When planning a wedding or party, it is easy to

That is the message of a just-released online class from the Event Leadership Institute titled 'Invitations 101: Folds, Papers, Printing Techniques & More' which offers some outstanding advice for professional and first-time event planners on how to get the most out of your invitations and make a great impression for your event. Knowing all the options for successful invitation design, production and fulfillment is often the first step in successful event planning, according to class instructor and graphic design expert Steve Paster, president of Alpine Creative Group. The 30-minute video course covers the multitude of invitation options the event planner has at his or her disposal, as well as the financial and aesthetic factors the professional must consider. Paster, who has worked on birthday invitations for LeBron James and Sean Diddy Combs, wedding announcements for Billy Joel and other entertainers, and event invitations for Hollywood events including Queen Latifah's VIBE Gala, says that the most expensive invitation is the one that's never opened. Also, if scheduling, budgeting or even legal problems get in the way, you might as well say goodbye to future assignments. Paster has some advice for event planners that can make the difference between a smooth job and a nightmare: On one hand, it's really a numbers game because of all the options. On the other, it's a lot more critical than a game because the first impression recipients have of an event comes from the invitation. When event planners have to decide on the kind of paper to use for an invitation, they can select text or cover stock, coated or uncoated stock, vellum, skin, brushed, plastic or acrylic stock. They also have to decide on whether to use offset, digital, engraved, letterpress or various other kinds of printing, as well as die cutting, flush mounting, bordering, edging or other creative techniques. As Paster says, it really pays to know the difference. For many more on-line classes for event planners, visit http://www.eventleadershipinstitute.com.