Trying to tackle appropriate wedding invitation wording? You’ve come to the right spot. Whether your wedding is classic and traditional, or modern and minimalistic, the same basic principals apply.

Take a deep breath, because wedding invitation wording really isn’t too complicated, especially if you break it down line by line like we’re about to do. Remember, these are simply here to serve as a guideline. As long as you create a wedding invitation that is representative of you and your significant other, and communicates the vital details about your wedding day, you’ll be in a good spot!

 

 

Invitation wording etiquette – information to include:

• Who’s hosting
• The request to attend
• The names of the couple
• Date and time
• Location – name and address
• Reception information
• Dress code (optional)

See? Not so scary! Now let’s break it down line by line and dive into some examples.

 

THE HOST

Traditionally, the bride’s parents are listed as the hosts of the wedding. If you are wanting to include parent’s names on your invitations, I always recommend both sets of names no matter who is investing more money. It’s a gracious offer. If the bride’s parents are traditionally contributing a greater portion of the investment, try using:

Ethan and Marie Williams request the honor
of your presence at the marriage of their daughter
Nora Williams
to
Michael Rivers
Son of Richard and Hannah Rivers

Many people are moving away from tradition these days and both sets of parents are contributing to some extent. If this is your scenario, use:

Ethan and Marie Williams
along with Richard and Hannah Rivers
invite you to celebrate the marriage of their children
Nora Williams and Michael Rivers

If you do not want to include parents names and it’s still a collaborative affair with both sets of parents:

Together with their parents
Nora Williams
and Michael Rivers
invite you to celebrate their marriage

If you as a couple are hosting your wedding and opt out of including parent’s names all together, trying something along the lines of:

Please join us for the wedding of
Nora Williams
and Michael Rivers

Additional formatting Tips:

• The names of married couples are on the same line, divorced couples are on separate lines
  Ethan and Evelyn Williams     (remarried)
  and Marie Williams     (single)
  and Richard and Hannah Rivers     (married)
  invite you to the marriage of
  Nora Williams and Michael Rivers
• For a parent who has passed, include “the late” prior to their name:
  Ethan Williams and the late Marie William
  invite you to the marriage of their daughter
  Nora Williams
  to Michael Rivers
  son of Richard and Hannah Rivers

 

REQUEST TO ATTEND

Next, you should ask for the pleasure of your guests’ company. There are many different ways to go about this, and it’s a preference thing. Here are some common options:

• request the honor of your presence
• request the pleasure of your company
• invite you to join their celebration of love
• please join us for the union of
• joyfully invite you to attend their wedding

Pro Tip: Reserve “request the honor of your presence” for weddings held in a church or place of worship.

 

COUPLE’S NAMES

This one is pretty easy – include your name! There really is no right or wrong way here other than to list the bride’s name first.

If you’re sticking with the traditional method where the bride’s parents are the main hosts, use the bride’s first and middle name following by the groom’s first, middle and last name. For a less formal method, use your first name only.

For same sex couples, choose to go alphabetically or whichever sounds more pleasing!

 

DATE AND TIME

On formal invitations, everything should be written out in full. Numerals are typically fully omitted unless your wedding will be quite casual.

Saturday, the twenty-fourth of September
two thousand twenty-two

Pro Tips:

• Afternoon is used from noon until four-thirty. Evening begins at 5 o’clock
• The word “and” is not needed when spelling out the year
• Time of day should read “four o’clock” or “half after four o’clock”
• Day of the week and month should be capitalized, year can be lowercase

 

LOCATION

List the ceremony venue on one line, followed by the city and state underneath. Be sure to avoid abbreviations here and write the state in full.

The venue’s address is a preference. It’s not a necessity but sometimes nice to include. If you are adding an address, spell out each word and omit the zip code.

Examples:

Hazeltine National
Chaska, Minnesota

Hazeltine National 
1900 Hazeltine Boulevard
Chaska, Minnesota

 

RECEPTION INFORMATION

If your reception will be held at a separate venue, typically an additional insert card is reserved for that information. However, a brief note should still be mentioned on your invitation that a reception will be following the ceremony. Here are a few examples:

• Reception to follow
• Reception immediately following
• Merriment to follow
• Dinner and dancing to follow

 

DRESS CODE (optional)

This is an optional line, but it is necessary if you are throwing a black-tie affair. Likewise, I also recommend it if you are throwing a very casual or themed wedding. It’s a nice gesture to your guests so they know how to appropriately dress for your wedding.

 

We did it! We got through the wording of a wedding invitation.

 

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Here are a few examples of full wedding invitation wording:

Tom and Rochelle Williams
invite you to the marriage of their daughter
Evelyn Williams to
Victor Evanston
son of Lance and Vivian Evanston
Saturday, the twenty-third of July
two thousand twenty-two
at four-thirty in the afternoon
Williamson Ranch
312 North Point Road, Rock Spring, Wyoming
Merriment to follow

Together with their families
Ainsley Carver and Quinton Hadley
invite to celebrate in their marriage
on the first of October
two thousand twenty-two
at five in the evening
Hutton House
Medicine Lake, Minnesota
dinner and dancing to follow
semi-formal attire

William and Sarah Gibbins
along with Zachary and Patricia Frankfort
invite you to celebrate the marriage of their children
Cameron Gibbins and Paul Frankfort
The twenty-fourth of September
two thousand twenty-two
four in the afternoon
Abiding Savior Lutheran Church
Naples, Florida
reception to follow

 

FAQs

Q: Do you use commas and periods?
A: Line breaks act as commas and periods on invitations. You can of course use periods in titles such as Mr. and Mrs. but otherwise they are not needed

Q: Does everything get spelled out?
A: This is a guideline but traditionally speaking, yes. Unless you are designing a very modern and minimal invitation then the rules can get bent.

 

megan // northern vine design