If you have decided to go the DIY invitation design route and don't have a designer to help you out, figuring out the wording of your wedding invitations can be so confusing and overwhelming! Below is my complete guide for figuring out the best way to word your wedding invitation suite including the invitation card, rsvp card, and details card.

• Who's Hosting (you and your fiance, your parents, your partners parents, both sets of parents, etc.)
• Who the weddings for! (You & your fiances names: can be first names only, first and middle, or first middle & last, whatever you want!)
• What you are celebrating (your marriage.. your wedding..)
• The day of the week
• The date
• The time
• The venue name (of your ceremony! If the venue is different for your reception, don't address this on the invitation card. Specify this information on your details card.) 
• The ceremony venue CITY & STATE ONLY (You shouldn't include the entire address on the invitation card. It clutters things up! If you must include the venue address, leave out the zip code.)
• The time
• Brief "instructions" on what is happening after the ceremony. For example "reception to follow", "dinner to follow", "party to follow", etc.

See my blog post HERE to reference how to write who is hosting your wedding! 

 

What to Include on the Details/Enclosure Card:

• The entire venue(s) address(es). If you have a different venue for your ceremony and reception, include BOTH ADDRESSES on this card. I like to lay this out as shown below: 

• The time your reception is beginning (this is only necessary if you are at a different venue from your ceremony or if there is a large gap between your ceremony and reception). If your timeline goes like this: wedding ceremony, cocktail hour, reception, then you will not need to include a time for the reception.
• Accommodations information (if necessary). Be sure to include the name of the hotel, the date your guests need to book by, specific names/code they need to reference for your discount, what night(s) the discounted rate is available for
• Transportation information (if necessary). Be sure to include where and when your guests need to be to use your provided transportation. 
• Online RSVP information (if necessary). If you are requiring guests to RSVP online and do not have a physical RSVP card, you should provide them with the exact website link to get to your online RSVP. Do not include the https:// of the website because it just makes things look messy. Consider capitalizing websites like this "www.theknot.com/us/KaseyAndJack2022" to make it easier for the guests to read. 
• RSVP by date (only include this on the details card if you are requiring an online RSVP. otherwise, this date will be on your physical RSVP card.) 
• Wedding website information (if applicable). If you have a wedding website, it should be included on your details card as shown in the photo above. Include your link and a small excerpt saying "For more wedding information, please visit our wedding website at www.zola.com/BradleyAndAmanda2022" 
• Other information that you may need to include on a details card: attire information, parking information, after party information, Sunday brunch information, registry information. 

 

What to Include on your Wedding RSVP Card:

• Your RSVP By Date. This is the date you require guests to return their RSVP cards back to you. This date should be approximately 4-5 weeks before your wedding date. I recommend checking with your venue and catering company on when they need your final guest count by.
• How many seats you are reserving for this particular guest (This is typically included by saying "We have reserved _____ seat(s) in your honor" Then, when you receive your RSVP cards from your designer, you will need to write in the number of seats you have reserved for each guest. This is a great way to ensure your guests aren't bringing a bunch of random people that you aren't inviting!
• Another way to determine the number coming in your guests party, is to include a line that says "______ Number in Party." This is an area for THE GUEST to write in how many people are coming in their party. This one is a little tricky because it leaves it up to the guest to decide how many people are coming. 
• A line for your guests to write in their names. I typically include "names" underneath the line because for some reason a blank line really confuses the crap out of some people! 
• A spot for the guest to indicate if they are attending or not. Common ways to write this are: Happily accept / Regretfully decline, We'll be there! / Can't make it, Wouldn't miss it! / Have to celebrate from afar
• Meal Choice options (if necessary.) If your guests have an option of what meal they want at your wedding, your RSVP card is where you will ask them. You can either write the meal options really detailed and explaining exactly what is in them, or you can just include symbols of the options. For example, include a chicken symbol for the chicken meal, a cow symbol for the beef meal, a fish symbol for the fish meal, and/or a carrot symbol for the vegetarian meal. I typically advise for guests to initial next to their desired meal choice so you know exactly what guest is receiving what meal. 
• A spot for your guest to include any food allergies. This is a good option if you are only serving 1 meal to every guest. In this case, I advise having a small blurb at the bottom of the card saying "please write any food allergies on the backside of this card." Of course, this only works if the backside of your card is completely blank (in most cases it is unless you have a custom suite made) 
• Other items that you may need to include on the RSVP card: Sunday brunch options/if they are attending or not, rehearsal dinner options/if they are attending or not.
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