Do It Yourself Wedding Invitations - Choosing Wedding Invitations

Choosing Wedding Invitations

Choosing your wedding invitations can be one of the most daunting tasks in planning a wedding. There are so many colors, patterns, styles, papers, etc. to choose from, that choosing one can be a real challenge. It will help you to know that traditional wedding invitations are white or off-white, so a formal type wedding should use a traditional invitation. Another good choice is to choose invitations that are the color of the bridesmaids’ dresses, or you want to use a theme in your wedding, and use invitations may reflect that theme. There are alot of options out there, and you can easily view invitation samples online by color, style, theme, and paper type. Take a look at all your options and then pick one that is right for you. This decision is truly a personal one, Your invitations should reflect the formality of your wedding, your personal style, and the theme of your wedding, your guest books should match your invitations.

Who Sends Them?

Traditionally, formal type invitations are issued by the bride’s parents. Sometimes, even both parents will issue invitations or the couple can issue their own invitations. Older, established couples who are paying for their own weddings will often choose to issue their own invitations, while younger couples will choose to have their parents issue them. There are many rules, and guidelines that govern the wording and format of the invitations, and staying within these rules can make things a little less stressful. However, this is YOUR wedding, so you should use the words that mean the most to you.

The specific format of your wedding invitations requires that the type be centered on the page both horizontally and vertically, and use standard capitalization and punctuation rules. Titles are the only abbreviations permitted.

Other general rules are as follows:

• Use full names, not nicknames
• The hour is fully spelled out and AM/PM are not used
• Major cities do not list the state
• Military weddings should include the title of the commissioned officer, listing the branch of military is optional
• If the wedding is at a church, invitations should request the “honour of your presence”
• If the wedding is at a secular venue, invitations should request the “pleasure of your company”

If one set of parents is issuing the invitations, the following format should be used:

Mr. and Mrs. John Robert Smith
Request the honour of your presence at the marriage of their daughter
Sharon Ann
to
Mr. Austin Wayne Douglas
on friday, the twelth of June at eleven o’clock
First Baptist Church
Three hundred thirty three East Collins Street
Arlington, Texas

If divorced parents are issuing invitations together , they should read “Mothers name/ and / father’s name” and the following information should be in the same format as the other types of invitations.

If both the bride’s parents and the groom’s parents are issuing the invitations, they should use the following format:

Mr. and Mrs. John Robert Smith
And
Mr. and Mrs. John Edward Douglas
Request the honour of your presence at the marriage of their children
Sharon Ann Smith
and
Mr. Austin Wayne Douglas
on friday, the twelth of June
at eleven o’clock
First Baptist Church
Three hundred thirty three East Collins Street
Arlington, Texas

If the couple chooses to issue their own invitations, they should look like the following:

Sharon Ann Smith
And
Austin Wayne Douglas
Request the honour of your presence At their marriage
on friday, the twelth of June
at eleven o’clock
First Baptist Church
Three hundred thirty three East Collins Street
Arlington, Texas

When to Send?
Invitations generally should be sent four to six months before the wedding to allow your guests enough time to arrange their schedules. If the wedding is small and informal with only a few close friends and relatives, your invitations could be sent as few as 2 weeks before the ceremony.

A simple informal invitation sould read:

Dear Heather and Ryan,

Sharon and Austin are being married quietly at their house
on Friday, June 12, at 11:00.
We hope you will be able to attend and will also stay for dinner.
We are looking forward to sharing this blissful occasion with you.
Love,
Lisa

Getting a Response

Most couples like to know in advance who will be attending their wedding. Sending out matching response cards with your invitations is a good way to find out who will be there, and to make sure your closest friends receive your invitations. Also, you will be able to give your caterer a final headcount - which will save you money. Matching response cards should have a printed return address that is the same as that on the invitation. This avoids confusion. If you can afford to, prepay the postage for your response cards.

A matching response card should be simple and to the point, for example:

____________accepts____________regrets “Date of Wedding”

Following these general rules will reduce the amount of decisions you have to make, but always feel free to write a more personal message. If you are sending out your own do it yourself wedding invitations, your guests may appreciate the invitations being written in your own voice.

If your parents or your fiancée’s parents are sending out the invitations, a more traditional type wording would be the best route. Either way you choose, have fun choosing between the many hundreds of options available.

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