Wedding Invitations--Today's Etiquette and Wording
The look of the wedding invitations you send will not only says
a lot about you and your husband-to-be they will also convey a
fair amount of information about your upcoming ceremony. So it
is important to plan the type of wedding you will have before
you make any decisions about your invitations.
Based upon the quality of the paper stock, lettering, color and
design you select, recipients are likely to make a determination
about the formality or informality of the event, thus how they
should dress. The color of your invitations may suggest the
color scheme of your wedding. The quality of the paper may
indicate how elaborate or simple you wedding will be.
Choosing Invitations
Stationery Stores—Most brides still go to a stationery store to
select invitations. Once there, you can look at brochures and
browse through manufacturers’ catalogs. The catalogs include
samples invitations so that you can feel the paper stock, see
the true color of the paper, and compare different print
options. Knowledgeable clerks will be on hand to help you pick
out the desired color and weight of the paper as well as the
ink, style of script, and wording for your invitations. The only
thing remaining for you to do will be to provide the particulars.
There are only a few large manufacturers and they dominate the
wedding invitation industry. As a result, whichever stationery
house you go to you are likely to see the exact same catalogs.
Unlike private print shops, because these companies mass-produce
their products they are able to offer you greater variety at a
lower price.
Online Shopping—There is virtually nothing you can’t buy on the
Internet, including your gown (although I would not recommend an
online purchase for your wedding dress, which must be properly
sized and fitted).
The Internet offers a huge number of sites selling both
traditional and unique invitations. If you are bargain shopping
for invitations, the Internet is definitely the place to go.
Keep in mind that you are always taking a chance when you choose
this method. There is nothing like being able to feel the
quality of the paper or the raised lettering to ensure that you
will get exactly what you want. However, knowing how different
weights of papers feel and about the different methods of
printing can help.
Private Printers—Because of the availability of mass producers
and the tendency of many people to shop for bargains on the
Internet, private shops are now hard to find. If you have your
heart set on truly personalized invitations, look around. You
are almost sure to find one somewhere.
Different Printing Methods
There are essentially four common methods of invitation
printing, each with its own benefits.
Handwritten—If you are planning a small wedding (meaning 50
people or fewer), it is perfectly acceptable to hand write your
invitations. Of course, this will be hard work, but you will
save a lot of money.
Engraved—This is the ultimate in invitation printing. With
engraving, the printer stamps the back of the paper using metal
plates. This raises the print up off of the paper so that you
can actually feel the lettering. For most brides, engraved
invitations are much to costly.
Thermography—This is the most common form of invitation
printing. With this method, the ink is heated to create a
raised-letter effect that is nearly indistinguishable from
engraving.
Calligraphy—We all recognize this as another name for fancy
formal script. This method is becoming more popular every year,
Many of the printing houses are now able to offer this print
option as well, but it is not done by hand.
Saying It with Words
Today, there are so many different kinds of
families—traditional, blended, divorced, etc.—that it’s no
wonder brides are often concerned about how to word their
invitations without breaching any rules of etiquette. The
stationer you will likely be visiting soon will have more
samples of wording than you will want to see. For now though,
I’ll let you glance at a few of the more commonly used forms.
These all fall under the category "traditional."
(Bride’s parents are hosting) Mr. And Mrs. David Hennesse
Request the honor of your presence At the marriage of their
daughter Miss Ellen Marie Hennesse To Mr. Mark Peter Bruster On
Saturday, the ninth of June Two thousand and five At three
o’clock in the afternoon St. Mary’s Church Duluth, Minnesota
(Both bride’s and groom’s parents are hosting) Mr. And Mrs.
David Hennesse And Mr. And Mrs. Clark Bruster Request the honor
of your presence At the marriage of their children Ellen Marie
Hennesse And Mark Peter Bruster On Saturday, the ninth of June
Two thousand and five At three o’clock in the afternoon St.
Mary’s Church Duluth, Minnesota
(When the bride and groom host the wedding) Miss Ellen Marie
Hennesse And Mr. Mark Peter Bruster Request the honor of your
presence At their marriage On Saturday, the ninth of June Two
thousand and five At three o’clock in the afternoon St. Mary’s
Church Duluth, Minnesota
The old rule was that the word "honor" should always be spelled
"honour." This rule is no longer firmly held. However, you
should always spell everything out—names, the date, the time and
the location.
There are definite rules regarding the use of initials. "Doctor"
(medical only, otherwise the professional title is not used) is
written in full, unless the name to follow is long. "Mr." is
never written "Mister," but "Jr." may also be written as
"junior," although the first is preferred.
It is acceptable to use numbers when writing the address of the
church or synagogue, but avoid doing so. Generally, the address
(including the street name) of the location where the wedding
will be held is omitted. You may want to include it if not doing
so would be likely to cause your guest frustration—when, for
example, you are getting married in a large city and guests
would have to guess which of the several churches with the same
name you mean.
If you do include the address and you are using a formal style
of wording, spell out numbers under 100. Never abbreviate words
such as "Street," "Avenue," and "Road," and do not include the
zip code.
Saving Time and Money
If you are pressed for time, ask the stationer if you can have
the envelopes early. This way, while you are waiting for your
invitations to be printed you can address the envelopes.
When it comes to deciding how many invitations to order, you
should definitely order slightly more than you think you will
need. Chances are you are going to need more than you thought.
It’s a lot more expensive to place a second order than it is to
order extras.
© Copyright 2005 Bachcroft.com. Permission to reprint this
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