So, you have created your guest list, along with your invitation to do list and you are ready for the exciting part! Ordering your wedding invites.
If not, check out these posts...
Invitation To Do List-Download available! – Paper and Style Co.
Organising your Guest List – Paper and Style Co.
By now you will probably have a good idea of the style you want and colours you are going for. If you can be a little easily swayed by all the amazing options out there and tend to get confused and lose your way, create a little 'mood' board of the magazine cut outs, or samples of your colours, and elements you love. This will help keep you in check and help you choose not only the right design for you, but the right designer too.
Here are a list of tips and information you'll need to get started.
In order not to overwhelm you, (and to be totally honest once you start, the process is really easy-that is my aim when working with you, to make things really simple and quick for you, while I do the work for you) I will be sharing information for your main invite only and info on other essential pieces like your Rsvp card and other pieces.
If you are a subscriber, you will receive a checklist you can print out and keep handy while compiling your info or download it here.
- Who is hosting? (You, your parents, both parents or other?)
- The names of the couple getting married
- The date (including the day of the week)
- Ceremony time & location (including address)
- Reception time & location (including address)
- Dress code
- RSVP date & instruction on how to respond (if you want to include on main invite)
- The names of the guests you are inviting (if you are personalising your invite)
For personalisation, I send you a sample excel spreadsheet with details on how to correctly add your guests' names and addresses if we are printing onto envelopes (more on that in another post)
TIPS
First, have a great idea of your numbers. Remember you only need an invite for every couple, family/household. This is usually around 50-60% of your total guest number. For example, if you have 100 guests, you should generally only need 50-60 invites.
After working out how many invites you'll need for guests, make sure you add a few spares to that number and keep one for yourselves, a set for your parents or loved ones and a set for your photographer. And then a few more if you decide to hand write guest names...just in case you make a few mistakes. The cost to order a few more rather than the bulk at one time is much more costly.
When deciding on your names for the invite, a lot of designs feature your names quite large, so think about how a long name, or adding your surnames affect the design of your invite.
First names only or full names? And in the order you want, ladies name traditionally goes first, and right down to the smallest detail-do you want a '&' or an 'and'. When deciding on your names for the invite, a lot of designs feature your names quite large, so think about how a long name, or adding your surnames affect the design of your invite.
When it is you and your partner hosting your wedding only, wording will be quite simple, but when you add parents/both parents as hosts, the wording is a little more formal. Remember you only have a certain amount of space.
TIPS ON PROOF READING
Print off all copies and grab a red pen to mark any changes
Read everything slowly and even backwards
Read it out loud
Sleep on it and check again in the morning
Check, recheck and check again
Once you have checked them thoroughly, get your partner to do the same and then another person such as a parent or close friend. This person hasn't been working on your invitations closely, so their eyes will be fresh and may pick up on something you haven't.
WHAT TO LOOK FOR
Spelling of ALL words, including your own names. Names are often spelt differently to others and need to be confirmed
Phone numbers are correct in rsvp section
Ceremony & reception names are correct and complete, do you need to include postcode?
Test all website addresses if you have links in your invite
Dates and times are correct, check this with your venue, photographer and any officiants
Day of the week and date are correct
Punctuation and grammar are correct
Font types and sizes are consistent if wanted
Spaces between words/letters are consistent, no double spacing
Spaces between lines of wording (line breaks) are consistent if wanted
If you check the above, then you will be sure to pick up any errors in your stationery before it goes to print.
Lay it down and just look from a distance, does it look balanced, are all details fitting well within the edge of the invite
Take your time, it is much better than finding a mistake after they go to print!
Remember, designers are not copyrighters, all responsibility for your printed stationery is yours.
Send your invitations to your guests around 3-4 months before your wedding.
Try and order your invitations approximately 2-3 months before you want to send them out to your guests to not only help with any anxious feelings of timing being tight, but it can also take between 2-6 weeks to physically create your invitations, and this can depend on which design you choose, whether it may be a ready to go design or a custom illustrated design, plus the time of year. Wedding season in Australia is generally around September to April and printers are working at their limit during July, August and right up to February approximately.
For example, if you are getting married in April 2023, you ideally should have found your designer, and ordered your invites around November/December 2022 and sent them out around January/February 2023.
Keep in mind, these timelines are for a local wedding, if you have interstate or international guests, more time is needed and possibly a great idea to use a Save the Date in this scenario. Save the Dates can be sent up to a year in advance.