| Complete Guide To Wedding Invitations & Wording | | | | junior/II/III," etc. |
| What is a Wedding Invitation For | | | | - Abbreviations should not be used. You should spell a |
| A wedding invitation is used to ask guests to attend | | | | name out or leave it out. �E.g "Peter Edward |
| a wedding. It should provide all the necessary details | | | | Jones" would be used rather than "Peter E. Jones" |
| and the invitation should give your guests an | | | | Also, "Road," "Street," "Avenue," "Reverend," |
| indication of what to expect. | | | | "Doctor," and all military titles should be spelled out. |
| When To Send The Invitations Out | | | | The only exceptions are: "Mr." and "Mrs." |
| Wedding Invitations should be typically sent out four | | | | - Phrasing should be in the third person. |
| to six weeks before the wedding date. Invitations | | | | - Only proper nouns should be capitalized (names of |
| should be sent out eight weeks before the event to | | | | people and places, cities, name of the day of the |
| out of town guests or those who may require more | | | | week, month name, etc.) |
| time to prepare. | | | | - If both Mr. and Mrs. Jones are doctors, they can be |
| Response Card | | | | referred to as "The Doctors Jones." |
| As well as sending the wedding invitation you may | | | | - You should not mention gifts on the invitation as |
| wish to send a reply card and self addressed | | | | you should expect nothing from your friends other |
| envelope. The reply card response can be used for | | | | than their presence at the event. |
| supplying details to the caterer and to get a general | | | | - Many people considered it socially incorrect to |
| indication of the number of guests attending. Guests | | | | include, "no children" on the invitation. Including "Black |
| should be asked to return the reply card two weeks | | | | tie" on the invite is un-necessary. If the wedding |
| before the actual wedding day or by the date | | | | takes place after six o'clock, your guests should |
| indicated on the card. | | | | assume that it is a formal event. |
| Save The Date Card | | | | Points To Remember |
| Save the Date cards can be mailed out between 3 | | | | - Name of parent(s), host(s) or sponsors |
| and 12 months before the event. They announce | | | | - Day/Date (spelled out - e.g. Sunday, the |
| that the wedding date has been set and allows | | | | twenty-fifth of March) |
| guests to prepare for the event. It should not be | | | | - Does the day definitely correspond with the event |
| used in place of the wedding invitation and should | | | | date? (check a calendar) |
| also inform guests that a wedding invitation will | | | | - Year (two thousand and eight) |
| follow. | | | | - Time (at six o'clock in the evening) |
| Invitation Wording | | | | - Name of Place (Holywell Church) |
| - Times, dates and days are traditionally spelled out. | | | | - Name of bride and groom (Bar/Bat Mitzvah, |
| - Punctuation should not be used at the ends of lines | | | | graduate) |
| (commas, periods, colons, etc.) Commas are used | | | | - Location of Place (city but no post code - street |
| within lines to separate the day from the date, the | | | | address is optional) |
| city from the state and a man's surname from "Jr. | | | | - Ask a friend to proof read your invitation. |