Something Inviting

For those of you who don't know I live in Salt Lake City, Utah. The land where fifteen minutes late is standard. I am self-diagnosed OCD and I hate anything that takes place at the last minute. I guess you could say I'm over-planned. I would rather be an hour early than a minute late. In Utah I am surrounded by the Mormon population. I regularly see people getting engaged in May and married in August, but for the typical bride this is quick. In most cases a bride will have 6 months to a year to plan her dream day. When planning your big day a timeline of when to send things out is extremely important both for you and your guests.

There are a lot of factors when it comes save the dates, invites, and announcements. For me and my husband, Josh, we had family traveling from every different direction... literally, and most had to travel long distances. I know that your day is about you, but if you want people so be able to be there you need to be conscious of several things they have to do in order to make it to your big day. They need to take time off, they need to schedule flights, or arrange travel. If they don't get the the invitations in time they may not be able to coordinate these things.

It is safe to say your guests depend on you. With "Save the Date" cards slowly going out of style guests rely on invitations. However, if you are sending out save the dates good for you for being courteous!

Save the Date Etiquette:
Good news ladies! You don't have to send save the dates to everyone. Save the dates are meant for people you actually want to be at the wedding. You don't have to send them to your cousins best friends brother-in-law, but you should send them to family, close friends, and the wedding party. Yes, the wedding party. This way you know they will remember to take time off.

Typically, you need to have your save the dates sent off approximately 5-6 months in advance. If your timeline it shorter than 6 months do your save the dates as soon as possible.

Invitation Etiquette:
Now that you have sent off your save the dates it is time to think about your invitations. To avoid unwanted guests (like children) address it to all individuals who are invited. (ex. Scott and Amy Jones instead of The Jones Family or Mr. & Mrs. Jones). By doing this it takes a little ambiguity out of who is invited and who isn't. Trust me, when you are paying $20+ for dinner you don't want uninvited guests.

Traditionally, invites should go out 6-8 weeks before the wedding if you are sending out save the dates. If you aren't sending out save the dates try to get them out 3 months before your big day.

Announcement Etiquette:
Lets be honest. When it comes to weddings you can't invite everyone, but that doesn't mean you can't reap the benefits of everyone's gifts. Announcements are for people you want to know you got married, but you don't really care if they are actually at the wedding. Usually the brides parents will send these out to friends and family about a week after the wedding. By doing this you avoid any unwanted guests coming to the venue, but often times they will still send gifts and cards in congratulations.

Now that you know when to send things off, get to it! No one likes to be rushed to find gifts at the last minute, and you want a good gift, right?