Wedding Advice – Here Comes the Blog

Posts Tagged ‘Invitations & Stationery’

When it comes time to send out your wedding invitations, you’re bound to have some questions. Because today’s society isn’t as formal as it once was, it’s hard to know just how to send out formal invitations. The last thing you want to do is offend someone. Here are some etiquette questions and answers that may be helpful to you.

First, you should know that formal invitations are comprised of one outer envelope which you write the full names and address of the people invited and an inner envelope which you do not seal, but will write the names only of the people invited.

How should you address an envelope to a single person and let them know it’s ok to bring a guest?

On the outside envelope, use just the invited guest’s name (Mr. John Brown). On the front of the inside envelope, write Mr. John Brown and Guest.

How do you address an envelope to a family when kids are invited?

You address the outer envelope to the couple (Mr. and Mrs. John Brown). On the front of the inside envelope, write the full names of the parents and the children’s first names (Mr. and Mrs. John Brown, Maggie, Elise, Tom). This will let the parents know their children are invited as well.

If a couple is living together but not married, how do you invite them both?

You would write both their names on the outer and inner envelopes. For instance, it would be correct to write “Mr. Todd Smith and Miss Katie Jones.”

If a doctor and his wife are on the guest list, how do you address the inner envelope?

Use the full name and address on the outer envelope (Dr. and Mrs. Clay Hartwell) and on the inner envelope write the title and last name (Dr. and Mrs. Hartwell).

If your guest is in the military, how do you address a wedding invitation to him and his wife?

It’s correct to address the outer envelope with the military branch and rank. For instance, Captain and Mrs. George Wendell, U.S.Army, is correct on the outer envelope. Inside you would write Captain and Mrs. Wendell.

If a woman is divorced, how do you address her invitation?

Be certain whether she has kept her married name or gone back to her maiden name. Either way you would write Ms. Mary Black. The Ms. fits in either situation. The inside would read Ms. Black.

How do you address an envelope to a married couple with different last names?

It is correct to write both names out fully. For instance, the outer envelope would read Mr. Bob Holden. On the next line under it, write Mrs. Monica White. On the inside, you’d write Mr. Holden and Mrs. White.

How do you include wording about dress code?

If you’re going to have a formal wedding, you can write “Black Tie Optional” or “Black Tie Suggested.” This will let the men know to wear a tuxedo or dark dress suit and the women will know it’s more dressy as well. Leave out any words that say how a guest must dress. It may seem too pushy. But definitely include how you’d like everyone to be dressed. It’s ok to say “Casual Attire Invited” if you are having a beach wedding or “Smart Casual” if it’s not ok to wear shorts.

Is it ok to print labels on your computer for the addresses?

Good etiquette suggests that it’s better to hand write your addresses on the envelopes. Plan for it to take a bit more time than you imagine. That’s the beauty of a formal invitation. It is not a quick copy or print from a machine. It’s your hand-written welcome. So invest a little extra time. Buy a good set of black felt tip pens and sit down and hand write your addresses. It’s rude to slap on computer generated labels. It sends a message that you didn’t care enough to hand address.

For more invitation advice, try some of the following articles:

Should You Send Save the Date Cards?

Do It Yourself Wedding Programs for the Ceremony

What to Do When You Have Missing or Late RSVPs

About eight weeks ago, we received an invitation from a couple to attend their wedding reception only. This couple was planning to have a private wedding in Mexico followed by a formal and much bigger reception at home {for everyone else} a few weeks after the wedding date.  In other words, a destination wedding with an at-home reception. Fun!

Well, I’d love to tell you how much fun we had at their reception~ the food, the dancing, the socializing… but this post is about wording a reception invitation. So I’ll get to it! Reception only invitations are pretty much the same as typical wedding invitations – only they don’t include ceremony information. The important components still being: who’s hosting, date, time and location while design and wording will indicate style and formality.

Since their reception was only a few weeks after their ceremony, our couple chose to send invitations     approximately eight weeks before they were actually married. If you prefer a shorter length of time between announcing your marriage and sending out your invitations, mail your invites on the day of or soon after your wedding. Just plan accordingly for your reception date.

Sample Wording for an At-Home Reception

Mr. and Mrs. John Smith

have the honor of announcing
the marriage of their daughter
Heather B. Smith
to
Jack L. Johnson

on July 23, 2012
The couple were united in marriage
in a private ceremony in
Los Cabos, Mexico

Please join us for a reception
celebrating their marriage
on August 23, 2012
Time
Location
Address

Remember to include RSVP Cards and any additional details helpful to your guests (i.e. parking info, maps, hotel accommodations, etc.)

All the Best,

Passport to Love

Image: Half-fold wedding invitation from MagnetStreetWeddings

From theme and personalization ideas to attire and décor, the wedding world is full of inspiration loveliness! So many incredible ideas… it almost makes me want to get married all over again! *sigh*

Newly engaged? If so, are you swimming in a sea of wedding magazines? Is your Google Reader overflowing with amazing wedding blogs? Are you feeling joyous yet overwhelmed with all the possibilities? Perhaps it’s a good time to get down to basics {I’ll explain soon}.

Your wedding invitations are the most important communication tool for your guests- reflecting the tone of your wedding as well as your colors, theme and style.  With all of today’s wedding inspiration goodness, a challenge lies in staying focused and keeping a cohesive look. Of course, it can be done~ hopefully, by the time you order your invites. 

Back to wedding planning basics. This simply involves deciphering your style and knowing what you want for your wedding day. If you stay true to your personalities and style, wedding planning will be a joy {as it should be}! You’ll have a much easier time making decisions while staying focused, consistent and true to yourselves.

Talk Amongst Yourselves

• Dream over your vision. How do you see your wedding day?
• What’s your style? Are you modern, traditional, destination, non-traditional…
• Which colors and season are you naturally drawn to?
• Is there a theme that effortlessly captures your personality and style?
• Where do you lean… rustic or metropolitan? Somewhere in between?
• What are the most important elements? {Great food. Great music. Dream dress…}
• What is your budget?

Thoughts? What other questions are worth asking?

 I’d love to hear from you,

Heidi

Save the Date image via MagnetStreet Weddings

Just wanted to send out a big welcome to Heidi who is one of our new contributors at Here Comes The Blog.  She is the author of Truly Engaging, the wedding blog from Magnet Street Weddings.   Heidi will be contributing to Here Comes the Blog on a weekly basis and sharing all things wedding stationery~ from etiquette and styles to wording, color and design~ all while keeping it real along the way.  We are very excited that Heidi has agreed to share her expertise with all of our readers and if you need even more stationery inspiration, be sure to check out Magnet Street Weddings.

A family-owned company, MagnetStreet Weddings designs and prints customizable wedding stationery~ they are best known for their fun Save the Dates and stylish wedding Invitation suites. One of their main goals is to design wedding stationery that is flexible… they want their couples to be able to showcase their style~ whether it’s classic, modern, destination or non-traditional. That said, wedding couples can use the Magnet Street Design Studio to easily upload photos, change colors, text and fonts to create wedding stationery that ultimately reflects their personality.

We love the fact that they will send couple's FREE SAMPLES!  And, they have lots of free tools too… inspirational boards, wedding widgets, and even a visual planning guide to help you organize your wedding look.  Check out this montage of great items available from Magnet Street Weddings....