Wedding Invitations

Following Up on Your Response Cards

Budgeting and planning for your wedding and your reception is a very time-consuming and potentially stressful process. Unfortunately, it can be made even more difficult when you are uncertain about the number of people who will actually show up.

According to most experts, anywhere from 7 to 10% of those who send back a response card indicating they will attend the wedding will not actually come. Further, about 20 to 30% of the people you invite will show up for the wedding, but not for the reception.

Despite the uncertainty regarding who will actually show up to the wedding and the reception, sending out response cards is the only way to estimate the number of people who will attend.

Therefore, if you do not receive reply cards from some of your guests by the reply date, you should feel free to give those guests a call in order to finalize your guest list and determine how much food and drink you will need for your big day.

Addressing Your Wedding Invitation Envelope

When it comes to addressing the outer envelope of your wedding invitation, there are several rules of etiquette that you should follow. Knowing what rules to follow can get a bit confusing when it comes to inviting couples who are in special situations. When it comes to the traditional married couple with the same last name, for example, you should use abbreviated titles and full names. For example, you would write:

Mr. and Mrs. John Doe

When sending an invitation to a single person, you would follow the same rules. Therefore, your invitation might look like:

Mr. John Doe

Or

Ms. Jane Doe (or Miss Jane Doe)

If a person has a special title, however, you would spell out that person's title. For example:

Doctor and Mrs. John Doe

Or

The Honorable and Mrs. John Doe

When it comes to sending an invitation to a married couple with different last names, on the other hand, you can either put both names on the same line or place each name on a separate line. For example:

Mr. John Doe and Mrs. Jane Smith

Or

Mr. John Doe
Mrs. Jane Smith

Both methods are technically correct, but you may need to write the names on separate lines if space on the envelope is an issue. If you are sending an invitation to an unmarried couple that lives together, however, the names should be listed on separate lines and you should list them in alphabetical order according to the person's last name.

Properly Stuffing Your Wedding Invitation Envelope

Whoever thought that stuffing envelopes could be so complicated? When it comes to placing your wedding invitations inside their envelopes, there are several rules of etiquette that should be followed.

By keeping a few basic rules in mind, however, the envelope stuffing process will be made much easier.

First, you will need to decide if you will have one envelope or two. Using a second envelope is a matter of tradition, but it is acceptable to forego the second envelope unless you are hosting a very formal affair.

If you do have a second envelope, the folded edge is to face the back of the outer envelope and should be left unsealed. If you are simply placing the invitation inside the outer envelope, the folded edge should be up and the front of the invitation should be facing the back. This way, your guest will have to remove the invitation before seeing any of what the front of it has to offer.