How to Save Money on Wedding Programs

While not the most necessary element of a wedding ceremony, a wedding program can make your guests feel more involved in the proceedings and make a nice edition to your scrapbook. You can save money on wedding programs through several different techniques, depending on your timeframe and your preference.

Instructions

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Things You’ll Need:

• Thick wedding program paper
• Access to a computer and printer
• Patience and time to shop around
• Various materials and accessories

1. Determine if your ceremony needs a wedding program. You’re unlikely to need a wedding program if your ceremony is small or informal. You will probably need a wedding program if your wedding is large with many guests who are not likely to know one another, has many speakers or performers, or is a formal religious or traditional ceremony.
2. Make your own wedding programs. The cheapest way is to make them from scratch. The price will go up if you order a fancy template.
3. Use a word processing program to format your wedding program. Microsoft word is probably the simplest .You will need thick paper (at least 32 lb paper), scissors, some ribbon, a hole-punch and a printer.
4. Purchase a wedding program kit. You can typically find these at a craft or stationary store. A number of Web sites provide DIY wedding program kits.
5. Keep it simple. Limit the wedding program to 1 page by only including the essentials. Pass on the ribbons or decorative trimming.
6. Go to as many stores and Web sites as possible. If you insist on having your wedding programs professionally furnished, make sure you shop around. Try ordering the template version and do the assembling or printing yourself at home or at Kinko’s.

Tips & Warnings

• When doing your own printing, don’t print anything before you’ve done some experimentation with the layout.
• Keep in mind it takes time to make wedding programs or to wait for them to come in the mail.
• Make sure the wedding programs have been proofread before you have a company print off hundreds of copies.
• Non acid-free paper won’t hold up as well in a scrapbook, so it might be worth the extra expense.
• Employees at Kinko’s or a similar printing store probably won’t be as careful cutting and assembling wedding programs as you will. If you’re letting them do it, make sure you observe.

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