Unlike stocks and bonds, commodities are actual raw materials or agricultural goods. Commodities include wheat, corn, crude oil, gold, copper, and other goods and materials. When investors buy and sell commodities, they are not buying and selling ownership stakes in companies; instead they are buying and selling the actual goods and materials themselves.

Investors have many answers to the question of how to buy and sell commodities. There are many options to consider, but one of the most popular options is through futures contracts. These instruments are agreements to buy or sell a particular commodity at a set future date. Much like bonds, they can be bought and sold before the maturity date with impunity as the price of the underlying commodity goes up or down.

Futures traders make a profit with commodities by selling contracts that are decreasing in value and buying contracts that are increasing in value. This sounds simple, but futures contracts are incredibly complex, especially when they involve commodities. This is because futures traders need to be aware of the various geopolitical and economic events and trends that can affect the prices of commodity futures.

Take oil futures, for instance. The 2003 Iraq War was the starting point for an incredible boom in commodity oil prices that matched the housing bubble, both of which burst in 2008. Initially, traders were concerned that the war would drive oil prices down. For a while, the war did drive oil prices down but in late 2003 they suddenly reversed course and began to climb considerably.

Futures contracts are not linked to other kinds of derivations, such as securities backed by a mortgage for investment property. During the 2008 meltdown, the futures market did take a hit; projections showed a potential 30% drop in price ranges across all asset classes. The catastrophe has largely been recovered from, however, and commodity futures look better than ever.

Photo by PocketAces **Cortesy of sxc.hu

Affordable does not mean cheap! If you are looking for affordable wedding invitations but you don’t want to compromise on the quality, look or design of your wedding invite there is no need to worry as you can find really attractive designs that will impress your guests without a doubt.

We all know (and as we have seen through other posts on this site) that planning your wedding is primordial when it comes to having complete success. Part of the planning – a major part! – consist on sticking within your budget at all times. What good is planning everything on a daily basis if you get excited with a few things here and there and you end up without much in your pocket to spend? You really have to be very careful; decide what you want most and what you can sacrifice. By saving on affordable wedding invitations your pocket will allow for plenty of other important things.

Once again, we come back to the internet. Online stores offer you fantastic deals and offers. In the one given day you can literally “visit” hundreds of stores if you set your mind to it. There is no way you could ever do that if you went out shopping. The affordable wedding invites can be viewed through your monitor screen which is more than you need as it is not a dress you need to try on. So, you see, quick and easy. By shopping online you can even find wedding gifts under 100 dollars if you needed to; saving money on wedding accessories, gifts, venues, decorations and many other wedding related matters is only one click away.

The other thing you could – and should – do is ask for samples. Many online stores will provide you with one or more, and you’ll save huge amounts of time by ordering through their forms. If there isn’t one, email them or get the phone number from their website. If you want to make sure of what you want, visit a store before hand. Look at all the options, quality and thickness of card, font styles, colors, etc. It will give you a pretty good idea of what to look for when you go online.

Another option includes going directly to the manufacturers. At times they do offer massive discounts; the downside is dealing with them which could be a bit of a hassle (worth it, though).

Why don’t you do them yourself? If you are into crafts, and have a flair for design, you could use your favorite design software and create a masterpiece at the touch of a button. Printing at home can be a bit costly, I would advise you to contact your local printer (or, again, online) and ask for prices –don’t forget about the thickness of the card -. They will vary depending on the finish of the invitation (glossy, matt, etc), gramage, colors involved (black and white will always be a lot cheaper), if there is printing on front, inside, back, etc. At least do check this option out and see how much money it might save you.

Now, let’s have a look at a few ideas you can implement that will save you a bit of money:

- Forget about respond cards. Just include that info on the wedding invitation

- Forget envelope liners. If they are not there, they will go unnoticed.

- Write the return address yourself. It will save you a bit of money.

These options are extra and not necessary. Sure it would be nice to have these lovely additions, but great affordable wedding shower invitations does not mean doing everything by the book. All they need to do is be original and “inviting”, expressing what we all know: that, in the end, it is the thought that counts!