Giving envelopes the full VIP treatment can be quite the process! While it’s certainly a fun process, it can quickly turn into a chore when you’re forced to toss a fully stamped, addressed, and lined envelope because you goofed a letter in the return address. Womp, womp.
Even when you’ve been doing this as long as I have, occasional mistakes are bound to happen. To keep my stationery machine running smoothly and efficiently, I’ve got my envelope assembly process down to a science. Keep reading for all my tips and tricks on streamlining your envelope assembly process!
STEP 1: Guest Addresses
I like to start with the step that I’m most likely to make a mistake on – guest addresses. They’re all different, the names and streets are unfamiliar, and it’s easy to misspell something, get a line off center, or drop of a glob of ink on your envelope. Ugh.
Trust me, though. It’s SO much less painful to toss a half addressed envelope than it is to throw out a fully lined, stamped, and return addressed envelope. Do your guest addresses FIRST and get that hurdle out of the way before you move on to the easier stuff (and then you can double check those addresses at each step to be triple sure you’ve got them right!)
STEP 2: Return Addresses
Next up are the return addresses. These are all the same so it’s easier to get in a rhythm and you’re less likely to bugger one up. It’s also nice to make sure all the ink is dry and put away before you bust out your liners and gorgeous (and expensive) vintage postage. Trust me.
Now, there is an exception to this rule. If I’m digitally printing return addresses, I’ll do those FIRST. It’s so easy to print off an extra 3-5 return addressed envelopes in case I goof a guest address. So much easier than feeling my blood pressure go through the roof as my hand addressed envelopes journey through my printer. I mean, I’d honestly feel more comfortable putting my calligraphied envelopes in my second grader’s backpack than my printer…
STEP 3: Envelope Liners
I like to do my envelope liners after all the addressing is done (and double checked!). They’re relatively easy to assemble, and so as long as your tape gun doesn’t go rogue, you shouldn’t have to worry too much about messing up your lovingly addressed envelopes.
Liners are also pretty inexpensive, so if you do have to rip one out, it’s not the end of the world (or your budget). Just be sure your hands are clean for when you make your folds, and that you have a plan to get rid of any excess stickiness so you don’t end up with a massive glob of envelopes.
STEP 4: Stamps
Stamps are probably the priciest items of the envelope bunch, especially if you’ve gone the vintage route. This means you want them to be the very last thing to go on your envelopes.
At this point you’ve triple checked your addresses for correctness, so you shouldn’t have any OOPS moments (and if you do, head to my Instagram highlights to learn how to remove stamps). Again, make sure your hands are clean and lick and stick away!
And that’s how I batch out my envelope production processes! I hope this was helpful and saves you a few stamps, envelopes, and clumps of pulled out hair. Happy enveloping, friends!