Top Ten Styles of Wedding Invitations

There are many different ideas when it comes to wedding invitations, so it is important to look at the style that fits best, before you decide which invitations to send out. Wedding invitations are an important part of the wedding planning process because it provides your guests with valuable information about the ceremony. These ten commonly used invitation styles can help you find the best choice for your wedding.

Traditional

The traditional themed wedding invitation is making a comeback because of its simplicity, which many couples like to have. The traditional wedding invitation is a rectangular shape made from one sheet. This style generally has printing on the front of the invitation in a scripted font without any other decorations or designs. Although it is very simple and plain to look at, the couples who choose it do so for its simplicity. This is also a style typically used with formal weddings.

Contemporary

The contemporary wedding invitation is something that is drastically different from the traditional style. It is a wedding invitation that can be in any shape and in any size, and the couples usually choose it because they can customize it to their own needs and wants. This style is perfect for destination weddings. The couple may also choose to incorporate a picture on the invitation. There are many excellent choices available when choosing a modern themed wedding invitation.

One Fold

Invitations that fold in half are also very common today. On the front of the invite, there is usually a quote or lyrics from a song, or even a picture. When the invite is unfolded, the information important information about the wedding can be found. These can be opened sideways, like a traditional greeting card, or it can be opened top to bottom. Either way, many couples are choosing to use them.

Two Fold

Two fold wedding invitations were not used in the past because they take up a lot of room and can be heavy and expensive to buy. However, many couples have started to use them, especially if they can print the invitations all by themselves. These are designs that have a lot more information than the traditional invitations, because the have more room. The first fold usually has information about the couple, and the middle fold usually has information about the wedding itself.

Religious

For very religious weddings, designs like crosses and religious symbols are becoming very important to use on wedding invitations. You can find many different design elements that include religious items or symbols, and if this is something that is very important to you and your spouse-to-be, it is important to use a wedding invitation that matches your needs.

Cultural

Many people are putting cultural ideas or decorations onto their wedding invitations because they want to celebrate the mixture of two different cultures in their wedding. These can include using Celtic knots as decoration, or even using traditional colors and designs of the Native Americans. Either way, using cultural designs on wedding invitations is becoming quite popular.

Theme Oriented

A big idea when it comes to wedding invitations is to incorporate the theme into the actual invitation itself. This can mean fall leaves on an invitation, or invitations in the shape of snowflakes for a winter wedding. It can also mean a beach scene on the wedding invitation to indicate that the wedding takes place on the beach.

Transparent

A newer addition to wedding invitations are invitations that have transparent sheets added to them. A wedding invite might have a photograph underneath a semi-transparent sheet of film over the top of it. This adds depth to the wedding invitation and makes it much more fancy and interesting to look at. It can be an idea for a formal or informal wedding.

Illustrated

Another idea that is hitting the market when it comes to wedding invitations is the illustrated invitations. These have either a picture of the couple on the invitation, or a drawing of them or something else on the invite. Because illustrations were not normally used for wedding invitations, the illustrations on these types of invitations can be very interesting and can make for a completely different theme when it comes to wedding invites in general.

Non-Conventional

There are several different non-conventional wedding invitations that are out there on the market today, and couples who seek to be completely different usually do these. Often, they are used for destination weddings, as they often incorporate the overall theme. They can be airline tickets that fit into a pocket, messages in a bottle, or even cloth and paper leaves with the wedding information written on them. Non-conventional wedding invitations are usually done by hand or they are purchased one at a time, so they can be quite expensive.

Differences Between Modern and Classic Wedding Invitations

Wedding invitations are once in a life-time expense and creating a unique one takes time and effort. However, it may be hard to decide whether you want a modern or a classic invitation. In present times, some people think that the lines between the two have blurred. But still there are certain features that set them apart. So, if you are not able to decide whether to pick a modern or a classic wedding invitation for yourself then here is a brief on both types.

Paper Used

The first thing that differs in modern and classic wedding invitations is the paper used. The classic ones were and are still printed on heavy paper, i.e. white paper. This is used for all parts of the invitations except the liner. A tissue paper is used for this line that is put over the invitation. In contrast to this, a modern wedding invitation uses any high quality paper. Such paper is available in different colors and one can choose depending upon the theme of the invitation. These are more vibrant in colors and designs and that is why becoming more popular.

Colors Used

Another different between the two categories is the color choice. The traditional wedding invitations use only white or ecru. Touches of pearl, gold and silver are used for borders and for accenting embossed elements. However, the color choice seems to be very less but they could be appealing for many couples. Moreover, these invitations do not have any ornaments or adornments. The only thing that is catchy is the wording used. The words are, in most cases, engraved in wither white or black. Some modern wedding invitations try to capture the classic essence by using engraving as the printing technique.

The modern wedding invitations can be made in various vibrant colors. Couples can choose to craft their invitation in chocolate, pink, apple green or even turquoise. Today, these invitations are not merely formal but a mix bag of formal and casual invitation.

Embellishments

Modern wedding invitations use a lot of embellishments. You can find a good variety of shells, jackets, ribbons and other such ornaments that are added to an invitation. These are used to add to the charm and appeal. They do not recognize any limitation in using decorative items.

The Text

Another thing that differs between the classic and modern wedding invitations is the wording used. The classic ones use very formal wording for the invitation. But the modern couples want their invitations to be a reflection of their own personality. So, a bit of humor, passion, love and pleasure is added to the serenity and commitment of the words.

You can create a unique card by creating an amalgam of both the classic and modern wedding invitations too!

Summary: There are many fine differences between the classic and modern wedding invitations. The choice of paper, the color choice, the text style, the printing style, the wording and the embellishments are different for both types of invitations. Some designers are trying to give modern touch to classics and classical touch to modern.