Your wedding is a one-time event and should be prepared carefully. As you have no second chance to impress, organize your invitations to convey the message efficiently to all guests. It is not just about sending generic invitations with only the wedding date and venue. The following are six steps to guide you when assembling the invitations before mailing them.
Step 1 - Place the wedding invitation on the table with the words facing upwards.
Step 2 - Place the reception card on top of the invitation card with its wording facing upwards.
Step 3 - Place the guest’s response card under its envelope with its wordings facing upwards. Next, place it on top of your reception card.
Step 4 - Repeat this procedure with your direction cards, accommodation cards and any other cards that should be enclosed in the inner envelope.
Step 5 - You now have a complete invitation suite where all wordings face upwards. Keep them in an inner envelope. Below, we explain the roles and importance of an inner envelope.
Step 6 - After sealing the inner envelope, place it with the front side facing you in the outer envelope.
Pro Tip – If you decide to go with a folding wedding envelope, place enclosure cards with the face facing up inside the fold over the wordings of the wedding invitation.
You could be wondering what the purpose of two envelopes for wedding invitations is. While the traditional inner one is smaller in size, the outer one holds the package of several cards inside. This is the norm for most modern weddings. Here is why you need two.
The inner envelope contains all the wedding cards including reception, accommodation, parking passes, and others. It bears the names and titles of your guests. This is your only chance to state clearly who you want to attend your wedding. Here, you do not include an address or any other information- just the names and titles. It will be covered by the outer envelope.
Now, what’s the importance of an outer envelope? It is only for mailing purposes. When addressing them, refer to guests with their titles, first names, middle names, and last names. You can skip their middle names if you are unsure, but you can’t skip first and second names.
When writing titles, you can opt to abbreviate them. However, all other words must be printed in full. You can spell out the entire name of the state or abbreviate it to its universal 2-letter version that is also its postal code. (New York City or NY).
The list of your wedding guests will have so many different people whose family, marriage, and living situations are varied. The following are additional tips for addressing the outer envelopes. Follow these carefully to make your guests feel appreciated and properly addressed.
How do you write your return addresses on the envelopes carrying your wedding invitations? Place the return address on the upper left corner of the front envelope. Have them printed or use the conventional etiquette of handwriting these.
Make this decision depending on your style and the number of return envelopes to address. It saves time to print numerous custom labels or addresses if you have a long guest list. If there are only a handful of invitees, addressing the return envelope by hand is practical.
Do not use the bride’s new last name on any of the stationery. However, you can include her new last name on the reception cards, wedding freebies, mementos, and thank-you notes. This etiquette shows your thoughtfulness and respect for people’s titles.
Having understood the conventional way to address your wedding guests, isn’t it time to make your shine?