About six to eight months prior to your wedding, give guests a heads up to the planned event. It's especially important to use save-the-date cards if you're planning a wedding to coincide with a three-day weekend, or want guests to plan to travel to your upcoming nuptials. Send save-the-date cards only to those you definitely want to attend; you don't need to send them to everyone on the list. The addressees are the potential guests, so be clear as to whether the whole family is invited or just the couple, and if a single friend can bring a date.
Step 1
Choose the program to design the card, such as Microsoft Word, OpenOffice, Microsoft Publishing, Print Shop or Paint. Depending on the amount of graphics you're adding, you may find a publication program meets your needs better than a simple word processing program.
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Step 2
Choose the post card option in your software. Using this option lets you print four cards on a single sheet of cardstock and save on postage using postcard stamps instead of letter stamps.
Step 3
Create the style of your save-the-date card based on your wedding. Start with your wedding colors to set the tone of your card. Add fonts and graphics that reflect your wedding, such as formal, whimsical or casual.
Step 4
Add the details. Include the date and location of the wedding, as well as your website address for wedding details, if you have one. If your wedding includes travel, include the hotel location and whether blocks of rooms are set aside for the wedding guests.
Step 5
Import photo or clip art to your card design. Keep it simple to avoid too much clutter. The key information is the date of the wedding, who is invited and whether guests need to plan now for travel.
Step 6
Run a test print of only one copy to ensure your cards print properly and don't have typos or incorrect information.
Step 7
Print the rest of the cards. Keep a few extra in case of printing errors, paper jams or for people down the road who you may have inadvertently overlooked.
Step 8
Cut apart into individual postcards. Address them on the blank side, place a postcard stamp and mail.
Tip
Try taking an artistic photo of the engagement ring or the wedding location. Use your software to make the image translucent and set it as a background. Then position your writing over it.
Add personal creative flourishes after the cards are printed, such as a wax seal, puffy stickers or a hand-written signature in gold pen.
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