yourself?
p.s. If you are interested in sending holiday cards and want to go green, Paperless Post has their own selection. Click here to sign up (it's free!) and check it out :o)
p.p.s. I have no affiliation with Paperless Post. I just think it's cool and decided to share.
What a great idea!! We may have to go this route if we can't get ours made up soon!
ReplyDelete