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What to do with leftover wedding invitations?

It is always a good idea to order approximately 10% more of your invitations from your guest list for the "just in case" moments. However, what if you're left with a bundle of invitations after the wedding? Rather than throwing your leftover invitations in the recycling bin, here are some ideas for putting them good use:

- Save one for a scrapbook or just as a memento of your big day
- Create a shadow box of the entire stationery set and include pictures, fabric swatches, dried flowers, etc. for display in your home
- Cut and use as tags for wedding party gifts
- Reuse ribbons and embellishments for gift wrapping or scrapbooking
- Use as matting for photos
- Shred and crinkle for your 1st wedding anniversary confetti

If you are not a crafty bride, no worries! Someone out there may want to rework the materials from your invitations. Give them away at a site like www.freecycle.org.

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Comment by Erica Brooks on July 28, 2009 at 6:45am: I love the shadow box idea. Very practical.

Comment by Barbara Ann Fackler on November 4, 2009 at 3:31am: I played harp for an outdoor wedding last June where the bride had a great idea for her left over invitations. She used both leftover invitations and cards she'd received at showers, even the envelopes, as decorations throughout the garden where she was married. She cut them into 1" square and glued them back to back onto loops of ribbon and hung them from the trees and bushes around the ceremony site like little Christmas ornaments. Each piece of paper had some identifying print on it so it was obvious where the decor originated. It was fun to watch the guests realise what it was and many recognized the paper from the gift bag or card they'd given the bride months earlier. It was a very clever reuse of things that would have otherwise been thrown away. Several people took them to use as their own Christmas ornaments as a reminder of the wedding.

Comment by Three Graces Design on November 4, 2009 at 5:04am: What a clever idea, and thoughtful to represent the guests' gifts/cards at the wedding.