Hey, remember those…

…save-the-dates I was obsessing over?

Well, the day after my neurotic post went up, I ordered our favorites. I just couldn’t not do it, especially after all of the delightful prodding and peer pressure. You may wonder what has taken me so long to write about them, eh? They came in awhile ago, and as much as I hate saying it, well, I’m a little disappointed.

When the package arrived, I excitedly opened the USPS box [read: hacked at it with some scissors], pulled off the packing slip, saw the lovely recycled envelopes, and finally got down to the goods– the save-the-dates, all tucked safely in their little Moo packages.

I should have stopped there. Ok, not really, but this is where the story takes a turn for the worse. I pulled the cards out, and let out a little “WTF does that say?!” in my head. The text is so tiny, that even with my twenty-five-year-old eyes it’s hard to read. It was all I could do not to burst into tears right at that moment.

I didn’t, nor have I fully, let on to my parents or JP how disappointed in myself I am over this project. I put on a happy face, because gosh-darned-it I WANTED to be excited, and I am excited. But I just kept, and keep, getting bowled over by an overwhelming sense of fail. Why? Why am I so bent out of shape over all of this tiny little detail? (No pun intended). Well let me tell you…

  1. I feel silly for letting such a stupid mistake happen. I was too excited, and didn’t pay enough attention to image-size to card-size ratio.  I had the proofs I made on our home printer, and thought they were fantastic, so went along with those dimensions exactly… for a totally different-sized card.
  2. I know better. I should have known that having an exported jpeg printed would not produce the same results as my illustrator copy. Using the printing method we chose, there was no way around said jpeg-ing, but I should not be this surprised.
  3. I let myself get carried away without allowing my OCD self to monitor and obsess over every tiny detail. This backfired.
  4. Last, but not least, one of the main reasons I am so bent out of shape is because, well, I’m so bent out of shape! I hate feeling like a failure over something SO TINY and insignificant. In the big picture, THIS DOES NOT MATTER. So what if people have to hold the damned thing two inches closer to their face? This does not make me a terrible person. I need to repeat that over and over until I get it through my skull.

I guess it’s about time to show you pictures of the little devils– I’ve been putting it off for over a week… oh, and this entire post.

Looking at them, I do really think they’re pretty lovely, and I guess I’m pleased with everything, save for the TINY DAMNED TEXT. Anyway, I must not dwell on that forever; I must get over myself.

Stay tuned for how we handled the envelopes. They turned out hella sexy, if I do say so myself, even if we did have a few bumps in the road.

Did you experience any minor flubs that threw you for a loop? How did you, for lack of a better phrase, try not to “sweat the small stuff?” How did you kick your inner perfectionist to the curb?

show hide 7 comments

FARoutMarch 3, 2010 - 11:51 am

You are lucky that you had those printed by MOO. The slip-up *would* have been a big deal if it had happened with your wedding invitations. Don't flagellate yourself — they're beautiful! :)

ColeMarch 3, 2010 - 1:11 pm

I've been having trouble with the size of my save the dates too….grrr so frustrating!
I think yours are super cute.

Miss GatorMarch 3, 2010 - 9:46 am

We ordered some cards from overnight prints for our invitation. They turned out awesome… Except for the accommadations card. We used gray text that was barely readable from their printing and turned out a slight shade of pink {of which I had a super major heartattack over}. I called the company, told them my problem (it is best to act stupid when doing this) and they refunded my $$. So, I re-sent a fixed card and they turned out beautiful!

Btw, love these save the dates. But if you are like me, it will kill you to even think about sending then out. Act stupid, call Moo and see if they will refund you, so you can reprint. It’s worth a try, worst they can say is no. Right?

BELMarch 3, 2010 - 2:51 pm

i had a similar feeling – recently ordered thank you cards and didn't pay enough attention to the colour saturation. now i have cards that look faded and b o r i n g and to make it even worse, I chose a "matte" finish. Normally I wouldn't consider anything else, but in this case, they look even more dull.

woe is me. i'm using them anyways.

ps. i think yours are gorgeous. the type is a little small but fits in well with your design. no one will think it's a mistake. can't wait to see the envelopes!

Stacy MarieMarch 3, 2010 - 6:11 pm

I'm going to agree with FARout, stop flagellating yourself my friend. The design is beautiful, and I promise you that this is not a big deal. Cut yourself some slack, they look great!

ThaoMarch 3, 2010 - 1:53 pm

Aw, Lauren–I still think they're great, despite the text! I'm sorry you were disappointed, though. I made the mistake of not really checking the paper on which my invitations were going to be printed–it was all about the design for me. And of course, as a former designer, I should have remembered how much the stock matters. So my lovely designs were printed on flimsy 100# paper. :( But it's okay; I'm backing them with navy cardstock and covering them with fabric, so no one will even notice. I can't wait to see your envelopes

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