{wedding wednesday: the invitations}

Happy Wednesday everyone! I can’t believe that Wedding Wednesday has been going on for as long as it has. If you’re interested, here are a few of my favorite wedding posts since we’ve started this series:

The Bridal Shower
The Colors
The Venue

And now, here we are at week…whatever. Anyway, I think it’s safe to say that we are getting to the best part of the planning.

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Invitations can seem like a pretty straightforward part of the wedding, but in reality, there are actually a lot of options. Whatever you choose, just remember…

Unless you’ve sent a save-the-date, your invitation is the first thing your guests are going to see from the wedding. Regardless of whether it’s your intention or not, the invitation is definitely a statement. So you’ll want to make it a good one.

There are a lot of options when it comes to choosing the design, printing, and paper for your invitations, and many of those decisions are based on how formal your wedding is going to be.

The most formal invitations are white, cream, or ivory, but that doesn’t necessarily mean you need to stick with one of those colors. Many invitations these days are printed on colored stock, just make sure there is an adequate contrast between the color of the paper and the color of the type. You don’t want your guests to struggle to read your invitations, of course.

The heaviest paper is the most expensive, and indicates the degree of formality. You also have the option to keep your paper flat, or add a raised margin.

Formal invitations typically include traditional choices, such as roman faces and scripts. If you choose an elaborate script, be sure to balance it with something simple and easy to read.

These days, however, sophisticated typography is very popular and an integral part of the overall invitation design. Another option is to include calligraphy as one of your fonts.

There are quite a few printing options for invitations, and all indicate a level of formality and expense. You can read about different types of printing here.

When mentioning the word “invitation,” what I’m really talking about is the entire invitation suite. This includes the invitation itself, as well as any auxiliary stationery, including response and reception cards, maps, and registry information. Once you choose a design and printing option for your invitations, you’ll want to make sure that everything included in the same envelope matches.

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Other than the actual design of your invitations, the most important decision is going to be the wording. It all depends on who is actually involved in the wedding, and whether or not you want to include your parents on the invitation.

Parents hosting Mr. and Mrs. John Smith request the pleasure of your company at the wedding of their daughter Elizabeth Anne to David Allen son of Mr. and Mrs. Robert Howard

Parents and couple hosting Elizabeth Anne Smith and David Allen Howard along with their parents request the honor of your presence at their wedding

Couple hosting on their own

Elizabeth Anne Smith
and
David Allen Howard
invite you to celebrate their marriage

You can view more examples and ideas for invitation wording here and here.

Other than the essential wedding information (date, time, location, etc.), you definitely need to include a way for guests to RSVP to the reception. Traditionally, this is done by a response card, which the invited guest will fill out with their information and send back to the person hosting (usually either the couple or one of their parents). If you have a response card, be sure to include a stamp on the envelope. Depending on the formality of your invitation and wedding, it can be appropriate in some instances to have guests RSVP online or to a phone number.

Whatever you decide, be sure to include an RSVP-by date, so that guests know when they need to respond by. This is essential, because you will need to provide your vendors with a final count before the wedding.

Formal wedding invitations include both an inner and outer envelope. The outer envelope is the one addressed and stamped, while the inner envelope displays the names of those invited to the wedding.

Whether you have one envelope or two, it’s really important to be very clear as to who the invitation is for. I’ve written more about invitation etiquette here.

If you don’t have the nicest handwriting to address your invitations, I would highly recommend that you hire someone to write them for you, or print them from a printer directly onto the envelope.

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I really wish I could include all the information you need about invitations in one post, but that’s just impossible. Feel free to contact me if you have any questions, or you can visit this site to learn more.

And now, a treat for you. You see that pretty invitation suite up there? It’s from Crafty Pie, and they are offering Something Charming readers 15% off their orders! Just let them know you found them here, and they’ll take care of you.

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