Everything You Need to Know About How to Assemble Wedding Invitations
Wedding invitation assembly is one of those things that, until you actually sit down to do it, you never realized you didn't know how to do. For many couples, this can be a confusing process, but it isn't rocket science. While there are a few wedding invitation etiquette guidelines we recommend following, a quick read through the below steps will make a world of difference when it comes to assembling your wedding invitations. You could even turn it into a date night activity with your significant other as a way to get excited for the big day. Put on some of the songs you requested for your wedding reception, grab some wine (but keep it far away from the wedding invites) and start an assembly line for your wedding invitations. Who said wedding planning can't be fun?
1. Proofread Your Wedding Invitations
You don't want to send out wedding invitations with a spelling error or the incorrect date or time. Chances are your stationer sent you a digital proof before printing them, but it's important to make sure it turned out the proper way and that all of the wedding invitation wording is correct. Check to make sure your wedding date is correct, the time of the ceremony or reception is clear, the name of the wedding venue(s) is accurate, your parents and partner's parents' names are correct (if they're being listed on the wedding invitation), and any other details you included. Ask a member of your wedding party or significant other to serve as a second set of eyes in case you glaze over a mistake. You'll also want to check the whole invitation suite to make sure there's no spills or stains on them when they arrive.
2. Confirm the Spelling of Guests' Names
Whether you used calligraphy for your wedding envelopes or had them printed by your vendor, it's important to check that guests' names are spelled correctly. It's poor wedding etiquette to send a guest an invitation with their name spelled incorrectly. Look at both your outer envelope and inner envelope (if you have one) to make sure the guests' names and mailing addresses are accurate. If you're unsure if the spelling is correct, check with a family member who is most familiar with the guest's name to confirm the most accurate spelling. Leave yourself time in case there are errors and you need to send your wedding envelopes back to your calligrapher or stationer.
3. Place Them in the Right Order
Wedding invitation etiquette dictates the order in which all the pieces of the wedding invitation suite should go. Typically, each card would go face up in size order, from biggest to smallest starting with the invitation card. Then, if you have a separate reception card that would come next. On top of the reception card is the response card, which would be tucked under the flap of the response envelope face up so the copy is seen. Next, you'll want to include any enclosure cards, such as a map card or direction card that provides guests an idea of where the ceremony and reception are or an accommodation card that lets guests know what the best guest accommodations are. You'll want to take this assembled invitation suite and put it under the flap of the inner envelope (if you have one). Otherwise, you'll put it into the outer envelope with the text face up. If you'd like you can add tissue paper on top of the enclosure cards or put a belly band over the stack of cards to keep them together.
4. Calculate the Right Amount of Postage
Unfortunately, wedding invitations can't just be dropped in the mail without knowing their weight. Since wedding invitation suites have multiple enclosure cards and are a bit heavier, a 55-cent stamp likely won't be enough. We recommend taking a fully stuffed envelope to the post office and asking them to weigh your assembled invitation. Once you know how much it weighs, you can confirm the correct amount of postage needed for each invitation envelope and buy the postage right there at the post office. You can even do a practice send and mail a test wedding invitation to a member of the wedding party to ensure it arrives with no issues.
5. Send Out Your Invitations Early
Wedding etiquette says that the appropriate time to send out a wedding invitation is between 4-6 weeks ahead of your celebration. That might feel like it's a little too close for comfort, but at this stage, guests have already received a save-the-date card and should have access to your wedding website, which should have information about travel and accommodations already. This means by the time they receive the wedding invite, they likely already have those travel details figured out and it's more of a formality, or to get their entree choice if that's information you plan to collect. On the RSVP card, you'll want to put a date that guests should reply by, especially if you need to let your caterer know what each of your guests will be eating. We recommend listing a date that's a bit earlier than it's technically needed in case people are slow to respond. Hot tip: Number your invitations on the back so if a guest forgets to write their name on the response card, you'll know who it's from without having to track them down.