So we’ve talked to venues that all say figure out your guest counts as soon as possible. We’ve talked about how you narrow down who will be on your guest list. And we’ve even covered some ideas of what you can serve at your wedding once you’ve got your guest count in place. So now, you actually have to invite the guests!

Invitations can be a daunting part of the wedding planning process because rarely do we have to send formal invitations in our daily lives. But fear not, I’m here to walk you through it and make the process easier.
Each invitation has 6 things you must include.

1. You always start with the Hosts, or who is paying for the wedding.  In a lot of cases this will be the brides parents. If your parents are still married you will say something like:
   “Mr. and Mrs. ________ (parent’s last name)” and move on from there. But this can get tricky if say your parents are divorced. Then you list them separately with your mom’s name first. If your parents are divorced and re-married then you can put both sets of parents/step-parents again with mom first. If the grooms parents are helping to pay for a significant portion of the wedding you can include them as well by saying, “Mr. and Mrs. Brides parents last name AND Mr. and Mrs. Groom’s parents last name” and then go from there. However, if your invitation is getting wordy and complicated you can also just start with “Together with their families, Bride and Groom invite you…” In the end just make sure that the hosts of the day are recognized.
2. Secondly you write the request itself. This can be phrases like:
   …request the honor of your presence (typical for a church or religious ceremony).
   …request the pleasure of your company (typical for a secular wedding).
   …request you to join us as we celebrate (a little more informal).
3. Then you add in your names – the bride and groom. Start with the bride’s first and middle name (only list the last name if it is different from your parents) then list the grooms first, middle, and last name. To be a little more formal you can also put “Miss and Mr.” in front of your names, but it is normally not necessary unless one of you has a more specific title like Dr.
4. Next write out the date and time – don’t use numbers. Capitalize the first letter of the year, and don’t put the word “and” in the year listing. For example:
   February Twenty-Sixth, Two Thousand Fourteen.
5. After the date put your wedding location – the name of the venue only (“Mountain Lake Baptist Church”) the address and directions can be included on a separate directions/instruction card. Also do not abbreviate the location when you do write it out – street not St.
6. Lastly, end the invitation with something like:
   “Reception to follow” or “Dinner and Dancing to follow”
   The invitation is to invite them to the wedding, not the party afterward, though this is including in the closing. Also, never include your registry information on your invitation – add that on a separate card, or have a wedding website they can find that information.

So now that you have your wording down – what else do you need to know about invitations?

Well first off, when selecting what invitations to use consult your budget. Remember your budget is the master plan behind your wedding that will let you know what you can and cannot afford. If you have a smaller invitation budget maybe you don’t need a custom, tri-fold, hand addressed invite instead opt for a template from Etsy.com or a stock set from your local craft store. Just remember as you are selecting them, your invitation is the first impression people will have of your wedding. So choose a look that matches the theme of your day and shows them what your wedding is going to be like. Also, while looking at your budget don’t forget to include the cost of postage in the invitation column. Stamps currently cost $0.49 a piece and that can add up quickly. Also remember the heavier your invitation is the more it will cost to ship, so take a fully assembled ready to mail invitation to the post office and find out what the exact cost will be – this can help you not have any surprises when you go to mail them.

Another thing to consider is if you are going to send a Save The Date card. If you have a lot of out of town guests, your wedding is around a holiday, or you have great engagement pictures you’d like people to have a copy of then YES, definitely send them out so people have time to plan to come. Send your save the dates about 6 months before your wedding and then invitations go out 8-10 weeks before. And depending on the complexity of your invitations, order them anywhere from 8 months to 3 months before your wedding so you have time to address them.

That brings up another good point, when addressing your envelopes always write Mr. and Mrs. Last name if it’s a couple, and then just Ms. OR Mr. if it is a single guest – you can include the “and guest” part on the inside. Then put your return address on the back flap of the envelope – this is more formal and keeps the front looking clean and un-cluttered.

Another aspect of your invitations you will need is an RSVP card so you know who can actually make it! Include a place for their name, an option for “Yes I can attend” or “Sorry I can’t make it” (or some variety of the phrase) as well as a place for number of guests, and if it’s a sit down dinner, what entrée they would like. You can also have a line for a song they’d like the DJ to play during the reception to keep them on the dance floor! One big thing about RSVP cards is that people often forget to fill in their name so some great options are to have a list where everyone is numbered and then discreetly number the RSVP card to match. Some people also write the name of who they are sending it to on the back of the card, or use a pen like this that has invisible ink and a black light to read the ink when the card comes back. That is a fun option because you can tell who it’s from with out extra writing on the card itself showing up.

Well I think that should cover the invitation questions you may have. For some great specific wording examples you can check out this designers blog! Are there any other things you’ve encountered while sending your invitations? How about questions I didn’t cover? Comment below I would love to answer them!

Thanks to: www.chelseyemery.com, www.somethingturquoise.com, www.weddingpartyapp.com, and www.weddingsbyDani.com for some of the helpful info you see above!