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Use the information below to help you organize your wedding invitation information.
As soon as you set the date
Begin looking for an invitation design to suit your wedding
style
Decide on enclosure cards
If you have guests coming from a long distance, it is advisable
to send out hold-the-date cards as soon as your plans are firm,
so that guests can make travel arrangements
Six
months before the wedding
Make your final invitation selection and place your order
Three
months before the wedding
Begin addressing invitations
Set up system for keeping track of replies. We suggest that
the hosts give all of their guests a number. They can write
the number lightly on the back of the response card and can
use this to keep a list of returns. This will also help in case
a guest forgets to write their name on the response card
Two
months before the wedding
Determine exact postage needed (take a fully assembled invitation
ensemble to your local post office to be weighed to determine
exact postage needed)
Finalize invitations for mailing and determine mailing date
- it is customary to send wedding invitations 6 weeks before
your wedding, although 8 weeks is becoming more common
Three
Weeks Before The Wedding
Make your response date 2-3 weeks before the wedding. Caterers
usually need to know 2-3 weeks in advance how many people they
will be serving
Wedding
Day
Send out wedding announcements - to announce your wedding
to those that you did not invite to the wedding
After
the Wedding
Wedding etiquette states that newly married couples have up
to two months to send written thanks for wedding and shower gifts
received.
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Before you order, take the time to write down the facts
surrounding your wedding and reception.
The actual ordering process
will go more smoothly with all of your facts at your fingertips!
Here is a list of things you will need to know to order your wedding
invitations:
Bride's
name as it will appear on the invitation
Groom's
name as it will appear on the invitation
Wedding date spelled out – e.g. Saturday, the twenty-third
of March
Wedding time - "at six o’clock in the evening"
Reception
time Names of Groom's parents as they will appear on the invitation
(if applicable)
Names of Bride's parents as they will appear on the invitation
(if applicable)
Name of the Wedding location
Wedding location address
Name
of the reception location
Reception location address
Outer
envelope return address
RSVP to name and address
Entree selections for response cards
Rehearsal date, time and meeting location
Rehearsal dinner time and location
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If you are able to determine the exact number of invitations you will need, it is always safe to order a bit extra. Since invitations are usually sold in quantities of 20 or 25, you should think about ordering 150 in cases where you needed 122 invitations. If you ordered 125, 3 extra might not be enough of a cushion. If any are sent back to you with the wrong address, if you add someone to the list last minute, if you or your family would like some for scrapbooks, or if some people don't receive anything and you need to resend them, you will be glad to have a few more on hand.
It is also wise to order extra envelopes in case there are any mistakes made when printing or writing the names and addresses on the envelopes. If you need to order your invitations before your guest list is finalized, you can estimate how many invitations to order by taking half of your total number of guests and adding 25. This will give you a ball-park number but, it is always a good idea to be more exact. Here are some guidelines: Married couples and families only need one invitation. If there is a child over 18 living at home with their family, it is recommended to include their name on the outer envelope, or to send them their own invitation. If you have several friends living in the same house together, it is customary to send each of them an invitation.
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