Request Free Wedding Samples From MagnetStreet Weddings

Wedding invitations are so expensive. When we were planning, I read that the average cost was $5 an invite. When you're spending that much money, you want to make sure that they are perfect and worth every penny. That's why ordering free wedding samples from MagnetStreet Weddings is so crucial.

MagnetStreet Weddings will allow you to request free wedding samples.

You have two options of sample packs to order. There's the Wedding Essentials Planning Kit, which includes various wedding stationery samples. Then, there's the custom samples where you can personalize any piece with your colors and text -- for free.

 

What I absolutely love is that you can also receive a set of swatch cards in your colors. You can create your palette and have it sent to you. I can't stress enough how important that is. 

When you're planning, you choose your colors. And those are yours. Everything in your wedding will somehow come back to those colors. Your bridesmaids dresses, your flowers, the groom's tie, your favors ... your colors will be found in all of that. So you want to see your colors before you order invitations and find out that maybe the color isn't exactly what you were thinking. Because if that invitation color is off, you may have to revamp everything that follows.

The struggle is real, guys.

The only downfall of these free wedding samples, if you can call it that, is MagnetStreet has so many options. And you can only choose up to $20 worth of free wedding samples. So, if you're torn and can't decide, ask your mom or your maid of honor to request a couple for you.

You can personalize any piece of MagnetStreet's stationery -- save the dates, invitations, programs, reception items, and thank you cards. You're able to play around with the site's free wedding invitation templates, customize the cards exactly how you think you want them, and then, add the items to your cart. 

At checkout, enter the code WED20SAMPLES to get up to $20 worth of fully personalized samples.

When they arrive, you'll be able to decide if you actually like them and how they look, or if you want to choose a different stationery package.

We actually used MagnetStreet for our wedding programs and our thank you cards. We were able to match our exact colors and styles since we ordered both from the same website. And that's a big help. If you're like me and you want everything to be coordinated, you want a site where you can get matching save the date and wedding invitations. Or, in our case, matching programs and thank you cards.

It just makes everything look so much more cohesive.

BRIDAL BABBLE: Have you ordered your free wedding samples from MagnetStreet Weddings? What did you choose?

The Ultimate Guide To Save The Date Cards (& win 2 sets of custom cards, ends 3/5)

This The Ultimate Guide To Save The Date Cards is sponsored. All thoughts and opinions belong to A Bride On A Budget.

One of the very first wedding planning tasks you'll tackle is your save the dates. This is one of the first ways that your guests will get any details on your wedding ... and the first way that they'll know they're invited to your wedding. You want to set a tone with them -- and you also want to make sure you have everything you need on them.

Worry not. I'm here to help. This Ultimate Guide To Save The Date Cards will give you all the information you need to send out the perfect save the date.

The Ultimate Guide To Save The Date Cards

You need to pick your date and venue before you send out your save the dates. You'll also need to put together your guest list.

1. Who gets a save the date?
The simple answer: Send one to everyone you are planning to invite to your wedding. This is why you need to make your wedding guest list before your save the dates are ordered. You need to send one to everyone who you plan on inviting to your wedding. Keep in mind, though, if you ask someone to save the date, you do have to invite them to the wedding. So don't send a save the date to people who may not be invited.

2. What do you put on the save the dates?
You may not have all the information you need, but put everything you have on the save the date, including:
Your names (Last names are optional if you're putting a photo of you on it.)
Your wedding date
Your wedding location (You can put the venue's name if you want; if not, just city and/or state if it's an out of state wedding work.)
Your Website (if you have one)
"Formal invitation to follow"

3. When do you send your save the dates?
As soon as possible. But, typically, six months beforehand for a local wedding, twelve months ahead of a destination wedding. You want to give people as much time to prepare as possible. If you have a short engagement, you want to get these out as soon as you have a date and venue booked.

4. Do your save the dates have to match your wedding's theme?
At the point when you're sending your save the dates, you might not even know what your wedding theme will be. You might not even have your colors picked out yet. If that's the case, it'll be impossible for your save the dates to match your theme. And that's okay.

We were lucky in the fact that I had a lot decided by the time we sent our save the dates. We knew we were having a beach reception (and a beach theme by extension) and we knew the colors were purple. So Pete wore a purple shirt when we took our save the date photo at the beach.

5. What type of save the dates should you send?
You have a lot of options when it comes to types of save the dates. Typically, you'll choose between magnets (which we did), post cards (which I'd try and deter you from), and cards (which my brother did).

My brother and his fiancee just made save the dates at Artsy Couture. They are amazing! The site is really easy to use. You choose from a variety of layouts and then get to editing.

My best suggestion is for you to create an account on the site before you start to design your cards. That way, you'll be able to save your revisions and any uploads while you are creating your save the date.

Once you choose the save the dates you like, upload the image(s) you want for the card. Definitely upload a couple options, though. Most of the save the date cards have text on them and you're not sure where exactly that text will fall on your image until you upload them. You might have your heart set on one photo, but it might not sit right once you start designing, so make sure you have a few choices.

After you pick your card and images, you still have a few other options. You can add a border, change the color of the foil (if you picked foil cards) and you can change the corners of the card itself (in case you want rounded instead of square, etc.).

You'll review your cards before and at checkout. Double and triple check to make sure everything is spelled correctly, the name of the venue is correct, and you have the right year on the card.

Worry more about the spelling and less about the coloring on the images. My brother and his fiance were a little worried that the writing would be a bit dark on their photo, which was a little dark, but it was what they wanted so they went with it. When the cards arrived, they were so happy. Because they selected a foil card, the foil really stood out on the image and it was easy to read. Plus, the shimmer of the foil added something really special to the cards.

6. How many save the dates should you order?
You want to send one card per person/couple who is invited to the wedding, so make sure you order enough cards. Sometimes, you'll be sending two save the dates to one house, if an adult child is invited and lives with his/her parents. When we did ours, I actually had one address with three invitations sent there.

The ones that my brother and his wife-to-be ordered came in packs of 26, so they needed to order four packs. It's better to order a few extras than not order enough.

7. Do you write and guest on save the dates?
Once your save the dates are ready to go, you want to address them. You want to address them similar to how you will address your wedding invitations. So if you are inviting a couple, write "Mr. & Mrs. Lastname" on the envelope. If you are inviting someone who is in a serious -- but not married -- relationship, put both of their names on the envelope, but mail it only to the address of the person you are closest with, not the significant other.

That's the easy part. It starts to get complicated when you are wondering if someone, who is not in a serious relationship, should get a guest or not. In that case, I would suggest that you address the save the date only to the person and do not write "and guest." The truth is, once you get further into the wedding planning process, you'll have a better idea of if you can afford a plus one for every single guest or if you are adopting the no ring no bring policy. You don't want to tell someone now that they are allowed a plus one and then take it away later. So, to be on the safe side, just address it to the single person.

Find inspiration for your save the dates are more at the Artsy Couture blog. You can easily go from the brand's blog to its website, where you can see all the products the Maryland-based company has to offer in addition to wedding save the date cards. So wherever you're at in the wedding stationery process, you'll be able to find what you need. Plus, be sure to follow the brand on social media:

Artsy Couture: Facebook | Twitter | Pinterest | Instagram

Following Artsy Couture is part of our giveaway entries. Yup, giveaway! We are giving one lucky person two sets of custom cards!

This giveaway starts now and ends at 11:59pm EST on March 6. The winner must be a US resident who is 18 or older at the time of entry. The winner must respond to a winning email within 24 hours in order to claim the prize or another winner may be selected. A Bride On A Budget is not responsible for prize fulfillment.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Good luck.

BRIDAL BABBLE: Which of the tips in The Ultimate Guide To Save The Date Cards was most helpful?

Get A Free Wedding Sample Kit From Minted Weddings

Have you heard of Minted?

It's actually the website we used for our Save the Dates (which you can check out here). The quality was amazing. So many people texted or called to tell us how impressed they were with them. We ordered magnets and the thickness was astounding, plus, it had a matte (not glossy) finish that made them look expensive. You have to see them. Or, at least, see what Minted can do. Right now, you can check it out for free.

Just fill out your information here and you'll get a sample pack with five invitations, plus swatches of Minted's premium paper.

The pack is standard, so you won't be able to choose the ones you want like Wedding Paper Divas allows, but you will get five very different designs, so that will help you figure out what your options are.

BRIDAL BABBLE: Did you request your wedding sample pack?

When Should You Send Your Save The Dates? (And all your other wedding postage questions answered.)

This question comes up a lot: When, exactly, should you send your save the dates? That also expands to wedding invitations, thank you cards, and any other sort of stationery you might send after you get engaged.

Don't question it anymore. I got you. I put together this great list that answers all your wedding postage questions (and the questions you didn't even know you have).

When should you send your ... 

Engagement party invitations?

Send your engagement party invitations out one month before your party, if you're having a large, formal party. If you're doing something more casual at home, give people at least a one week notice.

Quick tip: For a casual party with immediate family only, you can get away with a phone call invite. Plus, they'll probably want to chat and hear your proposal story.

Engagement party thank you cards?

As soon as you get home from your party, write them. If anyone is generous enough to give you a gift at this (no one is required to at all -- it's sort of the only gift-free wedding related party), thank them immediately.

Quick tip: My favorite engagement party gift idea is a box of thank you cards. The bride and groom will be able to start writing thank you's right away.

Save the dates?

Sent your save the dates as soon as you set a date. Realistically, though, they should go out at least six months before your wedding date, if it's local and nine months to a year if you're having a destination wedding.

Quick tip: If you're running out of time (or having a short engagement), you can always text your save the dates.

Wedding invitations?

You should sent your wedding invitations out so they arrive three months before your wedding date (meaning, you should mail them three weeks and one week before your wedding). Make sure you put the RSVP card in the invitation!

Quick tip: Make the RSVP date five weeks before your wedding date (which means you'll receive them about one month before your wedding).

Thank you cards?

"They" say you have up to a year after your wedding to send your thank you cards, but I don't know who this "they" is because that's ridiculous. Realistically, if you are including photos, those can take up to three months to get them back. So, if you are including wedding photos, you can send your thank you cards three months after your wedding. If you're not including photos, send them out within the first month. If you need help with these, check out our ultimate thank you card guide.

Quick tip: If you're going on a honeymoon, purchase a bunch of postcards at the airport when you land. Spend one night writing thank you postcards and send them out before you head home.

Who should you send your ... 

Bridal shower invitations?

Whoever is throwing your party. That's generally your mom and maid of honor, if they choose to throw you one (they may not!).

Quick tip: Give a copy of your guest list (with addressees!) to your mom after you send your save the date cards and go over it with her so she knows who to invite to your shower.

Bachelorette party invitations?

Your maid of honor should take care of this, if she is throwing you one.

Quick tip: Work with her and your bridesmaids to put together a guest list.

How much does it cost to send your ... 

Okay, this is sort of a trick question. Without knowing the size, shape, and weight of your invitations and thank you cards, it's impossible to estimate this. But, know this: square envelopes cost extra postage. Also, oversized and undersized envelopes cost extra postage. Square, oversized, and undersized envelopes all need to be hand sorted, so it costs more to send them.

Heavier envelopes cost more to send than lighter ones, so keep that in mind when you're choosing the type of card stock to print on (a heavier card stock makes for a nicer invitation but more postage). Also, the more enclosure cards you add to your invitation, the more weight you're adding.

Quick tip: Take one, completed invitation to the postage and have it weighed before you buy any stamps.

You should keep in mind ... 

Postage prices change often. Our friends actually bought post card stamps, affixed them to their RSVP cards ... and then post card stamps increased one cent. 

BRIDAL BABBLE: Do you have any other wedding postage questions?

Text Your Save The Dates

Usually, you should send your save the dates out as soon as you pick a date. The sooner you can book your friends, the better. If you're looking for a hard date, shoot for six months for a wedding at home, about a year for a destination wedding (or if the majority of your guests are traveling).

But what if you don't have time to send out save the date cards. What if you're going from engagement to walking down the aisle in under six months?

My solution: Text your save the dates.

I'm totally serious here. I came up with this idea and completely fell in love with it.

If your wedding planning time is short, it's not exactly feasible to send out save the date cards. Why? Well, there's the time factor. You just don't have time to design and order save the date cards, wait for them to ship and arrive at your door, then address and send them out. Then, there's the cost. With a short planning time, that means you also only have a short window of time to save to pay for your actual wedding. There are more important things to spend money on than stamps for your save the date cards.

Texting your save the date cards is completely free (I mean, standard text rates apply, of course, but everyone I know has unlimited texting so that's a moot point).

Photo by Derick & Christy Photography; Edit by yours truly

How do you do it?

• Find a nice photo of you (or, in my case, one with character. This was us at our friends' wedding in September, and the photo was taken by our wedding photographers. Truth is, yes, those are our dancing faces. We dance around the apartment all the time and apparently, we look just like that. Although probably not with the matching pointer fingers up in the air. Or maybe with them. I'm too busy dancing to notice). 
• Edit it using a site like PicMonkey.com (That's what I used to edit the one for this post). Be sure to add the important info, like your date and wedding location.
• Save it and email the image to yourself.
• Open your email from your phone and save the image.
• Text it out to your guest list.

For someone like your Great Aunt Edna who doesn't have a cell phone, you can just give her a call on her house phone. I'm sure she'd love to hear from you.

Then, hurry and start designing your wedding invitations. You'll need to send those out soon.

BRIDAL BABBLE: Would you text your save the dates to save time?

Wedding Paper Divas: 10 Free Save The Date Cards

I have a board on Pinterest for Save the Date ideas. There are a lot that I'm in love with, so I'm not sure how I'm going to narrow it down. Luckily for me, we don't have a date yet, so I don't have to make a decision.

I love Save the Date cards, but they're just so expensive. I fell in love with Save the Date magnets -- but they're about $2.50 each. That definitely adds up.

If you have a date already but no cards, you're in luck. You can get ten free Save the Date cards or postcards for free from Wedding Paper Divas.

Just click that link to head over to the site (which has a ton of wedding stationary), choose your favorites, and add them to your cart. When you're done, enter the code 10WEDSAMPLES at checkout, and your cards will be free. If you choose standard shipping, that will be free as well.

If you got engaged recently, you probably don't have a date. Don't worry. This is just to give you an idea, which will definitely help you later on.

BRIDAL BABBLE: Do you plan on sending out Save the Dates?

What You Need To Know About Your Save The Date Post Cards

Save the date post cards are really popular. They're generally a bit more budget friendly than save the date cards because there are less components (you don't need envelopes and you only need half the amount of paper when compared to a folded saved the date card). Stamps are also cheaper for save the date post cards -- and believe me, wedding postage adds up.

Lydia (who you may remember from these amazing bridesmaids boxes) told me she ordered save the date post cards. Initially, I was super excited. I mean, anytime someone takes a step in wedding planning, I get excited.

How could I not be thrilled? Her save the dates are beautiful. Lydia and her fiance Deon look so incredibly happy in that photo. They are absolutely glowing. And the fact that she is wearing white and he's in black, it's casual wedding attire. Bits like that are so perfect when you're taking engagement photos, so keep that in mind. (She told me after this post ran that the white and black was completely coincidental. I guess she's just that good.)

The glittered pink is gorgeous and goes really well with their fiesta-themed wedding. The save the dates and simultaneously simple and stunning. She really hit the ball out of the park on this one. So of course, initially, I was so excited for her.

And then I got worried. See, there's a concern no one takes into account when ordering save the date post cards.

But you can. Because I'm here. Here to help anyone who wants to send a save the date post card. Because I'm not saying don't send them. I actually really like them and think they're great for your stationery budget. I'm just saying keep this in mind.

What You Need To Know About Your Save The Date Post Cards

See, this is part of the email I sent Lydia when she showed me her save the dates (the part after I gushed about them being gorgeous):

Second of all ... don't hate me. When the post office mails them, they'll put a tracking sticker. We got a save the date post card once where the tracking sticker was on the bottom left on the backside of the post card, blocking all the information. You have info in the same place (the phone number of the hotel and the following text).

But at that point, her save the date post cards were already in her home. All she could do was address them and cross her fingers.

(I should mention, quick, that I removed part of the information in some of these pictures. After "by calling" she put the hotel's phone number. And between the words "the" and "wedding", she put her and her fiance's last name's, since that information is necessary when calling the hotel. I blocked them out, though, to save Lydia from potential wedding crashers. I also blocked out her friends' addresses because no one likes unsolicited pen pals except me).

Her post cards started arriving at their destinations and one of three things was happening.

First, there was the dreaded sticker I worried about. You can see text sticking out from the left side, so the recipient knows something is there. He can easily pull the sticker off and read the text underneath. He'll still know how to call the hotel. And, worst case scenario, if the sticker pulls off a number or two, the recipient can just text Lydia and ask her what to do (and, honestly, a ton of people ended up texting us to get the hotel information for our wedding even though it was printed on our invitations, so be ready to field calls no matter how accessible you make the info).

Then there was the dreaded stamp. Same tracking reasoning as the stickers, but this time, it was printed right over the text. The phone number and last names dodged this bullet, but the hotel's name got mangled. You can read it if you know what it says, but it's a little bit of a pain. But again, wedding guests, just text Lydia. She'll get you where you need to be.

And then there's door number three. This time, there's no sticker. No dreaded lines. Just a nice postmark up top. I'm guessing the tracking sticker was on the other side somehow, but that speculation hasn't been confirmed.

This save the date post card is the best, obviously, because all the information is easily readable, but you can't guarantee that this is how they will arrive. So you have to be mindful when you're designing your postcards. Leave space at the bottom for the dreaded tracking and leave space at the top for a potential postmark. Basically, if you split the left side of your post card into quarters, focus on keeping your text in the second and third quarters and leave the top and bottom ones blank. It'll save you from worrying about how they might arrive (and if you're like me, you worry about anything so if you can put out a fire before it starts, it's worth it).

If you're looking for save the date post cards, you can check them out at Minted, Wedding Paper Divas, MagnetStreet, and Zazzle. And you can find Lydia at @lgtz85 on Twitter. Be sure to tweet her and tell her you saw her amazing save the dates on A Bride On A Budget.

Big thank you to Lydia for being so kind and sharing these with us and helping future brides plan out their save the date post cards.

BRIDAL BABBLE: Is this something you thought about when deciding on your save the dates?

Our Save The Date Cards

I had my heart set on our save the dates before we even set a date.

I knew from the very start that I wanted magnets. I just love the concept of save the date magnets because they make so much sense. I mean, if you mail someone a save the date, they're going to hang it on the fridge. It's just what people do. They have to find a magnet in order to hang your save the date. So it makes so much sense to just send a save the date that is a magnet and cut out the middle man.

I was looking at a bunch of sites for magnets and loved the float + celebrate magnets on Minted (which are $2.45 a magnet). I couldn't get them out of my head. Plus, I knew the exact photo that I wanted to take for the save the dates, and I needed a panoramic save the date rather than a square or rectangle one.

I edited our photo in PicMonkey, and then uploaded it to Minted. Online, the color choices were celery, robin's egg blue, and deep red, but Minted actually allows you custom coloring, so I was able to select celery to start and then choose plum (which is great because our colors are eggplant, lilac, and silver, and eggplant and plum are pretty interchangeable).

I was able to choose the fonts and colors too. I wanted to stick with a basic font. Actually, I'm lying. I wanted some crazy script, but it just sort of started getting illegible and text on one line was overlapping text on the second line, and it just looked like a sloppy mess. So then I decided I wanted a basic font.

At checkout, I was offered a "skinny wrap," which -- according to how it looks on screen -- is your name and address printed on the front and your date printed on the back. It was awesome. It added $45 to my set of 100 (so $.45 each, making the magnets $2.90 total), but it was worth it to me. It looked so incredibly coordinated -- and I wouldn't have to hand print or hand stamp our return address on every card. Plus, I could add special instructions to make sure the colors matched the ones on the actual magnet, so I was happy.

I wasn't happy, however, the first time I saw the digital proof. The return address text was black and was completely lost on the plum wrap. So I asked for it to be changed. And it was.

And that was the great part. The digital proof (and any necessary revisions) are free of charge. You do have to okay the proof before your order is created, which means you get to see exactly what your order will look like. You don't have to worry about getting a surprise (like the inability to read the return address).

About a week later, a huge box arrived at my door.

Inside were my 100 save the dates.


They were wrapped like a gift from my buddy Jason (he's not my buddy; I actually have never met or spoken to Jason although, but it just felt so personalized to actually receive these with my name and his handwritten on them).

The stationery the cards came wrapped in was celery, which matches the original selection I had made when I created my order, so that was a nice touch.


In fact, my envelopes came wrapped in the same celery color. And, instead of 100 envelopes, I actually received 104. It was great because the top envelope of one of the packages was dirty and I wouldn't have wanted to send that to anyone.

But the envelopes ... something was missing. They were bare. There was no address or date printed on them.

This, apparently, is because ...


... the skinny wraps were stickers.

I received the save the dates about a week before my mom was visiting. And my initial thought was that I would just wait for her because there was no way I was going to affix 100 stickers to my envelopes.

And after leaving the cards in the box for a day, I decided to suck it up and just stuff them and stick them with Pete. So one Saturday afternoon, when we had nothing else going on, I decided we were going to have a stuff the save the dates party (and yes, since you've gotten this far without seeing them, now's the time for the big reveal).

As soon as I opened the sealed packages with the save the dates and actually held one, I was in love. Absolutely in love. The magnets are matte, not glossy, which is amazing because glossy just looks cheap to me.

The coloring was gorgeous. As I said, I edited the photo on PicMonkey before uploading it, so I could optimize the color and add the text on the photo. Minted can optimize the coloring for you if you ask, but I was good on my own.

The font up top is as simple as I needed it to be, and our names on the bottom was in the gorgeous script that I wanted.

Our save the dates were simple and perfect and everything I wanted them to be.


And they were printed on a great quality magnet. I can't even tell you how many compliments I got on the thickness of the magnet (as if I had something to do with the choosing of the magnet paper). But, actually, they are really thick. There's a magnet and then the top layer is a thick paper. Since the magnet is actually a separate entity, you're getting something that is automatically thicker than those save the date magnets that are just printed on the magnet themselves.


The magnets fit perfectly into the envelopes. I asked at the post office to see if they needed to have a piece of paper (an envelope liner, if you're actually worried about this on your own) stuffed behind the magnet so they didn't get stuck and/or ruined in the sorter but I was told that they would be fine. No one mentioned any issues to me, so I'm going to thank the thick envelope for this.

We licked the save the dates closed, and then it was time to conquer the skinny wraps.

Those skinny wraps, they ended up not being that much of a pain in the neck. You can see the exact spot that needs to be on the edge of the envelope. Once you get that aligned, you just stick the front down, and then the back, and that's it. It gave such a classy appeal to the save the dates, plus it made them coordinated.

Although I was one of the only people who noticed.

But you'll notice now (because I'm pointing it out so it wasn't completely in vain).

The coloring on the skinny wrap is the exact coloring on the save the dates. The font that I used for the date on the skinny wrap is also the same font that I used for the date on the save the date magnet.

Oh beautiful cohesion.

Our return address (which yes, had our full address but I blocked our address out because I don't have enough groceries in the house for everyone to see my address and surprise me by coming over for dinner) lacked our last names. I figured everyone would know who we are (if you don't know us as a couple by our first names only, you probably didn't make the cut for our save the dates. Plus, when you open it, you see our photo). Our save the dates had just our first names, as did the return address.

Oh beautiful cohesion. Again.

The magnets are gorgeous, absolutely stunning hanging on the fridge (next to Pete's nephew's spin art).

I loved our photo. It's from our engagement photo session, but it was the one photo I refused to show anyone. I kept it safe, for me and Pete only, until the save the dates were mailed. Aside from our immediate families, I kept the date completely under wraps as well. I wanted everything about the save the date to be a complete surprise. It was so important to me.

People went nuts when they received the cards, texting and calling us. "You picked a date!" they exclaimed. "I love the save the date" so many said.

And then there were the ones who said, "I thought you forgot the M in married until I hung the magnet on the fridge." I'm not even exaggerating when I tell you half the people didn't originally realize that Pete and I are the M in married.

That element of surprise (for those people) gave one more surprise to our friends and family.

That trio of surprises, coupled with the fact that Minted created an amazingly excellent product, made these save the dates absolute perfection.

And for your save the dates, you need that. They are the introduction to your wedding and set the tone. If you do them, you want to do them right. And I know we did ours right (at least, in our opinion and that's what matters most).

BRIDAL BABBLE: Be honest: Did you realize we were the M in marriage before I told you?

Save The Date (And how we told my family)

I was having a really hard time picking a venue. We are from New York, so I wanted a New York wedding in North Carolina ... which is pretty impossible. Up North, it's all about ballrooms and down South, it's all about backyards.

We looked at 50 venues online and 15 in real life, and I couldn't find exactly what I wanted.

In theory, I'm convinced that this is the universe's way of telling me that I should open a venue down here in North Carolina. But, realistically, it was life's way of telling me that no matter what I pick, it will be perfect because the venue is just a place to hold a party that celebrates that Pete and I love each other so much that we're going to fuse into one and love each other for the rest of our lives.

So I finally picked a venue -- and a date.

When we finally picked a date, I didn't just want to call my family and tell them. Maybe it's narcissistic and self-indulgent, but I wanted to tell my family in a cutesy way. I wanted it to be something more memorable than a text.

I wanted it to be on the My Edible Choc-board from My Cup of Cake.

It's super cute. It comes with a chocolate chalkboard, a wooden stylus, and a bag of sugar that looks, well, like something you probably shouldn't be carrying around if you have any chance of getting pulled over by the cops.

Using it is a lot easier than I thought. You take the stylus and write on the chocolate. I actually had to do it twice because I was too gentle the first time and the grooves weren't deep enough to pick up the letters.

You can actually see some smears because I originally wiped the chocolate with a wet towel. Yeah, don't do that. Stick to dry. Trust me.

Spread the powdered sugar over the bar.

Spread it with your fingers (to make sure it gets in the grooves).

Wipe with a dry towel.

And tada ... like magic your words appear (or okay,  not at all like magic).

I put the chocolate board back in the box it came in to present it.

If you can't find this, don't worry. You can make a version easy. Buy a Hershey's bar and use a toothpick to write on the backside of it. That side is a flat surface. Then, you can just put it on a cute plate to present it.

And how did we, you ask? Pete and I drove to New York to surprise our families for Father's Day. We were with his family the day before and then with mine on the day of. We (including my parents, both my brothers and their girlfriends, my grandma) had a barbecue and then decided to sit around the fire pit to have dessert. When everyone was setting up the chairs around the fire, I ran inside and created the choco-board.

I walked outside with plates and hid this under it.

"Pete and I brought something special for dessert," I announced, then handed the chocolate to Pete who handed it to my mom.

Now, let me tell you. My mom isn't one for subtlety. So she sat there looking at the chocolate for a lot longer than I anticipated. And that's when it happened, that awkward moment when you think maybe a text would have been better after all.

And then it hit her.

"Oh!" she said. "You picked a date? Finally!" And she passed the chocolate around the circle so everyone could see.

She actually still has the chocolate board on a shelf in the kitchen. She hasn't eaten it yet (and something tells me she isn't planning on it). It was a super cute way for me to tell my family that we had a date picked ... and a way for me to tell you guys too. Yup, we have finally picked a date. The countdown is officially on.

BRIDAL BABBLE: How did you tell your family that you picked a date?

Real Life Wedding: Becka's Homemade Save The Date Cards

On Wedding Wednesday, I decided to host a Twitter chat. It was super successful and we'll be doing it every Wednesday at 4pm EST. Just use the hashtag #BridalBabble to join.

During this week's inaugural chat, Becka shared her homemade save the date cards with us.

This was really DIY and budget friendly -- but you can't really tell it wasn't professional. She did such a great job. (She didn't have those huge gaps where her last name and wedding website should be. She had those but I edited them out for her privacy.)

She went to her local craft store to purchase iron on letters and t-shirts, then made the shirts herself. She got a friend to go with her (to a gorgeous location) to take the photo. To finish, she added the text (you can use a site like PicMonkey to do this for free if you don't have Photoshop).

Becka printed the photo at her local Walmart. There are also sites where you can get free photos (like Shutterfly and York Photo when you register as a new user). You do have to pay shipping on your free photos, but it might average to be less than actually paying for the photos, depending on where you print.

She picked up a box of envelopes and was ready to send them.

The average cost of a save the date is about $3 (not factoring the cost of a photo shoot with a professional), so this is a way to bring that cost down a lot. Plus, save the dates are really customary now. People expect you to send them now since everyone does, so it is another thing to add to the list of expenses. If you can at least make them on a budget and keep that cost to a minimum, you're in good shape.

BRIDAL BABBLE: Did you send save the dates?