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Ask Slashdot: Techie Wedding Invitation Ideas?
Qa32 writes "I am getting married in a few months and being a hardcore techie I wanted to come up with some novel way of making my wedding invite that will truly have even my mom say, 'wow, that was cool.' Has anyone out there done anything similar, or have you thought of something similar you'd like to share? I already have a few: have QR codes, have some basic embedded circuit/plate with wire leads that maybe plays a song when you connect a battery, have a way to turn up a display LCD, etc."
As long as you could respond via email or even Facebook, I'd think anything was cool. I hate sending letters or making calls.
which is totally what she said
...at least you didn't propose on Slashdot.
paintball
If you send your wire-laden invitation to anyone's workplace and they have mailscanning, the building will likely be evacuated, your invitation destroyed and someone will be pissed off at you for not inviting them to your wedding.
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It's a wedding. Those are supposed to be big, formal events.
Sure, you can have a bit of fun, but you got to keep in mind that not everyone is necessarily a geek. The QR code by itself, coupled with an otherwise elegant card, will more than suffice and drive across the point that you're geeky.
On a fucking wedding invitation? Are you planning on having any of your parents' friends attending?
Boy does your Wife have some work to do...
Do you or your partner snore? - Visit www.snoring.com.au
Assuming your friends and/or relatives are also into technology, why not keep the card relatively simple, but throw in an easter egg or two? Just as an example, embed a RFID chip and have it setup to react to NFC's embedded in phones. Include a subtle hint on the card, and perhaps make a puzzle out of it.
The corner of a round room
My friends invited me with one of these. http://youtu.be/bsdCeiae7Mo
In the comments, he briefly describes the design.
Mod me down now and I will become more powerful than you can possibly imagine
I am married and I can tell you that it is almost impossible to continue with beeing geek after a marriage. When you get a wife that needs attention and maybe some kids after some time and you are becoming responsible for maintaining them, it is very little time left.
A big love for geek things will be in contradiction to marriage in one way or another. My tips is to drop the geek things already now or reconsider if you should marry at all.
A slashdotter getting married? Please.
[Oops! Meant to login before posting that comment. Here it is again with a 1 higher score ;-)]
Take a look at these guys:
http://www.bareconductive.com/
They make conductive gloopy black paint that you can use both to paint circuit boards and to cold solder components into them. I met a couple of the people behind the company at a trade show a couple of weeks back and bought a pot (no other connection to company). It's very clever stuff and they have a load of tutorials and examples on the site.
How about you get a professional printer to print the invites with a nice font on high quality paper.
Then your mom might think you have reformed instead of wondering what the hell is wrong with you.
You could also have some things at the reception that are triggered off by sensing the NFC chip - again, entertain the younger generation without worrying the older one.
Or, you know - you could just have an absolutely straight wedding with no techno toys at all. A friend of ours got married recently and had a cartoonist to make sketches during the wedding and the reception. The resulting sketchbook was far more popular (and memorable) than the photos or the video.
From scarped cliff or quarried stone she cries "A thousand types are gone, I care for nothing, no not one."
Nerd friend of mine had a QR Code on the back of the invitation. The people who knew what a QR Code was, all got rick rolled. I thought it was hillarious.
trans corpus mortuum
As someone that tried to be "a bit different" with my own wedding invitations it's perhaps worth sharing some details of the experience.
All of our invitations included a business-card with a URL on one side and a unique username and password on the other. With this the guests could access our wedding website, where the they could indicate their attendance, get directions, etc. Since we knew which guests had each username we could customise what was displayed to the particular guest and the "level" of their invitation - pre-populating the RSVP page with their names, allowing them to enter their "+1"s only if their invite happened to include them, and only showing the directions to the event they had been invited.
Unfortunately, this approach confused a surprising number of people who either didn't bother to visit the URL on the card, didn't realise that they needed to detach and turn over the business card in order to find their username/password, or just assumed that since there were no RSVP or location details included with the physical invite, that it was simply a "save-the-date" and that further details would follow later. Even some of the more "tech-savvy" people had problems, and in the end we had to do far more chasing-up than we perhaps would have done had we relied on the more traditional invitation.
With this in mind, it may be best to avoid trying to be too novel with your invites, or perhaps produce a more traditional invitation for those guests that might have more difficulty with something out of the ordinary.
Paper Record Player: http://idle.slashdot.org/story/11/04/15/133206/couple-sends-record-player-wedding-invitations
Hivemind harvest in progress..
Just hack one of those talking greeting / birthday cards. Yank the electronics and put them in your own card. I know there are cards that let you record exactly what you want on them, but they're a bit more expensive than the others. You could even personalize each voice invitation to match the person being invited.
It's different enough to be geeky and novel, but not so far-left-geeky that it'll have everyone wondering if they need to show up to your wedding in cosplay garb.
Cut the dorky gadgetry, would be my advice.
If I need a computer built, then electronic skills are required.
If I need a good and memorable wedding held, good event-organisation skills are required.
Both are two entirely different things - keep that in mind.
Here's a suggestion from the top of my head:
1) Print your invitation and thank-you cards with a professional printer (online printing service) and have a professional avantgarde designer to the layout and print production. Take the best quality paper + UV laquer + maybe even embossing and/or special colors. It will be a tad more expensive - two printruns of 250 items each come at roughly 200$ just for the cards, add photography and layout + print-production and you'll come out at about 600$ total - *BUT* you *will* leave a lasting impession with everybody invited. ... Ask the media-designer to make invitation and thank-you cards that people will like to keep and frame. Give him a chance to go creative as he whishes. he'll be cheaper and will put in some extra effort just for the fun of it.
2) More is less. Don't go into a huge debt over the wedding. And think if a lavishly dress and an expensive 'will never wear it again' tuxedo really is a must. Personally, I were to hold a wedding, I'd go for 'unusual, not to expesive, selected but very good (take your time finding the specials)' over 'generic but more expensive'.
For instance: I didn't cook until about 4 years ago and today I only know about 3 dishes, but I know them very well and given that I don't pinch when buying the ingredients, each of these dished taste very delicious if I put my mind to it and take my time. I couldn't afford a wedding organizer, but I'd make a point of cooking these dishes myself for my own wedding and add their part to a memorable experience. Sure, the ingredients would come 300€ or so and I'd probably have to borrow some cooking gear, but it would be a very special thing for all the guests - that I would be sure of.
3) Another example: Stainless Steel makes for very good wedding rings (geek factor aside). There are tons of quality steel rings out there nowadays, and they cost a fraction of the platinum/gold ones. Use the money you save on a top-notch honeymoon trip - you'll both have much more from it.
Oh, and congratulations and all the best wishes!
My 2 cents.
We suffer more in our imagination than in reality. - Seneca
My wife found these lego candies that are actually stackable like real legos. She loves legos like any geek and realized that they'd be great as little favors to put on the tables. Not only did they have a little geekiness in an otherwise normal wedding, but they kept the guests' kids entertained.
If you do it right, you only get one of them. If you consider it important enough to invite friends and family, send a nicely printed card with the following information: (1) Who you're marrying, when and where; (2) When and where the reception is to be held; (3) A means for people to respond; (4) Something to the effect that you hope they will be able to attend. Do this unless you are planning to be married in Klingon garb at a convention.
Why? Because the invitation is actually not about you. It's about the person you're inviting. It's intended to communicate to them that you'd be tickled to death to see them on the biggest day of your life, and then to make it as easy as possible for them to get there. You're asking them for the honor of their presence even if you don't use that wording.
Hire a promising art or design student to design it for you, send it via SnailMail to peoples' home addresses, and then give thanks that in these casual times it does not have to be engraved from a copper plate and addressed by hand.
"Here's what's happening. You're starting to drive like your Dad..." - Red Green
If you're getting married and want your friends and family to come I don't think its asking too much to use a phone, get a pen out or even get proper invitations created that you send by snailmail. Doing it online is all very well but just like email xmas cards , it really sends out a kind of "meh , whatever" message - that you couldn't really be bothered to make much effort and 1 minute in front of a PC is all your F & F are worth.
My cousin and her wife both work in tourism, so they fashioned their invites as plane tickets.
This confused a large number of people. My mom for example threw the invitation straight in the bin, thinking it was some mass mailing.
Be careful.
First of all, dude, forget about your mom for a second. If the bride-to-be figures out your wedding choices are to please your mom, there will be problems!
Secondly, invitations that you open and they play music were cool 25 years ago. QR codes would be a lot of fun for your 1 buddy that would "get it" (of course the QR code would have to actually be something). And, well, I will just go ahead and stop you with the lcd's.
The only cool invitation hardware wise that I have seen is the embedded manual paper record player.
If you are good with photoshop perhaps you want to design your wedding invitation (but print it professionally of course) and really make it special. You can also make a website, and a reservation system. For example, I had included a personal code with each invitation, that when entered in the wedding website it logged on the individual and allowed him/her to just select the number of people and accept. No, you cannot have just a QR code there, people won't be able to use it.
Finally, be careful of the mom thing.
Violence is the last refuge of the incompetent. Polar Scope Align for iOS
They don't have to be typical green PCB color either, you can get the solder mask in a few colors. (green,white,red,black,blue)
Also you can get the exposed metal gold or silver plated (not expensive at all).
I quite like gold text on a blank mask, but for a wedding maybe silver on white.
As a rough idea, i recently got 300x PCBs made with gold plating and blank solder mask.
They were 55mm x 58mm and cost ~US$300 from pcbcart.
All you need to do is find someone who's experienced with PCB drawing software.
If you want to go all the way and have a microcontroller and led display, Jameco have 0.7inch 7x5 pixel dot matrix led displays for 75c each in qty of 100.
So do you need to make a physical invitation for a Second Life wedding?
I kid. I kid...
"You are invited to my wedding if you can find the coordinates of the church" :)
Its also a selection process
Mike Tarantino and Karen Sandler made and sent a paper record and player, with a song they'd recorded.
http://idle.slashdot.org/story/11/04/15/133206/Couple-Sends-Record-Player-Wedding-Invitations
"It would take a lot more than just a minute to design and build if you actually put some effort into the aesthetics, though obviously it would waste a whole lot less time than making physical cards."
Well thats debatable. I could get some physical cards made from the shop in my high street in about an hour.
"It makes responding really simple and instantaneous for the invitees"
Perhaps you don't have elderly relatives but some of mine don't even own a computer, much less know how to navigate around a web site. People such as yourself really need to stop assuming that everyone is online.
If you're willing to spend money on adding actual electronics a countdown clock would be cool. Preferably counting down to the exact time you're going to kiss the bride. That way you're making sure the ceremony is strictly time limited as well.
So what's wrong with options?
I agree that sending out cards is certainly appropriate and proper, as is including rsvp cards. HOWEVER: Also including a URL, email address, or social media method of response is certainly appropriate. That allows your guests the maximum number of response paths, and lets them choose which one they are most comfortable with using. It shows thoughtfulness for your guests, and puts the onus for the extra labor on yourself, thus showing that your guests are worth the effort.
Also, to the original question writer, if you are the guy, remember that if you want to do something special and cool for the invitations:
A) Respect your fiance's wishes. If she doesn't like the idea, DROP IT.
B) If she does like the idea, OWN IT. Ensure that you take complete responsibility for compiling the guest list, gathering the snail mail addresses, packaging and sending the invitations, and collecting and collating the responses. Don't shut her out, of course, but take the lead in getting your cool idea done. Trust me, she has more than enough to do to get ready for the wedding, taking one of the most tedious and boring jobs off her plate will be greatly appreciated.
If you are the girl, well then I guess the same general rules apply, but be aware that you will be making lots more work for yourself, unless your man is majorly into handling some other aspect of the wedding, or you guys are taking a more egalitarian approach to the wedding than most western folks do.
Regardless, Congratulations and I wish you both all the best in your future life together. Also, always remember; True Love isn't something we are "in" as though it were a trap to fall into. True Love is a conscious choice we make every day to set our partner's needs ahead of our wants. As long as both partners do that every day, a solid marriage follows. Good luck you two!
Official Heretic from the "Church of Global Warming". Proven right thanks to whistle blowers. AGW = Flat Earth Theory
1. Congrats.
2. Start off on the right foot - ask your soon-to-be-spouse what they want. Don't screw this up.
2a. Think about your parents and your partner's parents. Not saying that you should weakly submit to everything they desire - but if you do it right this is family for a long time. And there is a difference between the family you're born with and the family you choose.
3. Invitations are a key part of the whole day. People often keep one as a remembrance (both guests and, more importantly, participants). Tech can date really quickly, but you could well be looking at the invitation along with your wedding photo album on your tenth or 15th anniversary.
I've deliberately tried to not assume too much so far. From your submission I'm not sure if you're male or female, and I also know that what worked for me and my wife might be totally foreign from what the two of you want. See point #1. If both of you want this, that's a good start.
A thought - the invitations have a very strong emotional meaning for many people, and making them non-traditional might not go over too well. What about indulging your geek side with something to hand out at the reception? People often have a disposable camera laid out at every table so their friends can take pictures. Maybe you can have your techie "thing" be a giveaway at the reception.
Parting thought. I don't know you, and this might be an ideal thing for both you and your partner. Be sure it is. If both of you are really excited by it, then there are a number of ideas on this thread and you should have fun. (Unless one of the parents says "over my dead body". See point #2a. Sometimes picking a battle just isn't worth it.)
Enjoy your day, and the rest of your lives together. Sincerely.
Damn you internets. I'm already doing this and the parent's idea right now for my wedding invitations. It fits, I did propose to my fiancee on a circuit board.
Don't forget, someone will have to build those 300 (well 130 or so is a more common number) invitations. That could easily end up being over 50 hours of soldering. Plus theres a few bucks in parts. I'm not sure what an assembly house would charge but you could quickly be pushing $20/board even for something simple. Before you go this route, make sure you know what you're getting yourself into.
No, but it would be cool.
My wife and I couldn't find any invitations we liked .. so we designed our own (working together, on a lot of company time/resources) and laid the whole thing out in Illustrator so the invite, RSVP, table number cards, etc. would fit on 8.5x14 paper. Worked with the printer to see what he needed, and did the color separations and saved them as individual postscript files .. looked at a Pantone book to get the right colors.
The printer was a local union shop right across the street and was able to do thermography (raised lettering basically). We also custom printed (work, color laser) all the envelopes.
We both work in IT, so when our guests asked where we got the invites and we told them how they came to be, they were sufficiently impressed.
They also didn't weird out grandma. Total cost was $260 including envelopes for ~130 of them, btw.
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