Event Planning

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Writing an evening wedding invitations can be challenging. Here are some helpful ideas and examples to inspire your own invitation wording.

Some guests only attend your evening reception, while others attend your ceremony. So who should receive Save the Dates?

One of the queries we receive is how much time should you give guests to reply to a wedding invitation? We’ve created a blog to help you out!

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For anyone about to navigate the world of blessing ceremonies, this is the blog post for you.

Writing a wedding invitation can seem tricky, but it doesn't have to be! To help you, we've put together a guide to wedding invitation wording.

Save the date cards are a super useful way to announce your wedding date in style! Their purpose is to include key information about your wedding day that guests need to know months in advance. While it may be tempting to include all the little details on your cards, these are not necessary and should be saved for the wedding invites! Here are a few things to consider:

1) Names

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Don't forget to include your names! While this seems obvious, forgetting to include your names has happened before. We also recommend you include your last names if inviting people you're not that close with, just to avoid guests' potential confusion.

2) Date

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Sending guests your wedding date is the purpose of save the date cards, so make sure you include this! It is also important to consider when you are sending out your save the dates in relation to your wedding date. We recommend you send save the dates approximately 6-9 months before your big day, as this allows people to book time off work and plan other social events around this date. If you are marrying in a busy season or period, such as over Christmas, or marrying abroad, aim to send your save the dates up to 12 months in advance.

3) Etiquette

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While we are big fans of wedding etiquette here at Dotty about Paper, save the date cards have a less formal feel than the rest of your stationery. This gives you a great excuse for being a bit more creative with it! While save the dates are a great way to announce a theme, you could always pick a design that's a bit more outgoing than your chosen wedding theme.

4) Guest List

Make sure you are certain on who you want to invite to your wedding before you send out save the dates! Save the dates imply that you will invite the recipient to your big day, so they will expect an invite. It is also advisable not to send save the dates to guests you only want at your evening reception, unless you specify that this is an evening-only reception on your save the date cards.

Also consider that if you send a save the date to someone, they will probably assume their partner or family are also invited. You can clarify this through writing their names on the envelope. This will limit confusion. Here are some examples below:

Single Guest:

Miss Nicola Goddard

Sandward House,

47 Cartway,

Bridgnorth, WV16 4BG

Guest with a Plus One - Add 'and guest':

Miss Nicola Goddard and Guest

Sandward House,

47 Cartway,

Bridgnorth, WV16 4BG

Unmarried Couple - Use both first and last names as well as “Mr.” or “Ms.”:

Mr. James Owen and Ms. Nicola Goddard

Sandward House,

47 Cartway,

Bridgnorth, WV16 4BG

Married Couple - Use the husband's first and last name after 'Mr. and Mrs.':

Mr. and Mrs. James Owen

Sandward House,

47 Cartway,

Bridgnorth, WV16 4BG

Same-Sex Married Couple - Use both first names with joint surname at the end:

Mrs. Lucy and Mrs. Nicola Owen

Sandward House,

47 Cartway,

Bridgnorth, WV16 4BG

Married Couple with Kids - Use the plural form of the family name or:

The Owen Family

Sandward House,

47 Cartway,

Bridgnorth, WV16 4BG

5) Location

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Unless you are getting married abroad, it is not essential to include your wedding location. This makes a great surprise for your wedding invites instead! If you are marrying abroad, try and give an accurate location, as this will help guests book travel in advance. However, if you are not yet sure, just include the country and inform guests later on.

6) "Formal invitation to follow"

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At the bottom of your save the dates, you should inform guests that a formal invitation will follow in case they mistakenly think this is their invite.

7) Proof

Before ordering any stationery, make sure you check it in advance to allow for errors. We also recommend ordering stationery a few weeks in advance, too.

Getting invited to a wedding is always so exciting! But, how should you respond to the wedding invitation? Here are some examples of how to respond, and what RSVP card wording you should use, whether you're attending the wedding or declining the invitation.

If you've accepted a wedding invitation, it is considered good etiquette to follow through with your word and attend the big day. However, sometimes we do find ourselves with other commitments that we simply can't miss, and therefore have to decline. If you have to turn down a wedding invitation after accepting it, then this is how to do it politely