Event Planning

For anyone about to navigate the world of blessing ceremonies, this is the blog post for you.

Writing a wedding invitation can seem tricky, but it doesn't have to be! To help you, we've put together a guide to wedding invitation wording.

Save the date cards are a super useful way to announce your wedding date in style! Their purpose is to include key information about your wedding day that guests need to know months in advance. While it may be tempting to include all the little details on your cards, these are not necessary and should be saved for the wedding invites! Here are a few things to consider:

1) Names

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Don't forget to include your names! While this seems obvious, forgetting to include your names has happened before. We also recommend you include your last names if inviting people you're not that close with, just to avoid guests' potential confusion.

2) Date

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Sending guests your wedding date is the purpose of save the date cards, so make sure you include this! It is also important to consider when you are sending out your save the dates in relation to your wedding date. We recommend you send save the dates approximately 6-9 months before your big day, as this allows people to book time off work and plan other social events around this date. If you are marrying in a busy season or period, such as over Christmas, or marrying abroad, aim to send your save the dates up to 12 months in advance.

3) Etiquette

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While we are big fans of wedding etiquette here at Dotty about Paper, save the date cards have a less formal feel than the rest of your stationery. This gives you a great excuse for being a bit more creative with it! While save the dates are a great way to announce a theme, you could always pick a design that's a bit more outgoing than your chosen wedding theme.

4) Guest List

Make sure you are certain on who you want to invite to your wedding before you send out save the dates! Save the dates imply that you will invite the recipient to your big day, so they will expect an invite. It is also advisable not to send save the dates to guests you only want at your evening reception, unless you specify that this is an evening-only reception on your save the date cards.

Also consider that if you send a save the date to someone, they will probably assume their partner or family are also invited. You can clarify this through writing their names on the envelope. This will limit confusion. Here are some examples below:

Single Guest:

Miss Nicola Goddard

Sandward House,

47 Cartway,

Bridgnorth, WV16 4BG

Guest with a Plus One - Add 'and guest':

Miss Nicola Goddard and Guest

Sandward House,

47 Cartway,

Bridgnorth, WV16 4BG

Unmarried Couple - Use both first and last names as well as “Mr.” or “Ms.”:

Mr. James Owen and Ms. Nicola Goddard

Sandward House,

47 Cartway,

Bridgnorth, WV16 4BG

Married Couple - Use the husband's first and last name after 'Mr. and Mrs.':

Mr. and Mrs. James Owen

Sandward House,

47 Cartway,

Bridgnorth, WV16 4BG

Same-Sex Married Couple - Use both first names with joint surname at the end:

Mrs. Lucy and Mrs. Nicola Owen

Sandward House,

47 Cartway,

Bridgnorth, WV16 4BG

Married Couple with Kids - Use the plural form of the family name or:

The Owen Family

Sandward House,

47 Cartway,

Bridgnorth, WV16 4BG

5) Location

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Unless you are getting married abroad, it is not essential to include your wedding location. This makes a great surprise for your wedding invites instead! If you are marrying abroad, try and give an accurate location, as this will help guests book travel in advance. However, if you are not yet sure, just include the country and inform guests later on.

6) "Formal invitation to follow"

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At the bottom of your save the dates, you should inform guests that a formal invitation will follow in case they mistakenly think this is their invite.

7) Proof

Before ordering any stationery, make sure you check it in advance to allow for errors. We also recommend ordering stationery a few weeks in advance, too.

Getting invited to a wedding is always so exciting! But, how should you respond to the wedding invitation? Here are some examples of how to respond, and what RSVP card wording you should use, whether you're attending the wedding or declining the invitation.

Respond with an RSVP Card

Most wedding invites that you will receive will come with an RSVP card. These cards usually have two options on, where you can tick whether you can attend the celebration or not. It is very simple!

 

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An RSVP card that you may receive will read similar to this: __________________ Would love to attend Decline with regret Simply add your names above the dotted line, and tick the option that suits you. If you are unable to attend the wedding, you may wish to send the couple a small gift with your RSVP card, such as a bouquet of flowers. If you are able to attend the wedding, but your partner or children are not, then also make sure that you mention this on the card.

Respond with a Handwritten Note

If you receive a wedding invitation that does not come with an RSVP card, you should either reply with a handwritten note or get in touch with the couple via email or phone call.

 

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If you’re wondering how to write a formal note to accept or decline wedding invites, here are a couple of examples.

Acceptance note: Dear Nicola and James, We are delighted to be attending your wedding on September 4^th, 2021 Kind regards, Elizabeth and Richard Black

Declining the invitation: Dear Nicola and James, We appreciate your thoughtful wedding invitation, however, will be unable to attend. We will be thinking of you on your special day, and hope that your wedding day will be amazing. Kind regards, Elizabeth and Richard Black We hope you have found this blog useful! We have a range of blogs for all of life's occasions - from birthdays to wedding anniversaries!

If you've accepted a wedding invitation, it is considered good etiquette to follow through with your word and attend the big day. However, sometimes we do find ourselves with other commitments that we simply can't miss, and therefore have to decline. If you have to turn down a wedding invitation after accepting it, then this is how to do it politely:

 

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Act Quickly

We recommend to tell the couple you can't make their day as soon as you find out. This means that they will have plenty of time to perhaps invite a new guest, and won't end up wasting money on a wedding meal that you won't eat! The longer you put it off, the more likely you are to upset the couple, so its best to do it as soon as you can. As long as you decline several weeks in advance of the day, they should be appreciative that you let them know.

Give them a call

Whilst it may seem awkward, it's important to tell them in a polite way, such as over the phone. Or if you they live locally, why not visit them? They are sure to appreciate being told face to face, and it gives you some time to catch up, too. Over an email or text, you may struggle to truly express how sorry you are.

Thank them for the invitation

Don't forget to thank them again for the invitation. Say how much it meant for you to be invited, and how you hope their day will be amazing. You can say this during a phone call or with a thank you card.

 

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If they're a close friend, you may also want to invite them out for a meal or a day out to show how much you care.

Avoid Excuses

It can be tempting to make up a little white lie about the reason you have to decline. However, if they catch on, they will definitely be upset by this. Either opt for saying the real reason, e.g. business commitments, family holiday, etc, or say that it is a private matter if you feel uncomfortable about sharing the real reason.

Send a wedding gift

This one is completely optional, but we think it's really nice to send a gift after you decline an invitation. Whether that's a large gift you know the couple have been wanting, or a simple bunch of flowers, it makes a lovely touch that they will remember.

We hope you have found this blog useful! Head over to our other blogs to find out more about wedding etiquette.

Planning and ordering your wedding invitations can be difficult. Here are some examples of how to word your invitations depending on your circumstances.

Wedding evening invitation wording etiquette rules are much the same as day invitations, but with a few differences. Evening invitations are sent to guests who will only be coming to the latter part of your wedding celebrations. These invitations tell guests the time and location of your evening reception. They can have similar wording to the wedding invitations, and contain some of the same key information, like the date. Make sure it is clear that it’s an evening reception invitation, separate from the day invitation.

Most people will expect food to be served at an evening reception. If you are only serving light snacks, canapés, or no refreshments at all, then it’s a good idea to mention this. It is generally not acceptable to include a gift list; wait for your guests to ask.

We recommend you send your evening invitations at the same time as your day invitations. That way, people won’t be left wondering if they’ve been sent an invite at all.

 

Evening Invitation Wording Examples

The following wording examples will help to provide some inspiration for you.

Parents Hosting

Mr & Mrs Jones

Request the pleasure of the company of

……………………………………………

at an Evening Reception to celebrate

The marriage of their daughter

Nicola

To

James Owen

at The Ramada Hotel, Bewdley

on Saturday 2^nd May 2020

at 8.00pm

~~~

Mr & Mrs Jones

would like you to join them

at The Ramada Hotel, Bewdley

on Saturday 2^nd May 2020

at 8.00pm

to celebrate the marriage of their daughter

Nicola with James Owen

~~~

Nicola & James

have pleasure in inviting

……………………………………………

to an Evening Reception

to celebrate their wedding at

at The Ramada Hotel, Bewdley

on Saturday 2^nd May 2020

at 8.00pm

Shop our Evening Invitations

Bride and Groom Hosting

……………………………………………

We invite you to join us to

celebrate our marriage

at an Evening Reception

on Saturday 2^nd May 2020

at

at 8.00pm

The Ramada Hotel, Bewdley

~~~

Nicola & James

have pleasure in inviting

……………………………………………

to an Evening Reception

to celebrate their wedding at

The Ramada Hotel, Bewdley

On Saturday 2^nd May 2020

at 8.00pm

~~~

Nicola & James Owen

invite you to celebrate with them

at an Evening Reception to be held at

The Ramada Hotel, Bewdley

on Saturday 2^nd May 2020

at 8.00pm

Shop the matching collection!

Now you have sent out your invitations it's time to start thinking about the stationery you will need on the day. All our invitations are part of matching collections and our designers will happily work with you to create something that extra bit special if you don't see what you are looking for! Browse our collections today and get everything perfect for your big day - it will be here before you know it!

• Order of Service
• Table Plans
• Place Cards

 

Not everyone wants or can have children at their Wedding but how do you go about telling your guests this without offending anyone? ... Tricky!

Your reason for an adults only wedding

Firstly your decision may be based on a number of reasons;

• The venue may be small, thus restricting numbers.

• You want an adults only wedding, the thought of having small children running around and crying during your ceremony horrifies you!

• Cost cutting, the less children you need to pay for, the more adults you can invite.

• The location may not be suitable for children.

How to tell your guests - wording examples

Depending on your reason for wanting an 'adults only wedding', here are a few examples of wording that can be included on your wedding invitations;

''Adults only please, we hope you can respect our wishes''

“Please note that this is an adults only reception” “As much as we want to share our special night with everyone we love, we are requesting our wedding be for adults only” “Unfortunately due to number restrictions, we are not able to invite children to our wedding” ''We request that you hire a baby sitter, let your hair down and come along to our adults only wedding''

If you would rather not have any of the above, it is popular for brides to address the invitation to the adults specifically. Instead of having ‘Mr and Mrs Owen & Family’ just have ‘Mr and Mrs Owen’ this implies that only ‘James’ and his wife are invited. If you don’t think this is clear enough, we do recommend adding “Adults Only” onto the card as well.

Children included in the wedding party only

If you are having your daughter as a bridesmaid or your nephew as a page boy, you may still not want to invite children other the ones included in the wedding party. If you are doing this then you may want to inform your guests beforehand as they may get rather confused and upset if they find out or turn up at your wedding only to see that 'some' children are there? Making this decision can be more difficult that ruling children our completely, especially with close family. Just remember if your brother asks if he can bring his son and you agree, this can open up a can of worms and cause arguements between other family and friends!

“Sorry no children allowed, apart from the ones included in the wedding party”

''Due to number restrictions we can only invite children who will be part of the wedding party''

“Unfortunately due to number restrictions, we have been unable to extend our invitations to include any children. Only children involved in the wedding party will be present. We hope that parents are able to get babysitters and can still join us on our special day”

Word your invitations clearly

Many parents presume that their offsprings are welcome to attend special occasions so it is important to make this clear that they're not! Firstly you need to address the invitation to the couple to whom you want to attend your wedding and secondly make sure you don't write 'and family' on the invitation or on the envelope as this instantly indicates that children are welcome. If you are sending out RSVP cards, it is a good idea to enforce this information again before they reply. For example you could word your RSVP card to say 'We would love to attend your wedding, please reserve .... adult seats' for ...........................................'.

Adding the 'line' about 'no children allowed' needs to be visible without spoiling the look of your invite. My advice would be to place it separately at the bottom of your invitation so it stands out but equally looks discreet and so it won't be missed before they read the RSVP details.

Mr and Mrs A. Hickman

request the pleasure of

Natalie & Robert

at the marriage of their daughter

Nicola to Mr James Brendan Owen

at St Peter’s Church, Bewdley on Saturday 20th August 2014 at 11:00 am

and afterwards at The Ramada Hotel, Habberley Road, Bewdley

''Adults only please, we hope you can respect our wishes''

With many wedding couples choosing to live together before tying the knot, making a wedding gift list is not always what couples want, especially if they've already got most household essentials traditionally brought for a wedding gift.

From looking at the wedding invitations that we create at The Card Gallery, I have noticed that the most popular choice of couples over recent years has been to ask for money towards their honeymoon. But how do you ask for money without sounding rude, you may ask?

The best way of asking for cash is with a poem, which can be printed either inside your wedding invitation or can be included as a separate poem card which can then be simply popped inside the envelope along with your invitation.

Here are a couple of examples of poems which can be included with your wedding invites;

The tradition of the wishing well used on the wedding day, is here both for your money gifts and for what you would like to say.

So please drop in a token of love for this special Groom & Bride, as they start their life united by God to live forever side by side.

~~~

Your presence at our wedding Is present enough, But if we’re honored with a gift from you, May we respectfully request a gift of money To help the dream of A honeymoon come true!

~~~

We really hope you can join us on our special day You'll make all our memories complete in every single way We do not have a gift list and we know you'll understand Our house and contents are complete with pots and plates and pans But should you really want to give and celebrate this way a gift of money would be great for a rainy day

If you can’t find room on your wedding invitations for a poem or do not want to include one you could opt for a simple explanatory paragraph instead. These are some good examples:

We respectfully ask that no gifts are brought,

if you wish to make a cash gift with which we would like to purchase some larger items for our home,

there will be a box at the reception.

~~~

We have everything we need after living together for a year, and only ask that you share our special day.

However, if you wanted to make a monetary contribution,

we would be most grateful, but please do not feel obliged to do so

~~~

The most important thing for us

is your presence during the day to celebrate our marriage and gifts are by no means expected.

If however, you do feel you would like to give something,

then some spending money to enjoy whilst on our dream honeymoon would be very much appreciated.

Need help? If you've any queries regarding the wording for your wedding stationery, please contact us for help on 01746 766876 or email info@dottyaboutpaper.co.uk, we'll be very happy to help.

In the excitement of the after-wedding buzz and honeymoon adventures, it can be easy to forget a very important part of wedding etiquette - thanking your guests! So, if you need inspiration, here are our top wedding thank you card wording suggestions.

Thank you so much for the gorgeous (add the gift here). It is beautiful, and we were both incredibly touched that you gave us such a thoughtful gift. It was wonderful, as always, to see you at the wedding – I especially loved your dance floor moves towards the end of the night! I can’t wait to catch up on your news and tell you all about the honeymoon.

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(Insert name) and I wanted to thank you greatly for the vouchers you sent as a wedding gift. We are saving to buy (add what you are saving for), and your gift will help us reach our goal.

~

Thank you to our family and friends for celebrating our joy, supporting us, and sharing our love. We sincerely thank you for being a part of our wedding celebrations and for the generous gift you have given. With all our love, we thank you.

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Our wedding day was special because we were lucky enough to be surrounded by the people we love. Your thoughtfulness and generosity are truly appreciated. Thank you for sharing in the start of our new life together.

~

We sincerely want to thank you for your love and support. We couldn’t be more blessed having friends and family like you in our lives, and sharing in this beautiful time with us.

Featured Design: 'Mrs & Mrs Floral Chalkboard'

Thanks for the bottle of champagne! (Insert name) and I have decided to save it for a special occasion – our first wedding anniversary! Thanks once again for thinking of us, and for a most appropriate wedding gift.

~

Thank you for the beautiful gift that you sent to me and (insert name) as a wedding present. I know we will enjoy it for many years to come. It was wonderful to see you at the wedding. We really appreciate that you were able to witness such a happy day for us and our families.

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Thank You Card Advice

Whatever message you decide is appropriate for your cards, make sure you order them well in advance so you can take your time writing a personal message. This also cuts down post-wedding stress! Also, don't forget that it's good etiquette to send the cards within three months of your special day.