When to send out your Save the Dates and Invitations?
So, you have booked the venue and the registrar and you officially have a wedding date. You want to tell all your friends and family and shout it from the roof tops, but when is the best time to send out your Save the Dates and Invitations?
You don’t want to send them out too early, they will just end up in a pile of letters and newspapers or put in a draw never to see the light of day again, until your guest panics as they have suddenly realised they haven’t RSVP’d and are frantically trying to find your invite!
When to send them out can depend on the time of year you are getting married and the day of the week. If you are getting married in the height of summer when people normally book summer holidays, then you want to give your guests plenty of notice, likewise you want to give a lot of notice if you are having a midweek wedding so your guests can book time off work.
Generally speaking Save the Dates are normally sent around 12-18 months before your wedding. Save the Evenings are also a good idea for summer weddings and weekday weddings (no one wants to go to work with a hangover the next day) so guests can book the following day off of work. Maybe think about doing magnetic Save the Dates that can go on your guests fridge so they don’t get lost or misplaced.
These Save the Dates and Save the Evenings by Blossom Bespoke Stationery can be printed on to magnetic card stock.
WVSA Supplier: Blossom Bespoke Stationery
Invitations both for day and evening guests are normally sent anywhere from 10-6 months before your wedding date. A good tip is to speak to your venue and suppliers and ask them when they need final guest numbers by. If a supplier needs final guest numbers 3 months before your wedding, you can work backwards from there, you will want to give an RSVP date of about a month before you actually need them back by (maybe even two as it can be like pulling teeth trying to get responses back), then you want to give guests a couple of months to reply once they have received your invitation.
What do you want them to look like?
But before you can even think about sending out Save the Dates and Invitations you need to think about what you want them to look like! What theme are you having, if any? What colours? Do you want modern or rustic, glitzy or simple, romantic or alternative, vintage or bohemian? The choices are endless as are the colour options, so you need to know exactly what you want and how you want your wedding day to look and feel.
Wedding stationery isn’t just Save the Dates and Invitations, it’s on the day stationery like menu cards, table plans, signs, name places, table numbers, order of services, that all carry your theme and colours through and tie in the look you are going for to all the other details of your wedding day, including your flower choices and colours, table decorations and centre pieces, bridesmaid dresses and chair sashes and all the other little details you put your heart and soul into planning.
Want something different? Look at these portrait Invitations from Paper Veil.
WVSA Supplier: Paper Veil
Make sure you do lots of research and when asking for quotes, send as many pictures as you can of things you like so you can get a more accurate quote.
What information to include on your invitations?
Once you have chosen your design you need to give your supplier all the information for your wedding day, but what information should you have on your invitation? Here are a couple of must have’s!
We’ll start with the obvious ones;
– Your wedding date and time of your Ceremony.
If you want your guests to arrive early so you don’t get any late commers wondering in as you walk down the aisle, try adding some wording underneath your ceremony time like ‘Please can guests be seated by…’ or put a time of half an hour before your ceremony starts. That should get them there with plenty of time to spare!
– Your names.
And remember to send your names to your supplier how you want them to appear on your Invitation, so if you want just your first names, or if you want your full names or nick names etc.
– Ceremony name and address
– Reception time and address if different to your ceremony venue.
– Dress code, if any
– You may want to state if there is an evening buffet or not so your evening guests know if they need to eat before they come to the evening reception.
– Time of carriages so guests can book a taxi home.
RSVP’s
Some couples like to have separate RSVP cards that guests can send back and some couples like their guests to RSVP to a mobile number, wedding website or email address. Just remember to give an RSVP date that gives you enough time to let suppliers and your venue know final numbers and for you to create a table plan. A nice little touch is to add a space where your guests can request a song from the DJ on your RSVP, if you don’t like the song choice you can always pretend you didn’t receive their RSVP!
There are also options to putting in an extra card that has a poem about gifts or local accommodation, taxi numbers, or menu choices.
Have a look at these invitation bundles by Blossom Bespoke Stationery. All your wedding information tied up in a little bow.
WVSA Supplier: Blossom Bespoke Stationery
‘On the day’ Stationery
You want to start thinking about ‘on the day’ stationery as soon as you have your RSVP’s back and you have final numbers so you know how many place cards you need, menu cards, table numbers, what the table plan will be like etc. Try to pick a supplier that can carry your design through to all of your stationery so it all ties in together. Think about any signs that you might need like ‘Don’t pick a side, pick a seat’ or ‘The wedding of Charlotte and James this way’ etc.
Here are some ideas from With Love Wedding Stationery
WVSA Supplier: With Love Wedding Stationery
Wedding stationery is an integral part in creating the look and feel of your wedding. Your save the dates and invitations are the first glimpse your guests get in to how your wedding will feel and look.
Have fun with it, play with lots of ideas and colours and make sure what you choose is unique to you guys and make your own trend!
Lots of love
Keely xx