{A Review of the Top 3 Online Vendors Plus 1 Local Option}

Wedding invitations are the first impression your guests receive that will set the tone and feel for your wedding day. Having a love for intricate details and a design background myself, I go crazy over beautifully designed stationary products! I know that picking out or designing wedding stationary can be overwhelming to some brides so I have decided to review the top 3 online wedding invitation vendors that offer FREE samples, plus a local option, to give you a better idea of the products they offer and the design process!

Shutterfly

First of all, just quickly browsing the website, I was completely shocked at some of the beautiful designs that Shutterfly has to offer including personalized foil and pearl shimmer cardstock! You can choose to order the sample kit and receive a random selection of options or choose 5 of your favorite designs and add your own personal wedding info. Both options are free, BUT the later doesn’t include foil-stamped or glitter. I decided to go with the sample kit. Some of the single invitation samples I received were a bit commercial looking but the full invitation suite was stunning and looked custom designed. The invite came complete with a RSVP card, envelopes and pressed copper foil that followed a teal ombre watercolor painting (that had my heart swooning) on BOTH cards! High quality cardstock along with up to 5 different trim shapes and tri-fold layouts are some of the options Shutterfly offers. To say that I was blown away was an understatement! I never knew Shutterfly offered such high quality design and products! Plus with pricing being very affordable, they definitely made the list for me to review.

Minted

It’s no secret that Minted is one of the top contenders when it comes to wedding invitations. Their stationary is the direct product of individual artists around the globe. The designs are GORGEOUS and Minted offers many more options than it’s competitors. Foil-pressed, letterpress, new Gloss-Press (exclusive to Minted), up to 6 different trim shapes, up to 5 different paper types including Luxe Museum Board (a jaw-dropping surprise for your guests to open!), all in one tri-fold cards, folded cards and even mini books, just to name a few. With added features comes added price. Minted is over double the price of some of their competitors, but in my opinion, if it’s within your budget, it’s worth it to really set the stage for your wedding guests.

The free sample kit I ordered came in this beautiful peach box complete with tons of information on all of Minted’s products plus paper, foil and color swatches on the left and on the right were several individual invitation samples and an entirely full invitation suite. The invitation included a foil pressed, watercolor floral invite in gorgeous purple hues, topped with a watercolor vellum overlay all bundled up with a foil pressed belly band with scripted initials. A beautiful deep plum envelope adorned with a calligraphic address and a watercolor print liner, matching response card and fully designed envelope, matching thank you card plus reception name card to complete the full suite. You can even choose to work with one of Minted’s amazing designers to completely customize your suite to your wedding style for an additional fee.

Elli

Elli offers a large variety of beautifully designed wedding invites with matching response, enclosure and thank you cards, plus envelope liners. I was able to hand pick 3 invitation samples to have sent directly to me. The only bummer was the samples only contained the invitation instead of an entire suite. Elli’s website is super easy to navigate and although they offer less options then other sites, Elli made it easy for me to quickly put together something I loved. If you are someone that gets easily overwhelmed with too many options and add-ons then Elli is for you! They keep it simple and sleek. The best part is customization is completely FREE! Tweak your invitation design to represent your specific wedding style perfectly with one of their talented designers.

Phoenix Home Studio 

I am a HUGE advocate for supporting small business so it was a MUST for me to include a local option. Sarah Mayer, owner of Phoenix Home Studio, lives, breathes and dreams design and it reflects on all things she does. Her business mainly focuses on interior design and reupholstered furniture but she loves to step back and work on the computer to create through a different medium. Not only does Sarah design wedding invitations, but also designing for businesses, websites and party invites have been so rewarding for her.  Sarah can take her interior design experience and transform it to a completely custom designed wedding invitation making something beautiful and unique. The best part about working with someone locally is that you can meet up in person to describe every aspect of your day in order to curate a suite that coincides seamlessly with your day. Check out Sarah’s website here!