Oops! In getting ready to reveal the invitation suite to you all, I found this post about my pocketfolds that I made. I forgot to post these pictures from a looooong time ago. Maid Britney and I worked on these back in April, when I was in Dallas for a week with meetings for work. I didn’t want to reveal them too early or anything...so I kept them to myself. And then forgot that I never posted about them! LOL. Too funny. 
So here are the pocketfolds that I made. I really, really loved pocketfolds, as I posted about here, and wanted them badly. But I didn’t like the high price tag that was also associated with them...so I sent about making them myself. In that post written so long ago, I theorized that I would be able to make them for $.06 a piece following these basic instructions. Let’s see how good I did, shall we?
First off, I had to decide on paper. Then I had to find it in a length and thickness that I could live with for the price. To make the invites in one continuous sheet, I had to purchase paper that was oversized. But being oversized has it’s plusses as well – I found out that I could get 4 pocketfolds per sheet of paper, and still have a good remainder cut left for another project at a later time. (Yes, I’ve saved those scraps all these months...just waiting to re-use them!) In hindsight, I wish that I had gone with a slightly heavier weight on the paper, but that’s hindsight for you – not a big deal, just a personal preference. I went with what was recommended, so I can’t complain.
The problem with oversized paper? It has to be cut down. And I can barely walk a straight line, much less cut one...so off to Kinko’s I went. I had heard (or read) somewhere that Kinko’s would cut down oversized paper, and I had all the dimensions that I needed handy. Maid Britney and I set off, and came to an abrupt halt. Yes, the guy behind the counter at Kinko’s told me, they could cut the paper for me, but it would be $1 per cut...and with 3 cuts to a page...and 25 sheets to cut...yeah, you’re doing the math aren’t you? I was, and I was NOT going to pay $75 for cutting charges. Then he flashed his charming smile and said the magic words: “Or you can use our cutter for free and do it yourself.” Magic words, I tell you.
Once the cutting was done, Maid Britney and I went back to her apartment and set up our assembly line. First things, make the template out of something heavier than my copier paper taken from work. (Gasp! The horror!) Using some cardstock that she had leftover from her own wedding, Maid Britney quickly made a template that showed us where to cut in and where to cut out to form the pocketfolds. We fell into a pattern. She traced. I cut. We repeated this process about 100 times. And we were very, very BAD...we took NO pictures of this process! Shame on us!
Next, I notched off where the scores needed to be made for folding and we tried one just to see how it worked. Note to all other brides out there attempting this: Invest in the $4 bone folder. It’s worth it. Enough said. After I notched where the folds needed to be made, Maid Britney dutifully went back and scored the creases for me. By this time, it was getting late...so I assured Maid Britney that I could put the double-sided tape on myself at a later date.
Fast forward a week. Yes, they sat there like that, just half-finished for a full week. I spent a few nights in front of the television with my small paper cutter and a pair of scissors, measuring and cutting the strips of double-sided tape to make the pockets out of.
Following these instructions (that I liked even better), even buying the brand of tape that she recommended, the process was simple. I measured off pieces of tape about 3” long, about 15 at a time, and then would go about putting them sticky side down along each side of the pocket.
Then, I could simply peel off the top protective layer to the tape and a clear piece of double-sided tape was left to create the pocket with. This was a pretty painless process. Other than a little eye strain that I inflicted upon myself trying to line up the tape as close to the edge as possible without going over the edge. Yes, I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again – OCD, much?
All in all, the process was fast, painless and produced great results. Were all the pocketfolds exactly straight? No. Did I notice when I assembled the invitations four months later? Not really. (OK, I’ll be honest, I DID notice a few and simply went back and corrected the top fold with my bone folder. Problem solved!) Were they gorgeous and totally worth the money and time spent? Hell, YES they were! Big impact, low cost – always good in my book.
Here’s the cost breakdown for you:
Oversized paper: $39.90 (25 sheets)
Double-sided tape: $9.71 (had to buy 3 rolls)
Bone folder: $4.33
(Paper trimmer and scissors were the only other materials used, and I already owned them.)
That brings the total cost to $53.94. I made 100 of them, not knowing how many I would need in the end, which makes each pocketfold $.54 a piece. I think that I was pretty close in my estimate back in March! (Of course, that doesn’t factor in my time and labor!)
Do you like the look of pocketfold invitations? Did you crave them (like me) but didn’t want to pay the outrageous price for them? Did you try to do them youself? How did they turn out?
So here are the pocketfolds that I made. I really, really loved pocketfolds, as I posted about here, and wanted them badly. But I didn’t like the high price tag that was also associated with them...so I sent about making them myself. In that post written so long ago, I theorized that I would be able to make them for $.06 a piece following these basic instructions. Let’s see how good I did, shall we?First off, I had to decide on paper. Then I had to find it in a length and thickness that I could live with for the price. To make the invites in one continuous sheet, I had to purchase paper that was oversized. But being oversized has it’s plusses as well – I found out that I could get 4 pocketfolds per sheet of paper, and still have a good remainder cut left for another project at a later time. (Yes, I’ve saved those scraps all these months...just waiting to re-use them!) In hindsight, I wish that I had gone with a slightly heavier weight on the paper, but that’s hindsight for you – not a big deal, just a personal preference. I went with what was recommended, so I can’t complain.
The problem with oversized paper? It has to be cut down. And I can barely walk a straight line, much less cut one...so off to Kinko’s I went. I had heard (or read) somewhere that Kinko’s would cut down oversized paper, and I had all the dimensions that I needed handy. Maid Britney and I set off, and came to an abrupt halt. Yes, the guy behind the counter at Kinko’s told me, they could cut the paper for me, but it would be $1 per cut...and with 3 cuts to a page...and 25 sheets to cut...yeah, you’re doing the math aren’t you? I was, and I was NOT going to pay $75 for cutting charges. Then he flashed his charming smile and said the magic words: “Or you can use our cutter for free and do it yourself.” Magic words, I tell you.
Once the cutting was done, Maid Britney and I went back to her apartment and set up our assembly line. First things, make the template out of something heavier than my copier paper taken from work. (Gasp! The horror!) Using some cardstock that she had leftover from her own wedding, Maid Britney quickly made a template that showed us where to cut in and where to cut out to form the pocketfolds. We fell into a pattern. She traced. I cut. We repeated this process about 100 times. And we were very, very BAD...we took NO pictures of this process! Shame on us!
Next, I notched off where the scores needed to be made for folding and we tried one just to see how it worked. Note to all other brides out there attempting this: Invest in the $4 bone folder. It’s worth it. Enough said. After I notched where the folds needed to be made, Maid Britney dutifully went back and scored the creases for me. By this time, it was getting late...so I assured Maid Britney that I could put the double-sided tape on myself at a later date.
Fast forward a week. Yes, they sat there like that, just half-finished for a full week. I spent a few nights in front of the television with my small paper cutter and a pair of scissors, measuring and cutting the strips of double-sided tape to make the pockets out of.
Following these instructions (that I liked even better), even buying the brand of tape that she recommended, the process was simple. I measured off pieces of tape about 3” long, about 15 at a time, and then would go about putting them sticky side down along each side of the pocket.
Then, I could simply peel off the top protective layer to the tape and a clear piece of double-sided tape was left to create the pocket with. This was a pretty painless process. Other than a little eye strain that I inflicted upon myself trying to line up the tape as close to the edge as possible without going over the edge. Yes, I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again – OCD, much?
All in all, the process was fast, painless and produced great results. Were all the pocketfolds exactly straight? No. Did I notice when I assembled the invitations four months later? Not really. (OK, I’ll be honest, I DID notice a few and simply went back and corrected the top fold with my bone folder. Problem solved!) Were they gorgeous and totally worth the money and time spent? Hell, YES they were! Big impact, low cost – always good in my book.Here’s the cost breakdown for you:
Oversized paper: $39.90 (25 sheets)
Double-sided tape: $9.71 (had to buy 3 rolls)
Bone folder: $4.33
(Paper trimmer and scissors were the only other materials used, and I already owned them.)
That brings the total cost to $53.94. I made 100 of them, not knowing how many I would need in the end, which makes each pocketfold $.54 a piece. I think that I was pretty close in my estimate back in March! (Of course, that doesn’t factor in my time and labor!)
Do you like the look of pocketfold invitations? Did you crave them (like me) but didn’t want to pay the outrageous price for them? Did you try to do them youself? How did they turn out?
Posts
Those look greay! And that price is definitely much more agreeable than already-made pocketfolds (plus you got to spend time with one of your girls)! I do like pocketfolds - I thik they look nice and clean. I'm not sure if I'd personally want them ... but I will think of you if I decide to do them myself!
ReplyDelete