Personalized Wedding Invitation – Do-It-Yourself Tools

This is it! You're getting married. It's special. You're different from other couples. So why should your wedding look the same as theirs?

Many couples are personalizing their wedding with do-it-yourself tools for a unique look that is also cost-effective and time-efficient. Recognizing this desire, HP is announcing the "HP Signature Style Wedding Contest," where one lucky couple will win a Signature Style kit to help them create their perfect wedding.

The kit, valued at approximately $4,000, includes state-of-the-art digital photography and printing devices, the artistic guidance of a creative director and a digital photographer to capture magic moments (more details below).

"The desire to personalize one's wedding is today's hottest bridal trend," said Carley Roney, editor-in-chief of TheKnot, the nation's leading online wedding resource. "No longer satisfied with the ‘cookie cutter wedding,' today's distinctive duos are tailoring the look and feel of their weddings to their own personalities, passions and heritages.

"For example, one couple who fell in love in college after meeting in an astronomy class used the constellations as their wedding theme. They put stars on their invitations, planets on the place cards, named each table after a different constellation and gave toy telescopes with a place for a photo as a wedding favor."

"You don't have to be a professional to create and customize your own wedding materials," said Kathy Stromberg, vice president of marketing, HP Imaging and Printing Group. "HP's solutions are easy to use and work well together so virtually anyone can enhance their life's events and individualize them in an affordable way."

According to Roney, there are many simple and affordable ways to make your nuptials unique. Here are five of her favorite personalization ideas:

Put your stamp on it. Use a meaningful symbol and repeat it on printed materials like invitations, reply cards and seating cards. Consider the location of your wedding, an ethnic or religious symbol, or something that has meaning to you such as the first flower he ever gave to you.
Show your signature style. Consider using your symbol as inspiration for other aspects of your wedding. If the theme is the beach, a seashell could be used as a charm for bridesmaid necklaces, shell-shaped chocolates can be given as favors and add seashells and sand to centerpieces.
Make your ceremony meaningful. Share your souls and incorporate your backgrounds. Write your own vows or include readings from your favorite book. Explain your ceremony rituals in a wedding program, which could also include the names of your wedding party members and why they mean so much to you.
Have fun with your food. Name and create your own signature style cocktail and serve it during the cocktail reception. Incorporate ethnic heritage into the menu. Have the caterer make a special dish that means something to your family and list it as such on the menu.
Something to remember you by. Hand out edible favors made or grown locally like jam or peaches and attach a meaningful line from a poem or a quote on the bag. Take a photo of the "sweet" couple and affix it as the label. Create your own "greatest hits" CD and design a jewel case cover with a photo of the two of you.

About The Author:

Annie Walker is a successful author and regular contributor to http://www.wedding-invitations-n-online.com. Find all types of wedding invitations such as printable, unique, discount, winter, theme, traditional plus more.