Wedding Invitation Wording Etiquette

If each and every communication in the world were conveyed verbally, half of our lives would have been hassle-free. This is because nothing is as complicated as expressing exactly what you feel, in writing. You can find this complexity in writing wedding invitations too. Earlier, framing wedding invitations was relatively an easy task as everything was written in formal language. However, it has become complicated now when everybody wants to customize the invitations to suit their case better. Even if you are having a formal wedding, the words of the wedding invitation do not have to be the age-old common ones; there is always scope for change. Moreover, plenty of factors such as hosts, the family’s social status and the scale of celebrations etc affect the wording and presentation of a wedding invitation. You can opt for a formal tone if you intend to have a formal wedding or can include a poem for fun if you are having an informal one. Ensure that the unique words which you have opted become the fine kicking point for your friends and relatives. While choosing the words, do remember that it will remain as the tone of your wedding till the end of reception.

Wedding Invitation Cards

Form Of A Wedding Invitation

• Decide upon whether the invitation is to be formal or informal. In a formal invitation, the invitation generally starts with ‘Mrs. and Mr. Marcus Melendy request the honor of your presence’ while a slightly informal one can include a casual phrase like ‘please join us’.
• The first names which must appear on the wedding invitation must be of the people who pay for the event. As per long tradition, this has been the parents of the bride. For instances where both the parties contribute, both sides can have separate invitations for their relatives or there can be a single invitation mentioning both the parties.
• If the function is hosted by the bride and the groom, their name must come first, followed by the names of their parents.
• The second line of the invitation should be a request to the guests to attend the ceremony. If the function is at a place of worship, the line must read ‘Mrs. & Mr. XYZ request the honour of your presence at the marriage of their daughter/son’. In other cases, it should be written as ‘the pleasure of your company’.
• If the function is being hosted by the couple in question, you can write, ‘invite you to join us at the celebration of our marriage’.
• For a traditional wedding, while entering the names of bride and groom, the name of bride must be entered first using the first and middle names, following her parent’s name. Then, the groom must be followed using both title and middle name such as ‘Mrs. and Mr. Marcus Melendy request the honor of your presence at the marriage of their daughter, Wendy Sue with Allan Fernandez.’
• In the next line, the date and time of the wedding is written. Always remember to use the numbers as 5th or fifth in the invitation.
• The address of the venue must be written as, ‘The New Horizon Club, 23, Pine Street, Hudson, Ohio’. If the venue is a famous place, you need not write the full address. Just write the name like ‘The Museums of Antiques, Hudson, Ohio’.
• You can use the wedding invitation for reception too or you can give a different card with invitation being included. In this case, you can write: ‘And afterwards cake and cocktails in the Area 51 Club’ or ‘Dancing and Dessert at Area 51 Club’.
• If the reception is like just another ceremony, it should read ‘Reception, 7 o’clock’, Area 51 Club, 76, Pine Street, Hudson, Ohio’.
• RSVP must be written on the card if you intend to include a different card for RSVP like: ‘RSVP before fifth of July’ Or ‘Please reply before fifth of July’.
• In a traditional invitation, the address must be written in full as, ‘On Saturday, the twenty-seventh of July, Two thousand and ten, At twelve-thirty in the afternoon’.
• Nowadays, you can use numbers too as, ‘On Saturday 27th July 2010 at 12:30pm’.
• If you are planning a themed wedding, you can include the details regarding attire like information about using sun lotions or swimming costumes in case it is a beach wedding.
• If you intend to have a reception where children are not allowed, you must explicitly specify, ‘adult reception’.

Dos And Don’ts In Wedding Invitations

• Your best bet in wedding invitation wording is to stay basic — informal. Guests often glide through invitations and if you give a long-drawn-out invitation, they might get confused. If you are having a non-traditional wedding, you must go for a straight-forward wording with a little amount of flair.
• Proper spelling in an invitation is a must though correct use of punctuation is not mandatory.
• Ensure that you avoid passages or quotes on the invitation as more suitable place for it would be the wedding occasion. It is good to keep it simple and elegant.
• Irrespective of whether it is conventional or unconventional wedding, ensure that the invitation includes the following: Names of the bride’s parents or other hosts; first name of the bride; first name and surname of the bridegroom along with proper salutation like Mr./Lieutenant/Sir etc; venue of the ceremony; date, month and year of the wedding ceremony; venue of wedding reception; address of the host to which the address to which guests should reply along with the expected reply date.
• You can also include details regarding dress code, theme, time duration of the event and whether children are invited or not.

The wedding invitation is the first thing through which the guests will get to know of your big day. It conveys the essential facts about your imminent ceremony and the wedding reception. Ultimately, it must be your decision to word your invitation as you need to be clear about the tone with which you intend to address your guests. As it is a once in a lifetime occasion, take sufficient time to ensure you say exactly what you want to say. And just in case you feel lost, do the one thing that always shows the way—listen to your heart!