It’s been months since your engagement. You already found the best wedding venue and picked the ideal date for your ceremony. You have made a myriad of preparations, and the wedding is now beginning to feel surreal.
Now is the right time to mail out your wedding invites and request the most important people in your life to witness your vows.
The great news is the wedding invitation rules of etiquette aren’t that tricky. The guidelines are so much easier and more straightforward than you imagine. And whatever the circumstance may be, they only serve as a guide. The first rule about this is that you make beautiful wedding invites that capture you, your love, and the perfect day with your partner.
To help steer you to the right track, we’re narrowing down the 5 W’s of wedding invitation so you can use it as a basis for creating your own.
Table of Contents
Who?
You!
Nobody would miss putting this on the wedding invitation. But are you wondering whose name should go first? The bride’s name traditionally comes first before the groom’s. Same-sex marriages can choose whichever they deem is best. But no matter what you are doing, don’t just include your first names.
For an informal ceremony, you may want a very casual phrase like, “Lara and Shane would appreciate you to join them in celebrating their matrimony.” An overlay or the envelope would have to include your complete names, so it does not confuse the attendees which Lara and Shane are inviting them. You can order it alphabetically or choose what feels natural. Whichever way, it will be splendid.
What?
In a certain sense, you will have to state that it is a wedding invite. You may use traditional wedding expressions, casual wording, or poetic phrasing – whichever you deem fit for the theme of the ceremony. If the wedding is a private event, make this clear in the invite.
When?
For formal ceremonies, everything will be written out entirely without figures. The year is optional as long as your wedding isn’t around January. Spell out the time as “o’clock” or “a quarter after five o’clock.” You can use a.m. or p.m. if desired. You can use numerals for informal weddings.
It would be fantastic if all the guests were to respond shortly for the RSVP. However, unsurprisingly, that doesn’t happen. Always remember including a line such as, “Please send your response by July 11th,” or casually “Please RSVP by November 22nd.”
Where?
Typically, the street address of the wedding venue is not required, unless removing it would lead to confusion. Include it if there are no landmarks or if the event is taking place in a residence. In either scenario, add the city and the state in full.
What else?
- Weekend Plan
- Rehearsal Dinner Information
- Wedding website
You can include these additional details on an enclosure card that complements your ceremony aesthetic.
Whatever you put in your wedding invitation, make sure it reflects your personality. This way, you’ll be able to come up with an invite that everyone will treasure in remembrance of your big day!
