Elements to Include in Your Wedding Invitation

Your Wedding Invitation is an important part of the wedding planning process, and is something you will want to prepare once you have set your wedding date and secured the location. If you are planning to have out of town guests at your wedding, or are planning a destination wedding, it is also best to send a save the date card 4 to 6 months prior to your wedding date. This will allow your guests plenty of make their travel arrangements, and will ensure more of your family and friends are in attendance. Your save the date card does not need more detail than the date, location (even a city and state will do), your wedding planning website (if applicable) and a note that a formal invitation will follow. Your formal wedding invitation should be sent about 8 weeks prior to your wedding, and you should request RSVP replies 3 weeks prior to your wedding date.

A formal wedding invitation should include the following elements:
- Wedding Response Cards: This will tell you who will and will not attend your wedding reception. The do not forget to include a stamped return address envelope with the response card. Note that the response card should be that of the person hosting the wedding.
- Directions and Maps: This is an important element, especially if you have out of town guests attending. Note that these should be printed individually and not photocopied. Most reception halls will have this information available to download off their website just be sure to double check the details for accuracy before you start printing copies.
- Accommodation Cards: Like the directions and maps, this is another important element if you are planning on inviting many out of town guests. You should include nearby airports, hotel options, area attractions and rental car agencies. If you have booked a block of rooms in a nearby hotel or you have reserved rental cars in their names, you would provide this information as well.
Optional elements for your wedding invitation include:
- Reception Cards: Reception cards should be used if you are planning on having different guest lists for your wedding ceremony and wedding reception. The reception card is used to include details about the wedding reception such as the time and venue.
- Website Links: Some couples have a wedding website to post details about their wedding. If you would like to include a website, a simple card with the web address can be included in the invitation.
Keep in mind that any extra inserts included in your invitation should be printed on a high quality paper that is the same thickness and color as your actual invitation if you do not have coordinating stationary in the same pattern.

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How to Word the Perfect Wedding Invitation

There are a few different formats for wording a wedding invitation. The format you use for your wedding invitation is dictated by two things: who is hosting the wedding and the type of ceremony you are having.
The first lines of your wedding invitation, and thus the first names that your guests will read, should be the person or people hosting your wedding. Traditionally, this has been the brides parents, but today it is often both families or the couple themselves. This is followed by the request that your guests attend. The wording here is dictated by whether you are having a religious wedding ceremony or secular wedding ceremony. Therefore, there are four ways in which the first lines of your wedding invitation can be worded.

Style 1: One or both sets of parents are hosting a wedding with a religious ceremony. This should be worded as:

Mr. and Mrs. John Doe
request the honour of your presence
at the marriage of their daughter

or

Jane and John Doe
request the honour of your presence
at the marriage of their daughter

Note that the word "honour" is intentionally using the traditional British spelling. Also, the example is written assuming the bride's parents are hosting. The wording can be modified if the groom's family or both families together are hosting the wedding.

Style 2: The couple is hosting a wedding with a religious ceremony. This should be worded as:

Ms. Sarah Doe and Mr. Steven Smith
request the honour of your presence
at their marriage

or

Together with their families,
Sarah Doe and Steven Smith
request the honour of your presence
at their marriage

Style 3: One or both sets of parents are hosting a wedding with a secular or civil ceremony. This should be worded as:

Mr. and Mrs. John Doe
request the pleasure of your company
at the marriage of their daughter

or

Jane and John Doe
would be delighted for you to attend
the marriage of their daughter

Again, the example is written assuming the bride's parents are hosting. The wording can be modified if the groom's family or both families together are hosting the wedding.

Style 4: The couple is hosting a wedding with a secular or civil ceremony. This should be worded as:

Ms. Sarah Doe and Mr. Steven Smith
invite you to join them at the celebration of their marriage

or

Together with their families,
Sarah Doe and Steven Smith
invite you to join them at the celebration of their marriage

Rest assured that this is the most confusing part of wording a wedding invitation. If the bride and groom are not hosting the wedding and your invitation is modeled after Styles 1 and 3 above, the following lines should introduce the couple. Traditionally, this is done with the bride's first and middle name first, followed by the groom's title and full name, and should read:

Sarah Elizabeth
to
Mr. Steven Evan Smith

For a less formal wedding, feel free to use both full names, such that the invitation reads:

Sarah Doe
to
Steven Smith

The next step is to list the date and time of the wedding. Again, there is a traditional and informal way to do so. For a traditional wedding, etiquette dictates that the full date should be spelled out as follows:

Saturday, the thirteenth of November
two thousand and ten
at half after two o'clock in the afternoon

For a less formal wedding, the date and time can be written in the traditional manner, to read:

Saturday, November 13, 2010
at 2:30 p.m.

After the date and time, you should list the location of your wedding. This should include the name of the venue, the street address, city and state.

The final piece of information you include on your wedding invitation should be regarding your reception. If you have a different guest list for your wedding ceremony and reception, you should include the details of your reception on a reception card that is enclosed in the same envelope as the formal invitation. If you choose to include the reception information in the invitation, an example of the wording would be:

Reception to follow at the Plaza Hotel

If you prefer to have a reception card, the card should read:

Reception
8 o'clock
The Plaza Hotel
Fifth Avenue at Central Park South
New York, NY

In addition to the above, some couples opt to add the following details to their wedding invitations:
- A note on attire - Depending on the venue of your reception, you may have a dress code; if this is the case for your reception hall, be sure to add a simple line at the bottom of your invitation in a slightly smaller type face such as "Black tie".
- A request not to bring children - While this is generally understood, a note reading "Adult reception" can be printed on the bottom of your wedding invitation again in a smaller type face.
As a finishing touch, be sure to enclose a separate response card with self address stamped envelop for guests to R.S.V.P.

If you want to include additional information, such as directions and accommodations, it should be on a separate piece of stationary and enclosed with your formal invitation. Keep in mind it is generally bad etiquette to include any details about your wedding registry in your invitation. Your gift preferences can be posted on your wedding website, and you can include a separate card in your invitation with your website URL.

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