Hear me out here, I know it's the "Done thing" but we're in 2022 now, and I've been reading a lot about wedding websites, and how an increasing number of couples are ditching the stationary and turning to the good old world wide web for their wedding invites.
Although I'm lucky enough to have an incredibly crafty partner who loves nothing more than the opportunity to make hundreds of invites, let's face it, wedding stationery is expensive, time-consuming and waiting for a long list of people to post back an RSVP can be a real pain when venues and caterers are pushing you for dietary requirements and final numbers for your big day.
It doesn't have to be this way though!
Yeah, I get tradition plays a huge part in wedding planning, but would you rather spend hundreds of pounds on wedding invites, or stick to tradition? To me, it's far better to save that cash and put it towards something else at your wedding, or even your honeymoon.
So how do we do it?
Simple really. Let's be clear from the get-go, you don't HAVE to be some kind of technological dynamo, to build a website. Sites like Wix and Squarespace are awesome places to start, with many sites offering free website plans, with professional-looking templates to get you started. If you can use Microsoft word, you can build a website, trust me. Even if you do deviate away from those templates, everything really is as simple as just filling out a text box and uploading a few photos here and there.
"Okay Jono, the idea of building a website really is out of my comfort zone. Any other ideas?"
I'm glad you asked!
Facebook. Now, I'll be the first person to admit, that Facebook is both a blessing and a curse. You can easily whittle away hours of your day just mindlessly scrolling through memes, nosing into other people's business and procrastinating when you really should be doing something more productive.
Now, on the other hand, in terms of wedding invites, Facebook really does have its advantages. Not only have you already got a pre-populated list of your friends and family (Including your grandma who loves to share lost dog pictures from the other side of the country!) it also has a neat little tab called "events".
Now, I'm not suggesting you post a public event for everyman and his lost dog to attend, as you really do want to pay attention to the privacy settings when creating your event on Facebook before you go about firing off a million invites. Ensure you're inviting the correct people, and assign the correct permissions to stop people just mindlessly adding plus ones here and there. Really do make sure the event is private, and that you are in full control of the page!
Once you've done that, you've got a premade page, which has cost you absolutely nothing. Instead of waiting around for the postman to get back to you with answers, chances are, people can respond instantly from their phone, and weeks of waiting for answers literally turns into seconds!
Now you've got your Facebook page or website, there's tons more that you can do with it, so let's get creative!
Not only can we deal with the RSVPs in a heartbeat, but you can also ask all sorts of other questions to your guests including the normal dietary requirements and the like.
Why not take a few song requests in advance? Nothing is guaranteed to get your guests up on the dance floor quite like their favourite song. Compile a list of their requests and fire it over to your DJ in advance of your big day, and you'll have a packed-out dancefloor throughout the duration of your night!
Ok, so it's the day before your big day, and you're stressed out as the weather forecast has suddenly changed. It's going to be 45 degrees in the shade and you're worried people will forget to bring sun cream. You don't have the time or the budget to nip out and get a variety of different factors, for a multitude of different skin types, and you want to remind your guests to bring some with them! Simple, post an update on your event page. Obviously a completely hypothetical situation, but you get what I'm trying to say here.
Scenario number 2...
It's the morning after the night before, and you've got a fairly clear head (You read my blog from a couple of weeks ago - Well done you!). Guests were busy snapping selfies the whole day, and you'd love to see the pictures everyone took. Perfect, you've got a premade page where all the guests upload their pictures from your wedding, meaning you don't have to contact everyone individually, and you can have a good laugh at your uncle singing his heart out to sweet caroline all over again.
There are so many possibilities and options with a Facebook event or website, and I really do urge you to take a look into it. It's cheap, convenient, and a modern solution to an outdated tradition!
And just like that, that's this week's blog done and dusted.
Peace, Love and Photos.
Jono x