When to Send Or Mail the Wedding Invitations
Your wedding invitation will be the first thing that your guests see from your wedding. It may be displayed for weeks on their mantelpiece, and will probably be one of the things that they keep as a memento of sharing your special day, perhaps even ending up in a frame. They should reflect your sense of style, personality, and theme of your wedding. There are endless choices in designs for wedding invitations, from traditional and classic to bold and modern. Although professionally printed, personalized wedding stationery can often be expensive, with a bit of creativity it is easy to make your own wedding and bridal shower invitations. As well as saving your wedding budget, creating your own wedding invitations can be a fun process to share with your fiancé or bridesmaids. Your design will be unique to you, and your guests will know that their wedding invitation was handmade by you, making it even more special.
You have your invitations ready and are eager to send them out and find out who will be able to attend, but what are the traditional rules for when to mail wedding invitations?
Most wedding etiquette experts advise sending out your wedding invitations roughly six weeks prior to the wedding. However, you should always take the factors surrounding your own personal wedding into consideration. For example, when you do need to let the caterer/ venue know numbers? If the average guests takes two weeks to respond, can you adjust your numbers within a few weeks of the wedding date without additional charges?
As soon as you have set a date, start thinking about a guest list. If your list is too long, you could choose to send out your invitations in two batches. The number of ‘Sorry I will not be able to attend’ responses from your A list guests will be the number of extra invitations that you can mail out from your B list. Just be sure that no-one from your first string of guests is likely to let it slip that they have already received their invitation, as this may offend someone who is lower down on your list. Ideally you should have a final guest count fourth months before the wedding, and this is the number that you should use to plan catering, favours and seating plans.
Hold-the-date cards are a semi-formal way to announce your wedding day, and can be sent out as soon as you have decided on the date.
Knowing how far in advance to send wedding invitations can also depend on the date of your wedding. Take into account busy postal periods such as Christmas holidays, Valentine’s Day and Mothers Day which can delay delivery. If possible, avoid mailing your invitations during the week prior to any major holidays as some of your invitations may be more likely to be damaged or lost amongst the higher amount of mail. Likewise, you should avoid mailing them around tax season, when many people are returning forms. If in doubt, it never hurts to mail your wedding invitations a little earlier, rather than later.
Out of town guests should be sent their invitations first, as they will need to make special travel and accommodation arrangements. Find out how quickly the local hotels book up at the time of year when you will be having your wedding and make sure you allow your guests plenty of time to book.
Some brides call out of town guests and the most important friends on the guest list as soon as the date is set to find out if they will be able to attend. This lets you plan your guest list and seating plans more easily, gives your guests plenty of time to arrange holidays, travel and lodgings, and means you can mail out all of your invitations at one time.
Don’t leave it to the last minute to address all of your invitations. Make sure you have everyone’s current address, in one place for easy reference. Address the envelopes a few at a time to avoid cramp or bad handwriting due to rushing. Make sure that you have an accurate zip code for each address to ensure that the invitations will arrive safely and on time.
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Websites:
http://www.theknot.com
http://www.frugalbride.com
http://www.save-the-date-cards.com/