Pricey Paper

I believe in going paperless as much as possible so when I encountered the "Paper Products" item on our to-do list, I cringed. (Insert comment from Jeng about how much of a snob I am.) Invitations are tradition, but it shocks me just how complicated and expensive they are. In the wedding world, an invitation may contain upwards of 6 pieces: Invitation, Reception Card, Directions Card, RSVP Card and 2 envelopes (one for RSVP and one for the invitation itself). In addition to that, there's a Save-the-Date announcement, wedding ceremony program, reception name cards, reception menu cards, reception table number cards, thank you cards... blah blah blah. My eyes glaze over and all I see are $$$ going down the drain. So once again, I face a crossroads -- do I:

A) Go cheap and do an Evite?
Tempting but this event probably shouldn't be on the same level as the everyday birthday party. And there are some folks on our list who (gasp!) don't have email. Crazy but true.

B) Find a cheap do-it-yourself method?
There are some great templates:

And I could have some fun with it:

C) Bite the bullet and pay the pretty penny?
With prices starting at $8 each, nice invitations cost more than your daily Starbucks fix. And I truly believe my guests would much rather me buy them a coffee than send them a invitation they'll eventually throw away. Hmm...

I haven't made a decision yet but none of my options are very appealing so I'm going to hold off on this one as long as possible. In the meantime, look out for our Save the Date postcards in the next few weeks. That should tide you all over for now.