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DIY Pocketfold Invitation

Tips to make a two-panel pocketfold wedding invitation that is standard size and costs less to mail (community article)

I wanted a pocketfold invitation but, after making a fabulous prototype I was informed that I needed to make a Chinese version. I didn't like the idea of making two invitations, so I modified my prototype to have two panels instead of one. After a variety of modifications and changes in sizes to avoid paying extra postage or having to order custom envelopes, this was the end result:

The RSVP card: Created in Illustrator and printed on ivory cardstock.

The map: Created in Illustrator and printed on ivory paper.

The finished product fits into a standard A6 sized envelope and only needs a $.58 stamp. Yay! The burgundy cardstock, ivory linen paper and A6 ivory linen envelopes were purchased from www.thepapermillstore.com. The patterned paper was created by me in Adobe Illustrator from scanning a piece of Chinese brocaded fabric. RSVP cards were printed on ivory cardstock with clear address labels that I used for our return address.

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abattyref

02/27/2013 at 10:52 pm

Typing the text for the Chinese portion of the invitation is hard if you can't read Chinese. Neither my husband or I can read it, so we had to rely on my MIL and her brother to create the Chinese text for our wedding invitation.

Each invitation is unique to your wedding, date, and location. So it's not really possible to just copy and paste the text from someone else's invitation. Here's a little bit that I wrote about what they typically say:

http://www.projectwedding.com/biography/list/abattyref/chinese-text-for-your-invitations

And Shirley is right that you can't rely on Google Translate to do the work for you. The style of writing for Chinese wedding invitations is a very formal style. You need someone who can read Chinese to help you.

For us, my MIL's brother was able to type the text using a Chinese version of MSWord and then he emailed me the files. I was able to copy and paste the text into Adobe Illustrator making sure I used a Chinese-supported font (I had a few, and I have no idea what their names are). I also had to change the text so it read vertically since MSWord typed it left to right.

Back when I was working on my invitations, a few other brides recommended the software from www.njstar.com as one way to be able to type in Chinese. I never tried it so I can't vouch for them. But if you don't have a friend or family member who has a Chinese-text program, it's worth checking out.

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hiltoab

09/13/2012 at 08:36 pm

I created an acct just so I could thank you for this amazing template! I created invites for a friend's blessingway (think baby shower w/o games) that I'm hosting next month. They turned out so beautifully. I bought all my supplies at Michaels and had them done in a couple of evenings. I used satin ribbon for the outside band instead of paper and it softens it up and looks so beautiful. I showed them to the friend who the ceremony is for and she cried and cried. Thank you again! They turned out perfectly and I never would have been able to do it without your fantastic measurements and tips!

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shorty28

08/13/2012 at 04:18 pm

Hi. I would really like to make something like this as I'm working on a chinese american wedding. How did you make the template for the chinese wording for the invitation? My problem is I can't read mandarin but i really would like to put it on my invitations. Can anyone make a template for me?