Planning a wedding is an exciting and overwhelming experience! There are countless decisions to be made, from choosing the perfect dress, to selecting vendors that will help bring your vision to life. One of the most important parts of planning a wedding are your wedding invites – they serve as the first formal announcement of your upcoming nuptials and will set the tone for your big day.
Below are five pieces of information that you should include on the invitation card, as well as five things you should avoid.
What to Include:
1. The names of the couple
This may seem obvious, but it is essential to ensure that your guests know who is getting married.
2. The date and time
Be sure to include the date and time of your wedding ceremony so that your guests can plan accordingly.
3. The location
Include the location of your wedding ceremony and an aspect of the address (in the least, include the city and state).
4. Hosts of the wedding
This recognizes the parties who are paying for the wedding (ex: the couple, one of set parents, both sets of parents, etc.).
5. Attire suggestion
If you have a specific attire request for guests (such as Black Tie, Cocktail Attire, etc.), include this information on the invitation card.
Click here to check out our blog post about 'How to Word Dress Code on your Wedding Invites.'
What NOT to Include:
1. Registry Information It's considered a no-no to include registry information on your wedding invitations. Instead, be sure to share this information on your wedding website or by word of mouth.
2. Abbreviations Avoid using abbreviations on your invitations as they can be confusing for your guests and are also informal.
3. Information on the Back It may seem like a good idea to include additional information on the back of your invitations, but this can make it difficult for guests to read and can be easily overlooked...not everyone flips the cards over!
4. Zip Code
Unless your venue is unusually hard to find, or could easily be confused with a similar address – zip codes are for mailing and should be listed on envelopes only. The name of the venue paired with the city and state (or the street address if desired) should be more than enough for your guests.
5. Alcohol
Whether open bar, cash bar, or no alcohol at all, this detail should be left off of the invitations. Guests will find this out at the reception and shouldn’t influence their decision to attend your wedding.
Your wedding invitations are an important part of your big day. By including essential information such as the date, time, and location of your wedding and avoiding items like registry information or common mistakes (such as using abbreviations), you can ensure that your guests are both properly informed AND excited to celebrate with you! Don't overthink it and you will have beautiful invitations that will set the tone for a perfect wedding day.
OR, eliminate the hassle and stress of writing and designing your own wedding invites and invest in bespoke heirlooms that are tailored just for you! When we design for our couples we take this task off their hands completely and take care of the information and wording for you. Ready to get started?