I love getting as well as sending paper invites. I still get quite a few although facebook and email invites tend to be the norm. One issue I ran into when send out invites to my sister's baby shower is that she didn't have a clue as to most of her friend addresses. Her friends (early 20s) seem to move constantly and you can't really look people up in the phone book these days, even whitepages.com is useless in many cases. I ended up sending a paper invite to the older crowd and her friends got invited via facebook.

I LOVE paper invites, giving and getting. But they can be pricey.

The number one reason the I sometimes don't respond to electronic invites is that those invites require me to have an active fill-in-the-blank account. I have a facebook account that I use only to enter home-dec giveaways. I have email notifications turned off so that I don't get facebook spam, or messages that I have a new post or message on facebook. I do respond to eVites because I do keep an active account. The rest? forget it. My spam filters will keep others off my radar.

While I think Evites are great for casual get togethers, there is nothing like a paper invitation your guests can hold and enjoy for your big moments. I completely agree that guests will feel much more special receiving a physical invitation, and thus are much more likely to make an effort to attend your event. I guess I see a paper invitation as a sort of "taste" of what's to come...and if the invite is spectacular I'm sure guests will be dying to see the event!

Other than big events like weddings, I think it's a waste of time and money to send out paper invites. As a full time working mom of 2 young children, I don't have time to write these invitations. Times have changed and the trend is the eviations, it's there, it's convenient, it's cheap, so use it.

i refuse to let go of snail mail! my new years resolution every year is to send birthday cards and i actually do it! around august they start arriving late but they arrive :) we have an annual holiday party with friends too where the invite is one of the highlights for everyone. i use the most ridiculous photo i got of someone from the year before and they make the next years invite...:) it's become a weird but hilarious tradition that everyone looks forward to and instantly gets people excited for the party...

For me it usually depends on the number of guests. If you invite 50 people to a party, the price of invites and postage can really get up there.. and honestly I'm not sure it would make my friends more inclined to respond. If it's a smaller gathering, then sure. I would love to receive real invites in the mail but I think among my age group, it just doesn't happen unless it's a wedding.

I like giving and getting paper invites. I make my own..

Rarely respond to e-vites because I rarely look at them when/if they show up in my inbox. If you're inviting me to something then you've personally spoken to me or mailed me something.

I'd like to see paper invitations make a comeback. They are still in use for weddings, thank goodness. They're classy. But I'm not optimistic they'll be adopted back en masse.

Not all of us have Facebook accounts, by choice. However, by simply not having one particular social media account, that excludes me from social events. I'm not sure what that says about the level of connection I have with the hosts.

By opting out of one social media site, I didn't realize I was opting out of people's lives altogether. I mean, it's never been easier to communicate - email, text, "kick it old school" with a phone call. Given that the alternatives are too much work, I'm not sure the effort of paper is something many people I know will be able to handle.

The thought of sending out invites and such can feel overwhelming, but everyone always enjoys receiving them. I create printable designs for holidays, birthdays and weddings and there are many affordable options out there for printing so cost should not be an issue. I started turning my holiday cards into ornaments and giving them as gifts the following year. So easy and cheap!

In my family, we have encountered some issues with evites. First of all, a few members of our family cannot have Facebook accounts because they have security jobs where they can't have personal info out there. Another issue is our elderly family members. My mother-in-law lives with us. When a family event was announced via Facebook, the youngers just assumed that we would invite Mom since she lives with us. Of course we did, but that did not sit well with the matriarch of the family. She is 87 and doesn't understand the Internet, so she felt slighted that she didn't receive her own invitation. To me, it is not worth hurting anyone's feelings to save a few bucks on Facebook invites. I don't even have a Facebook page anymore because I got tired of political stalkers hating on me for being a moderate. (Gasp! Imagine not allowing ideology to guide your decisions!)

I love paper invitations and if I am hosting a party you will be invited via paper. I recently sent invites for my daughter's birthday and used Tiny Prints' mailing service so I didn't have to go to the post office. It was no more time-consuming than electronic invitations.

skippany, that's a great idea! My parents used snail mail for my Quinceañera, I think. Other than that, I have never used snail mail, I've always invited in person.

That being said, I sooo want to begin using paper invitations. I don't own a house or live in the burbs or have even hosted a dinner party, so I haven't really had the need to use them. I like the idea of using hybrid websites that allow me to send paper invitations and track rsvps online. But I would probably only use them for special occasions: birthdays, Christmas, Thanksgiving, Easter, Independence Day, New Year's. My circle of friends is small enough that sending out invitations to small things like a dinner party celebrating a job promotion or a game day barbeque would be more cumbersome than cute.

Side note, but did I miss something? Has the word 'invitation' been completely replaced by 'invite'? My friends and I usually just send e-mails, so it's quite possible.

Facebook invites are a dime a dozen. I get invited to parties by people I hardly know, who probably don't expect me to show up anyways. If I receive a paper invitation, I know someone took the time to select me as their guest. It makes me feel special and I'd be a lot more likely to attend their gathering.

Inviting people electronically is convenient and perfectly acceptable, but I certainly appreciate snail mail too!

I have to say I feel as though paper invites are much more personal that evites, and I appreciate receiving them a lot more. I think that there are some things that still should be done the 'old fashioned way'. I have received evites for many occasions, I always get the feeling that I am not worth the time of having an invite and envelope written out to me- eventhough they would like my gift.

There are many reasons to use email over paper, but for me, it seems wasteful both environmentally and financially.

And @catiaelizabeth - yes, you missed something. People have been using the informal "invite" as a noun for a long time.

I'm of the 20-something generation and I have to side with e-vites. I have maybe 2 friend's physical addresses, and everyone else is email or facebook. I have one friend who insists on snail-mailing me little notes every month just to say hi, and I will admit that it bothers me. It's a waste of paper, postage, and gas (to deliver the letter) when they could've simply written me an email, to which I am MUCH more likely to respond to.
I've received several e-vites (non-facebook types) that were classy and elegantly designed, plus I could RSVP right on the website and leave a note.
My theory is this: save the paper for things you don't expect a response for (christmas cards, etc), and use e-vites for everyone's convenience.

Hi, Alysha -

Great column and interesting thoughts. Evite's been around for a long time, for sure - and we think about this particular question every single day. One thing we've learned is that there's a hunger for digital invitations that can be used for those special events where paper invites have been the norm. So, we created Evite Postmark, with renowned invitation designer Marc Friedland as our Style Director. The site is brand new - please go check it out at www.postmark.com and let us know what you think. BTW, anyone who registers between now and Nov. 15 can receive 500 free credits! Enjoy.

Jamie Greenspan
www.evite.com & www.postmark.com

I love when people use as an excuse, I have a full time job. The majority of people in the history of the world probably had full time jobs and still found the time to get stuff done. For personal functions (dinner party, drinks, BBQ, movie night, dancing, etc.) I think a phone call is the best way to reach out, you get an answer immediately and takes all of 1 minute. For a larger or more formal event you plan in advance then a printed invitation works best, it sets the tone for the event, gives details, etc. But that's how I was raised, when my mom found the time to do these things while working a full time job and raising three kids and running a household.

Overall, I view evites as "Meh!" They're great for a casual gathering (hey, we're hitting Murphy's next Friday for Danny"). But a real card should be used for special occasions to make them special.

Let me take that back.

Anything that requires an invitation is special! Splurge on the paper card!

I think for parties and things that require more planning, maybe a paper invitation is better. If I'm having people over for dinner, I'm not going to send a paper invitation because the process for inviting people probably went like "Anyone want to come over next weekend?" and getting feedback.

Haven't ever sent paper invites, and have only gotten them for weddings. I have no attachment to them at all - e-vites of any sort are cheaper, easier, and ecologically more sustainable, and there's no danger that I'll lose then in my desk clutter. I say bring on the invite tech.

As someone who absolutely loves to hand make cards, I love getting paper invites b/c I find they're so rare.

I don't have an issue with evite and have done the invites both ways but a lot depends on the party and the recipients. Formal vs casual. I for one actually like the evite reminders especially if I've misplaced the actual paper invite. But this can work with paper invites as well b/c I can throw them on my fridge or bulletin board and they serve as a visual reminder everyday to ensure a map, remind me to get a hostess gift, birthday present etc.

ecards however I am completely not a fan of.

I love sending letters, cards, and invites. I have to admit I have started to use Evite for larger gatherings but for smaller things like my kiddos' birthday parties, I do like to send paper invitations. I have them collected together and they serve as a nice part of the memory of the day.

Sorry, youngsters. I appreciate the convenience of modern technology as much as the next person, but snail mail invitations are *special*. And by special, I don't just mean weddings. And hand made ones more so...they make the recipient feel special & blessed with the gift of a friend's hospitality which is what any good host desires.

Casual get-togethers are one thing, but EVEN THEN I consider a text or e-mail a followup to a more personal phone call. I've never received an evite (that I know of) but if/when I do, it will go unanswered unless it is at least preceded or followed up with a phone call. Good manners are just that....thoughtfulness. Technology can never replace good manners.

Call me old-fashioned if you will, I care not. My 10 yr old g-son whom the AF moved cross country 2 yrs ago - recently requested snail mail from his grammy. Unlike our generation, computers & the world of wireless is all he's known. He's a computer wiz at his young age and even he recognizes the warmth & love enclosed in a card.

To those who want to scream 'green' here...you are missing out on one of life's simple pleasures. Makes me sad.

So I don't understand something. I see quite a few people saying that they don't send invitations via postal mail because they don't have the addresses. So how in the world are you sending thank you cards? Regardless of how invitations play out, a thank you will never go out of style...

Hmmm I have to think about this. I haven't received a paper invitation in a while. Scratch that, I did a few weeks ago to a friend's daughter's second birthday. It was one of those fill-in-the-blank ones. To be honest, I read it, put it in the calendar, and tossed it. If I were getting a beautifully made invitation, I'd keep it on the fridge for a month or two and then toss it (depending on the occasion and how close I am to the sender). I send out paper Christmas cards each year and paper birth announcements, and the memory of handwriting all those addresses makes my hand twitch (not to mention the painstaking process of emailing almost everyone on my list each year for updated addresses because we all move too often). I love the idea of paper invitations, but the ease and convenience of evites (and I use evites, not fb invites) just outweighs the temporary joy of a received invitation. I TOTALLY get that it is nice to receive snail mail (especially in an age where we just get junk mail and bills), but I don't see invitations topping my list of priorities. Don't you think it's a little silly (ok, rude) to say that an evite will go unanswered? You aren't proving much by responding to a perceived slight with poor manners.

I just sent one out for my daughter's first birthday, and I spent plenty of time picking out the right invitation to get the right feel for my daughter's party. I know that all of the important friends and family will be there. I'd rather save my time coming up with cute, unique cupcakes and decorations.

SwingNCocoa - I envy that you have a friend who sends you notes through the mail! I love a little suprise amidst the junk mail and bills. I don't consider that sort of sentiment wasteful. After all, I'm sure your friend is not put out by pay 50 cents for postage. It's not extra gasoline for the mail truck, as it probably would have been in your neighborhood regardless. And the minimal amount of paper used? Recycle it. Snail mail will always win over e-mails, for me!