In this more relaxed era, a wedding invitation can be sent by telephone, conveyed verbally or even emailed. The objective of a wedding invitation is to let your guests know when and where the ceremony and reception are taking place.
Although wedding invitations are similar to other invitations, there is a certain formality associated with them. Because of this association, wedding invitation etiquette has been established to help you navigate the ins and outs of inviting guests to your wedding. This etiquette exists because formal wedding invitations convey the formality and the tone of the event through the paper, font and style of the invitation. The more formal your wedding, the more formal the invitations need to be.
Addressing wedding invitations for a formal wedding does not allow for inviting guests via email or phone since these methods are relatively new. It does require the time honored tradition of printed invitations sent in the mail.
Formal wedding invitations usually have the following characteristics. There are usually two envelopes with the invitation. The first envelope is the outer envelope which holds everything pertaining to the invitation. The second envelope is used for the reply card only. They are often engraved and generally written in the third person style. They are printed on heavy white, cream or ivory. They use a classic font.
There are other helpful rules of etiquette for formal wedding invitations which should be considered during the planning stage. For example, the more formal and ceremonial the wedding, the less creativity is suitable. If your guest is certain to bring a date or companion it is acceptable to write "and guest" on the invitation when you do not know their name. Usually this limits the amount of unknown guests brought along by others. Ceremonies held in places of worship require a more formal setup and thereby more formal invitations than a ceremony held in a nature setting or a home. Generally, formal wedding invitations are produced at a printing company, and the envelope is addressed by hand by members of the wedding party.
Wedding invitation etiquette is essential for a formal invitation. This implies the importance of the special occasion to those involved, unlike other invitations such as wedding shower invitations which are far less formal and more festive.
Posted under Wedding
This post was written by Stacy Beatty on January 9, 2009
