2026 Wedding & Event Planner: A Personal Note – Reasons to Send Physical Invitations for Your Next Event

by Kerri Cooke

In the days of social media, physical invitations might seem outdated. After all, it’s easy, free and takes little time to set up and send an event invite via Facebook. However, there’s something elevated about sending invitations in 2026. It shows you’ve invested time, money and thought into inviting your guests to your party. Sara Smith with PaperSmith says, “Invitations extended through email or social media just don’t have the personal touch or carry the sincerity that paper invitations possess. A personal invitation, received in the mail, gets noticed.” 

PaperSmith, now sharing a space in DPR Gallery, enjoys a collaboration with DPR clients while still being accessible to the community. The shop has a “cozy, yet industrial and modern vibe because of the architecture and interior of the building,” according to Smith. 

Popular invitation design details include invitation liners, crests and duograms, but customer service is ultimately what keeps people returning. Smith says customers and “brides and their moms are always appreciative of how we can guide them through the process and bring their visions to life.” PaperSmith also offers addressing services to streamline delivery. 

Invitations are useful for events planned significantly in advance, such as Mardi Gras balls, weddings, baby showers and birthday parties. When deciding to go the traditional route and order paper invites, be sure to begin planning and picking out designs early. Smith says, “Wedding invitations should be mailed six to eight weeks out, and we need at least that to process orders. That gives us three months lead time, and that can be a little hectic depending on printing method and complexity of the invitation.” For other invitations, mailing them three to four weeks ahead is a good rule of thumb, but it can be done as little as two weeks before the event. The processing time for these invitations is shorter as well. 

Other helpful tips to avoid stress is to settle on a budget for invitations and decide whether there is any flexibility on how much you can spend. Also, before shopping, write a list of who will be invited. Make sure to categorize people by household, as you don’t need an invitation for every person but one for each different address. And it’s always helpful if you have a theme picked out in advance. Pinterest is a great resource for ideas. Pictures and explanations will help the professionals narrow down the options in your budget as quickly and conveniently as possible. But don’t forget to have fun. Picking out what will eventually be memorabilia should be half the fun.   

For more information, call 337-564-6705 or visit mypapersmith.com.