Ready to send your Save the Dates or invites out, but frustrated because you can only find 44 cent customized stamps online? The folks at Zazzle to the rescue!  Zazzle offers customized stamps in 8 different denominations:

• $0.28: postcards
• $0.44: First-class, 1 oz
• $0.64: 1 oz mailings, unusual shapes
• $0.61: 2 oz mailings
• $0.78: 3 oz mailings
• $0.95: 3.5 oz mailings
• $1.39: 4 oz mailings
• $4.95: upto 16 oz for Priority mailings

Customize your stamps with whatever your heart desires – a photo, your logo or motif, your monogram, your favorite flower, the options are endless and the end result is a lovely detail that will make your wedding stationery suite standout.

So, how much postage do you need?  If you’re sending a postcard, it’s kind of a no-brainer but for anything else — your Save the Dates and your actual invitations (the invitation, the RSVP card, directions and anything else being included in the invitation) — take the entire invitation with you to the Post Office to have it weighed so that you know exactly how much postage it requires.  Then, choose the design for your custom stamps and place your order.  When ordering customized stamps, make sure you choose stamps that are the right size for your envelope (small, medium or large as well as horizontal vs. vertical).  Zazzle does a fairly quick turn-around, but don’t wait until the last minute to order your stamps.  The downside of customized stamps is the cost.  A sheet of 20 LOVE stamps from the Post Office costs $8.80, a sheet of 20 customized stamps from Zazzle starts at $17.95.  You do the math and decide if the price of customization is worth the extra special detail to you.

So, when should all of these mailings take place?

• Save the Dates should be mailed 4 to 6 months before the wedding.
• Wedding Invitations 6 to 8 weeks before the wedding.
• Wedding Announcements should be sent out the day of the wedding.

For postage etiquette from A to Z on topics ranging from dealing with divorced parents, determining whose names should be on the invitation and all the other pertinent information to be included, how to address your envelopes, and how to properly stuff your wedding invitations check out the following websites: Invitation Advice and WedAlert.  And if you’re in New York, check out The Stationery Library at The Wedding Library or Kate’s Paperie for beautiful invites and everything you wanted to know about wedding stationery and then some.

It’s your BIG DAY. You’ve got to find the perfect dress.   Someone told you that once you find the right dress everything else will fall into place.  Hmmm … Most of us have in some way shape or form, at some point in time, fantasized about our wedding day and have envisioned ourselves in a cloud of white.  A big pouffy confection, sleek and sexy, Victorian, sophisticated, old world romantic, haute couture, beaded and sparkly, minimalist, short, low-cut, back-out, long, and the list continues; your perfect dress is out there, you just have to find it.

The task will be much easier if you figure out where you’re going to say I Do, before you make the rounds at all of the bridal boutiques – Amsale, Vera Wang, Saks, Mark Ingram, Claire Pettibone, Monique Lhuillier, Reem Acra, Kleinfelds, Atelier Amiee, Carolina Herrera, Jana Starr, JCrew, Jenny Packham, Junko Yoshioka, Lela Rose, Nicole Miller, Priscilla of Boston, Pronovias, Selia Yang - to name a few (whew, I’m exhausted and I haven’t even hit the tip of the iceberg!)

Last week the New York Times reported that it’s not uncommon for brides to make multiple wedding dress purchases in the quest for the perfect dress.  Not you? That’s what I thought too – but, trust me, it’s very easy to get caught up in All Things Bridal (I was a 2-dress bride, one for the wedding ceremony and one for the PARTY!, but I must admit that I do own 3 wedding gowns – I’m going to sell the Plan B dress on OnceWed, I just haven’t gotten around to it yet).

How to find the Perfect Wedding Dress:

1. Secure your venue before buying your wedding dress.  The beautiful sleek sophisticated structured wedding gown you’ve always dreamed of may not be the perfect dress for your laid-back wedding on Martha’s Vineyard.
2. Flip through magazines and look at wedding dresses online to get a sense of the kinds of dresses you’re attracted to. If you can give a salesperson a sense of what you’re looking for it will make it much easier for them to help you.
3. Wear well-fitting and proper undergarments when you go to try on wedding gowns.  Nude colored is best, leave the black skivvies at home.  If you’ve got some bits that need a little taming, bring your shapewear with you as well.
4. Only buy a wedding dress that makes your heart leap! (not your mom’s, not your bestfriend’s, not the saleswoman’s) Don’t buy a wedding dress that’s a great price but you feel lukewarm about it.  You’re going to keep looking and you will end up buying another that makes you’re heart leap.
5. When you go shopping for your wedding dress take no more than 1 or 2 trusted advisors. Too many opinions can make what should be a fun process stressful and overwhelming.
6. Stay within your budget (the right dress at the wrong price is not the perfect dress).
7. If all else fails and the task of finding the perfect wedding dress seems too daunting, stylist Allison Berlin will hold your hand through the process.

Don’t stress out about finding the perfect wedding dress.  There are tons of dresses out there to choose from, you may not find “The Dress” on your first shopping expedition, but whatever path you choose, trust that you will find the perfect wedding dress in due course.

[images clockwise from center - Claire Pettibone, Calvin Klein, Elie Saab, Shahin Design (gold dress), Daily Candy Weddings, Jenny Packham, Vera Wang, Christos, Vivienne Westwood, Alix&Kelly, Maggie Sottera, Alix&Kelly]

Are they necessary?  No.  Are the helpful?  Yes.

Wedding websites are perfect for destination weddings.  Remember, destination weddings are not only those in some exotic sunny locale; if you live in Chicago and are saying “I Do” there too, but most of your family and friends are traveling to Chicago for the big event, you are having a destination wedding.  So, why go through the hassle of setting up a wedding website?

1. A wedding website will provide your guests with pertinent information about your wedding — event times, gift registry, hotel options, etc.;
2. A wedding website will give your out-of-town family and friends an opportunity to be a part of your planning process;
3. If you take the time to upload pictures of your family and friends, a wedding website will give your guests a chance to meet one another virtually before arriving at your wedding; and
4. A wedding website will lessen the amount of phone calls and emails you get from family and friends asking questions about event times, your gift registry, travel arrangements and the like.  Honestly, they’ll still call but you can deftly direct them to your wedding website!

So, how do you find the right wedding website?  There are a ton out there, some are free and some aren’t (average cost is about $60).  All have some sort of free trial and a bunch of interesting templates to choose from.  Every wedding website contains essentially the same components — Greeting, Bride’s Story, Groom’s Story, Our Engagement Story, Gift Registry, Guest Book, Guest Information, Wedding Party, and Photo Albums.

A word-to-the-wise, while almost all of these sites are very easy to set-up and permit a great deal of customization, set-aside a good chunk of time (at least one evening or weekend afternoon) to upload your photos and information. Create your wedding website shortly after you get engaged to minimize the amount of time you spend focused on your wedding website once the wedding planning really begins.

Free wedding websites:  the knot, Wedding Jojo, Wedding Wire, Project Wedding.

Paid wedding websites:  Wedding Window, Wedsite, E-Wedding, nearlywed.

[image from www.zmweb.com]

STATIONERY SOCIAL
with
Linda Hays
at the
Wedding Library
December 8
6-8pm

Do you still need wedding stationery?
You need to know the answers to these questions!

· What’s the difference between engraving, letterpress and flat printing?  And what is thermography?
· How early should you order your save-the-dates?
· What’s the formal wording for an invitation?
· How many invites should you order?
· How do you find a calligrapher?

They’ll have inspirational OTT stationery — celebrity sets, fun and creative ideas, and super fancy samples!

Go to learn all you need to know about your wedding invitations
you’ll be glad you did
Please call 212-327-0100 to RSVP or email ido@theweddinglibrary.com

Wooo hooo!!!! You’ve secured the church (temple, hall or wherever you plan to say I Do), you’ve made a deposit on your wedding/reception venue which means you finally have your wedding date.  Now, you need to let your friends and family know when and where The BIG Day will be.  Once you figure out who you’re inviting, you’ve gotta make sure you give them advance notice of your wedding date so that they can Save the Date.  There’s no “right” or “wrong” way to let folks know when your wedding is going to take place . . . but let’s just say that an Evite, while a useful invitation for lots of events, may not exactly set the right tone.  Your Save the Date is the first glimpse your guests will get into your wedding.  Be creative, this is an opportunity for you as a couple to give your friends and family a sense of your style as a couple. Fun photos, magnets, coasters, postcards from the city you’re getting married in, a map, vintage hankies stamped with your names and date, bookmarks, custom letterpress cards, cards using a motif or logo specifically designed for you are just a few of the many ways to express your creativity and get your guests excited about coming to celebrate your nuptials.  Spend some time at a stationery store or two, think about your color or colors, the font you want to use and your overall theme as you choose your Save the Dates.  My grandmother always said, “if you’re going to do something, do it ‘right’.”  My twist on her mantra is, “if you’re going to do something, you might as well do it stylishly!”

[top image by Kyle Hanks & bottom image from  A Sweet Life]

WHEN: December 2nd – December 6th

WHERE: Saks Fifth Avenue, 611 5th Avenue (btwn 51st & 52nd), 9th Floor

WHY: Come on, really why not?  Are you looking for a confection? Slinky sexy sophistication? Whatever your heart desires will be there and then some – dresses by Monique Lhuillier, Amsale, Vera Wange, Reem Acra, Kenneth Pool and more at up to 70% off of the original retail prices.  Get the dress of your dreams for a fraction of the price!