The Wedding Invitation Explained
What the difference between Save-the-Date card, invitation, and wedding announcement? Besides serving the similar function of announcing your wedding, they are also full of potential etiquette mistakes. So stop poring over wedding dresses online for a few moments and pay attention!
The Save-the-Date states the date and place of your wedding so your friends and family to make travel plans or request time off work. You should mail them at least six months before your wedding, after you’ve booked the venue but before you buy the wedding dress.For destination weddings, you should send them at least eight months from the date. Wedding announcements are mailed at least a day or two after the wedding and inform people that you’re married.
Not everyone who is invited to the wedding must receive a Save-the-Date, but everyone who receives the Save-the-Date should an invitation. At the very latest, send your invitation six weeks before the wedding.
The invitation includes the host line, request line, bride and groom line, date and time lines, location line, and reception and RSVP lines. They can be worded and arranged to reflect the style of the occasion, level of formality, and your personal taste.
The Host Line
The host line traditionally lists the names of bride’s parents, who used to pay for the wedding. If both sets of parents are paying, you can put both sets of names or each side can issue their own invitations. If you and your fiancé are picking up the bill but wish to honor your parents, you can use your names and include the phrase, “with their parents.” Remember that “host” is no longer just a financial term, it can also describe how much time and energy someone puts into wedding. Deceased parents cannot host the wedding, but can and should be honored in other ways such as the wedding program.
The Request Line
The request line can be phrased in many different ways, but be clear about whether your guest is invited to the wedding ceremony or the reception only. It is no longer acceptable to invite a guest to just the ceremony, though the guest may, of course, choose to only attend the ceremony.
Bride and Groom Line
The bride and groom’s names are announced without courtesy titles and joined with a “to” or “and.”
Date and Time
You do not have to include words like AM or PM, unless it is at atypical time such a dawn wedding at six.
Location
The address of your location is optional.
Reception
If the reception is at a separate place, you have the option of including it on a separate card. However, if it’s the same place, a phrase like “reception to follow” is enough.
RSVP Line
You can include a separate self-addressed envelope for the RSVP or some modern couples omit the envelope and have guests RSVP online.
The Insert
The insert can include special information such as if your event will not include a full meal or details about attire or travel information. It is considered bad taste to include your wedding registry on your invitation.
And always have someone check and double check spelling before you send it to the stationer’s or print them.
Posted by Natalie T.
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