I think writing invitations to our wedding is one of the most important part of our wedding planning. Of the curiosity i went thought numerous amount of online pages where they show the possibilities for writing a wedding invitations. Wedding rules can vary from generation to generation, but some wedding
rules for wedding invitation etiquette and bridal shower invitation
etiquette never actually change.
The first goal of an invitation is to provide
information. That’s the easy part. Filling in the
blanks on any store-bought invitation will satisfy the
need. Invitations, however, should also be memorable,
distinctive and reflect your personality, and hopefully introduce to the wedding colours and theme. Off-the-shelf invitations generally
are not memorable, can’t be distinctive if thousands
of other people also use them, and almost never
accurately reflect your personality. Designing your own invitations isn’t
difficult—and it’s easily worth the effort. Here are some tips for how to make your own unique wedding invitations.
1. Keep it simple. Invitations should be clear and
easy to read. Complicated typographic layouts will
almost always detract from the message.
2. Center at will. Centering lines of copy is rarely
a good idea in any medium—except in invitations.
Because the eye naturally returns to the left edge of
copy to begin the next line, readers generally prefer
left-edge alignment. Invitations, however, are read
slowly and on a line-by-line basis. There are also few
words per line in invitations; this allows the reader
to take in the whole line in one glance, then drop to
the next.
It’s generally recommended to keep invitations
to 10–14 lines of copy. Any more and reading the
centered lines becomes difficult. Lengthy copy set in
script faces also becomes tiring on the eye.
3. Create hierarchy with spacing. Use white space
to signal the relationship between parts of an invitation.
In general, there should be less space between
two supportive pieces of information than between
two that are disparate. Set the important copy large
and supportive text at a smaller size. Size and spacing
differences should always be obvious.
Normally, the most important stuff in an invitation
is at the top. Titles like “Graduation Party”, ”Wedding Invitation” or ”Brides and Grooms names” are usually given primary
billing by being put at the top of the invitation.
It’s OK, however, to break from this tradition. Try
setting this info at a very large size and putting it at
the bottom or along the left edge of the invitation.
Beyond providing information, type in invitations has two main jobs:
- Creating differentiation
- Establishing a mood or theme
These are accomplished through typeface selection.
4. Set a mood. Typeface selection can evoke a mood
or create a theme. There is, however, a caveat when
attempting to build a theme with typefaces: It’s easy
to cross the line from “traditional” to hackneyed. If
you want an invitation that is typographically fresh,
avoid typefaces like Old English, Papyrus, Buffalo
Gal and Comic Sans. Most large font distributors
have keyword searches on their websites; try searching
under the theme you want to create. Not all
results will be ideal, but you may find just the font
you’re looking for.
5. Go decorative when … Use less decorative typefaces
for invitations that have many lines of copy or
where the lines of copy exceed six words.
6. Complement proportions. Consider complementing
the proportions of the invitation with typeface
choice. If the invitation is tall, or in vertical/portrait
mode, consider using somewhat more condensed
typeface designs or scripts with long ascenders and
descenders. If it is square or horizontal/landscape
mode, try a slightly expanded typeface design or one
with a large lowercase x-height.
7. Decide who is announcing the wedding - your parents or you and groom yourself
Mr. and Mrs. Marvin Doe
or
Kate and Marvin Doe
If the bride and groom are hosting, then the line reads
Ms. Jane Doe and Mr. Sam Smith
or,
Together with their families,
Jane Doe and Sam Smith
A more modern alternative is simply,
Jane Doe & / to Sam Smith
8. The request. The next line in a wedding invitation is the one that requests that your guests attend.
In general, use the term 'the honor of your presence' if the ceremony
will be held in a place of worship. Otherwise use 'the pleasure of your
company' or another less formal phrase. Examples :
request the honour of your presence
at the marriage of their daughter
Note the formal British spelling of the word "honor." The word
daughter is used as an example and should be the gender of the person
whose parents are hosting.
request the pleasure of your company
at the marriage of their daughter
or
would be delighted for you to attend
the marriage of their daughter
If the couple is hosting:
invite you to join us at the celebration of our marriage
9. Date and Time of the wedding .Traditionally, these are spelled out:
Saturday, the tenth of June
two thousand and six
at four o'clock in the afternoon
note that the month and day are capitalized. If it were a 4:30 ceremony, the time would read at half after four o'clock in the afternoon.
but for a less formal ceremony, you can also write
Saturday, June 10, 2006
at 4 p.m.
10. The location. If the ceremony is at a well known location, you needn't include the address:
The Museum of Fine Arts
Houston, Texas
but for smaller locations, or your home, you'd want to write out the address.
The Art Club
49 Marquis Road
Blair, Utah
11. Time for the Reception: Let your guests know there is going to be a party afterward . This can
either be included on the wedding invitation or on a separate reply
card.
On the wedding invitation, it would read
Reception to follow at the Briar Hills Country Club
If you're not serving a full meal, it is nice to let guests know. You might write:
And afterwards for cocktails and cake in the Rose Room.
Or
Dessert and dancing to follow
A separate reception card is often good to use if the ceremony and
reception are in different places, or the reception doesn't immediately
follow the ceremony. It might read something like
Reception
8 o'clock
Parker Grand Hotel
342 Allen Road
Pike, Oregon
12. Get the to RSVP.
Traditionally, R.S.V.P. was written on the invitation, and
guests knew to reply on their own stationary. Now, most couples find
that they get responses more promptly if they include a separate reply
card.
This can be mostly blank, allowing guests to write a note, with a line such as:
The favor of a reply is requested before the first of June
Or it can be more detailed, such as
Please reply before the first of June
M___________________________
_________Will attend
_________Will not attend
You might also write:
Number of people in party_____
13. Optional details include telling your guests what to wear. Strictest
etiquette tells you not to include information about attire on your
invitation, but I think this is an outdated opinion. Guests appreciate
clues about how to dress, and are not as instinctively knowledgeable as
they used to be. To avoid someone showing up in blue jeans, include a
line such as:
Black Tie
Other options: Semi-formal, cocktail attire, festive attire,
creative black tie, white tie, black tie optional, dressy casual,
informal
Some couples who wish not to have children at the reception may write:
Adult reception
Which is more polite than writing No Children
14. Do NOT include information about gifts, your registry, or cash in lieu of gifts. This is an invitation, not a request for presents. If you still want to give information about the gift list, you can put it on a separate list with useful information for your wedding, like little maps to your wedding venue.
So now just making some of our own choices for our wedding invitations. Hopefully this tips will help you as much as they did help me!
Katherine
