Invitations definitely fall into the category of being ruled by etiquette, but there can be some confusion about the proper usage of them. This is a look at the difference between a wedding invitation and a wedding announcement, as well as when each is appropriate.

First the fundamentals. What is the purpose of a wedding invitation? To ask your friends and family to put on their best clothes and jewelry and join you in celebration of your wedding. After all, one of the first lines in every invitation is the phrase requesting the recipient’s presence at the wedding. Traditional phrases are “the pleasure of your company is requested” or “the honor of your presence is requested”. In case you were wondering what the difference is, the former is to be used for a wedding in a secular location, and the latter is the correct form for a church or synagogue ceremony.

The other reason to issue an invitation is to let your guests know when and where the event will take place. You want all the information in one place, which is why the wedding invitation is very specific. While a save the date card might just let people know who is getting married and when, the official invitation should have the date, time, location (with street address, if necessary), and city. The obvious reason for this is so that anyone who plans to attend can find their way with ease.

So who should receive a wedding invitation? Anyone you actually wish to have attend your wedding! Make sure to only send as many invites as the number of guests you can genuinely accommodate. Far too many couples have sent out 110 invitations for a venue that only fits 100 people, counting on a 10% decline rate…only to have everyone accept! Invitations should be sent out about six to eight weeks before the wedding to allow sufficient time for everyone to R.s.v.p., as well as so guests can make their travel plans. If you feel the need to inform your guests about your wedding further out than that (perhaps if your wedding will take place on a holiday weekend), send out a save the date card up to six months in advance, and the formal invitation within the usual time frame.

The wedding announcement serves a different purpose than the invitation, which is to let extended friends, family, and acquaintances know about your marriage after the fact. This is a key distinction: the announcement is not about the wedding, but about the marriage. Announcements are not sent to anyone who was invited to the wedding, but rather those who were not invited, such as in the case of a small wedding or a destination wedding. Traditionally they are issued by the bride’s parents, with the following wording: Mr. and Mrs. John Smith / have the honor of announcing / the marriage of their daughter / Jessica Smith / to / Mr. James Howard / on Saturday, the twenty-ninth of May / two thousand and ten / St. Andrew’s Church / Rochester, Minnesota. Notice that “honor” is spelled in the British fashion, just as it would be for a formal wedding invitation.

Announcements should be mailed out as soon after the wedding as possible, ideally the very next day (although a longer lag time is acceptable, particularly in the case of an elopement). Never, ever send a spare invitation after the wedding to serve as an announcement. The person who receives it is likely to notice that it was mailed after the wedding, and take it as an insult; ie, you wanted to make it look like they were invited, but did not actually want them to attend. This is a serious etiquette error, which far too many well-meaning brides have made. The proper response to a wedding announcement, by the way, is a note of congratulations. Gifts, while welcome, are not expected.

With a clear understanding of the difference between wedding invitations and announcements, you can now be sure that you are sending the right stationery to convey your intended message.

First on the list of things to consider is whether you are having a formal wedding or more of an informal one. If you are having a formal night time wedding then you definitely do not want to send out an informal invitation. Also if you are having an informal wedding then you would not want to send out a very formal wedding invitation. Try and match the style of your invitation to the style of your wedding.

Considering your personal style and the style of your wedding is also important when you are choosing wedding invitations. You may want to consider using one of your wedding colors for the color of your wedding invitations. Perhaps you are having a wedding in which pink and black are your colors. Carrying the pink and black over to your invitations is a great way to give your guests a hint at what your wedding may be like. While you do not have to match your invitations to your wedding colors, this does look classy.

Keeping in mind the formality of the wedding, the colors and style, and the theme of your wedding can all help you to pick out the invitations that are just right for your wedding. Having a well designed wedding invitation will impress your guests and be a great way to invite them to one of the biggest events in your life.

From 983Wedding.com , you can find various designs of unique wedding invitations. They are all created and designed by their own team of designers, meaning that they can only be found in their website. The modern Chinese wedding invitation designs are very unique in a way that they are suitable for you no matter what the theme of your big day is. They are combining the essence of east and west in order to create a brand new style of unique wedding invitation. You can see plenty of modern Chinese wedding invitation designs from their online product showroom.

Besides modern Chinese wedding invitations , they also have a lot of other creative and unique wedding invitations. If you are trying to search for something really special, you have come to the right place. Your guests will certainly be very surprised when they see your unique wedding invitation card. Unlike some other shops which do not provide options for small quantity orders, it will be totally perfect if you only need 20 pieces of cards from them.