by DIY Bride on May 20, 2015

How do you make a do-it-yourself wedding stylish and budget-friendly while not spending all of your free time (and cash) creating crafts? While I encourage everyone to try a new craft or two, I don't want anyone to stress out and agonize over creating the perfect projects for their big day, especially you lovely readers!

If you're a longtime reader, you'll know I'm a huge advocate of using shortcuts, templates, and handy tools to make your life easier and craft time more efficient. And that, friends, is why I'm happy to introduce you to the new collection of customizable products and templates from the design team at Avery. From invitations and thank-you cards to favors and place cards, a little help from Avery can make your day full of thoughtful, personal touches that'll wow your guests - and not break your budget.

Using the free Design & Print Online software from Avery and their selection of professional-quality templates, it's super easy to create a fully personalized suite of wedding details at home. All you need is a computer (Mac, Linux, or PC), a printer, and the coordinating Avery labels, tags, or cards.

To see how easy the Design & Print Online software is, check out this video from Avery.

The software allows you to customize any of the Avery Design & Print templates and with many themes to choose among, you're sure to find a style you love whether your big day is casual, elegant, rustic, modern - or anything in between.

Since I'm a total hands-on learner, I had to take the Design & Print Online software for a spin. The result? This pretty save-the-date:

Here's how to create this on your own:

1. From the Design & Print template page, select the Flower Garden 4-1/4″ x 5-1/2″ Postcard. The Design & Print software will open the template in your browser.
2. Simply click on the customizable areas on the template to add your text. The software allows you to change the font, its color or size, add graphics or photos, move text, and parameters so that you're able to easily customize your template to accommodate your details and style preferences. If you can use Microsoft Word, the Design & Print software will feel familiar to you.

3. Every change you make is shown in real-time so you know exactly what you're creating. Make a mistake? No problem! The software makes erasing mistakes or changing your design very easy with just the click of a mouse.

4. When you're satisfied with your design, hit Preview & Print. You'll be prompted to print your design yourself or you can opt to use Avery WePrint. With Avery WePrint, Avery will print and deliver the finished product to your door. (Pro tip: If you have a lot of printing to do and your inkjet loves to drink ink, it may be more economical to use Avery WePrint.) If printing from home, click Print It Yourself, and your designs will print directly from your own printer onto your coordinating Avery card.

This project took about 5 minutes to complete, start to finish. As for cost, a pack of 60 Avery postcards costs around $12.00 so 60 of these save-the-dates would cost about $0.20 each (not including ink costs, postage, and envelopes, of course). For a fraction of the cost of commercially printed designs, you can create a professional-quality, personalized design at home with the free Design & Print Online software and Avery products. How awesome is that?!