Ahh, postage. The bane of my existence in a career that deals with mailing paper items. Long story short, postage is going up again in May. It shouldn’t be much of a surprise, as it was decreed last year (by an act of Congress, no less) that postage would go up every May. Presumably, until the end of time, or until the Post Office is privatized. But we won’t get into that here!
Starting May 11, 2009, a one-ounce piece of first class mail will cost 44 cents to mail. Postcard stamps will go from 27 to 28 cents, only a 1-cent jump. One thing to keep in mind is that when planning your invitation timeline, you need to consider when your response cards are due back to you. If it’s after May 11, you’ll need the new postage amount. Suppose you’re aware of this and are ready to buy those new stamps. Of course, they won’t be available until early May. So if you’re planning ahead, plan on picking up some 2-cent add-on stamps to put with your current stamps. Or, get the Forever stamp now, and don’t worry about it. Or wait until early may and pick from the new designs. It’ll be slim pickings, for sure. If you’re a fan of flags, you’re in luck!
If you’re very concerned about your stamps not matching, you can always go up on price and get some lovely 2-3 oz rate stamps. Last year I had one client who was distraught about the available stamps clashing with her gorgeous invitations, so she opted for a 58-cent stamp that matched perfectly, for her response cards. Sometimes it’s worth a little extra scratch to ensure that everything matches.
If your budget has quite a bit of wiggle room, consider custom-printed stamps. Zazzle and Stamps.com are two online sites that offer both custom, upload-your-own image stamps, and a selection of fun designs and colors. Be prepared to double your postage budget, though. Custom stamps will run an average of 80 cents each, which is a bit of a jump from 42! They are stunning though, and I’ve had several clients use a part of their invitation (motif, monogram) as their stamp. I’m happy to help, just ask me for a JPG of your image. And be sure to send me a picture of the finished product. 
