Enjoy one-stop shopping at Visions of Love By beth brody Correspondent CHRIS KELLY At Visions of Love/Invitations and More, Point Pleasant, you will find a large selection of invitations, as well as many other wedding day essentials such as toasting glasses, cake toppers, guest books and pens. The first impression of your wedding is the paper you send, according to Myrna Kutcher, owner of Visions of Love/Invitations and More of Point Pleasant. Open six days a week to help you choose the perfect invitation for your special day, Kutcher's shop is wrapped in a warm, homey feeling and you will always find a cup of coffee, a spot of tea, or an icy cold drink waiting for you. And then there are the puppy kisses. Kutcher's 6 1/2 pound Chihuahua, Pokie, is a celebrity of sorts around the Visions of Love boutique. She understands that her role is to play with the children who accompany adults to the shop, leaving the adults free to leisurely browse on their own through Kutcher's 30 books of invitations. (But don't worry - if you're not a dog fan, Pokie doesn't get offended when she's banished to the back room.) And just what will you find throughout Visions of Love? In a word, plenty. In addition to Kutcher's 30 books of invitations containing every imaginable type of invitation, from classic to contemporary to ultra-fancy to bare-bones plain, she also sells wedding cake tops, toasting glasses, money bags, bubbles, disposable cameras, guest books, elegant pens, silver goblets that fit together to become one, unity candles and garters. "We were one of the first one-stop shops for weddings," notes Kutcher, who has been in the business since 1988. Stuart Kutcher, Myrna's husband, got the business rolling when he was a wedding photographer. "The brides would always ask Stuart, 'Where can I get this or that?' for their weddings and Stuart would say, 'We can get you that!'," recalls Kutcher, who attended her first major New York Gift Show in January 1989. She came home armed with more than $1,000 in bridal accessories which immediately sold like hot cakes to brides-to-be. Visions of Love opened in the Old Peddler's Village in 1988, but has been in its current Point Pleasant location since 1998. Kutcher's years of experience are a real comfort to her customers. While the classic and elegant look still reigns as the most popular style of wedding invitation, according to Kutcher, future brides shouldn't be scared off if they think they can't afford a refined traditional look. "Elegant and classic doesn't always mean expensive," notes Kutcher. "We work with our customers to find the perfect invitation in all price ranges. I always urge people not to surf the Internet in search of cheaper invitations because you need to touch and feel the paper stock to make sure you are getting what you really want. This is one of the most important days of your life and you want it to start out perfect." Kutcher comments that bright white, a true ivory tone, and a softer ivory hue are the three most popular shades of invitations, accompanied by raised or engraved lettering. While invitations should generally be ordered at least four months in advance, if you are in a hurry Kutcher can often print a smaller order of invitations in just 24 hours, as long as the paper you choose is in-house and in stock. Already purchased your invitations from another shop? That's OK - Visions of Love offers an elegant addressing service which uses a high-tech computerized calligraphy system. Your envelopes will look as if a calligrapher spent pain staking hours addressing each and every one with a quill pen and ink. Kutcher also has an in-house printing department where she can create invitations for any function when you choose from her collection of 1,500 designs. Whatever the occasion - bridal shower, baby shower, birthday, Christening, Bar/Bat Mitzvah, graduation celebration, First Communion, you name it - Kutcher can print your invitations quickly, often within 24 hours. If you'd like to print your own invitations from your home computer, check out the shop's Consumer Printable Card Stock. However, Visions of Love can also print your invitations on these Consumer Printables, offering you a greater choice of ink color and type faces. Stop by and visit Myrna, Stuart, and Pokie at Visions of Love/Invitations and More at 2816 Bridge Ave., Point Pleasant. Or call (732) 899-9200.