Sounds Inviting

I put the first batch of invitations in the mail Friday; still collecting a few straggling addresses for the second batch which I hope to send out this week.

My friend Jana (graphic designer extraordinaire) directed me to the Stylart website to look at their selection of wedding invitations. When I dropped by the local Party City to check out their offerings in person, I fell in love with the flower-embossed invite Jana pointed out.

In comparison, the invite Mike and I had both agreed on (a garden-y one with leaves & flowers printed on it) didn't seem quite as appealing. I showed both to Mike, debated whether the extra postage for the embossed ones was worth it (yes) and placed the order.

I wanted to find a post office willing to hand cancel the postage. The first two I called acted like I was on crack for even asking--something I'd been warned about on the craigslist wedding forum.

Francine at the main Post Office in Pasadena said they'd be able to hand cancel them. When I got to the desk clerk, he weighed an invitation and said they would not require extra postage. I looked at him like HE was on crack: large square envelopes typically DO require extra postage. There was NO WAY I was going to slap on regular 39 cent stamps.

I kept protesting that square envelopes cost more to mail. We stood there giving each other the stinkeye until Francine appeared (bless her!) and told the clerk yes, there is a surcharge for square envelopes and yes, it was OK to hand cancel them at his station between customers.

With that, he shrugged and said OK, sold me 120 wedding stamps, and closed his window while I applied stamps to the invitations. He had not returned by the time I was done, so I wrote "Please hand cancel" on the box containing the invitations, thanked him and Francine for their help and left the box on the counter hoping they would take care of it.

The next day, many people I saw at Rowan's birthday party had already received theirs and said how pretty they were. :)