Wedding
Addressing the Invitation and Response Cards For Wedding
Mention close friends by first name only. Referencing first names is a sign of intimacy and should only be done with people you know well. It’s tempting to do it with everyone, since it saves you a lot of writing, but that would be uncomfortable for your boss, teacher, or uncle you never met. Reserve it for good friends and other people you’re on a first name basis with.
- For example, write out “Harry and Ginny.”
- Families can be listed easily like this. You can write, “Ned, Catelyn, Robb, Miss Sansa, Miss Arya, Bran, and Rickon.”
- Initials are never a valid substitution for a name, but suffixes like Jr. and Sr. are always appropriate.
Address most people by their last names. The bad news is that you’ll have to do more writing, unless you hired someone to do it for you. The good news is that you get to be slightly less formal. Instead of writing first and last names, the inner envelope only contains the last name behind the salutation. Don’t forget special honors such as Dr.
List unmarried names separately. Everyone who isn’t married gets the honor of having their own line. Hey, it doesn’t have to be a bad thing. Doing this gives both names equal weight. Order the names again by familiarity, or, for equal familiarity, by alphabetical order.
List each person invited to the wedding. This is an important step when you intend on inviting whole households. The inner envelope is the point where you have to list every name, including children under 18. If your family received an invitation that listed your parents but left you out, you’d be confused. You weren’t verbally invited, and it would be awkward if you showed up unwelcome.
- Note the adult names first, such as “Mr. and Mrs. Ned Stark.” Under that, list the children by seniority. For instance, write “Robb, Miss Sansa, Miss Arya, Bran, and Rickon.”
- Girls under 18 are denoted as “Miss.” Boys under 18 don’t get a title. How unfair!
Address the return envelopes. These are the envelopes your guests need to return their responses. Giving people zero excuse for not RSVPing will at least save some of your hair when you start pulling it out over planning this big event. Write your name, house number, street, town, state, and zip code in the center of the envelope.
