I have been compelled to type up this post for sometime now. It is something that has been on my heart since I got married, which feels like the dark ages now. Recently I have seen many brides and some were my clients, make these mistakes and I hope that in writing this we can educate other couples to not follow in their missteps.

Here are the 5 biggest mistakes a Bride can/will make when it comes to their Wedding Invitations.

1. The Guest List. They leave off their own name, their parents, and future in laws
   • You spend hours compiling the list, making sure that you have spelled out street, the state, etc. The invitations are mailed off and you never get yours, your parents don’t get theirs, and your Mother in Law calls crying because she didn’t get hers. You immediately call the Stationery designer and complain that you haven’t gotten an invitation in the mail! How dare she. Well guess what, it’s not her fault. If those names aren’t on the list, she didn’t know to send them. Your wedding pro’s aren’t mind readers.

• Moral to the story. If the name and address isn’t on the list, it won’t get mailed. Double and triple check the list.   

2. They purchase one invitation for every guest.

• Guess what…I did this so I am speaking from experience. When you are going into the planning, you don’t think of these things! Before you purchase your invitations make sure you make your guest list. Odds are you will only need about 75% of your total guest count.
• Moral to the story. Each couple receives an invitation, a single gets an invitation.
  • There are exceptions to this rule when it comes to older children that no longer live under the same roof as their parents and all are invited. Typically, you would send one to the parents and one to the older children. BUT if you want to cut your numbers, save some money, just include everyone on the envelope.

3. Postage.

• The USPS needs you to put the proper weighted postage on the outside of your stamps in order to get those gorgeous invitations to your guests! Many times, you won’t know which stamped weight you will need until you bring a fully assembled invitation to the post office and have them weigh it.
  • If you are working with a custom invitation designer, they may be able to ‘eyeball’ the weight needed from past invitations.
  • Many things come into play when determining weight of the stamp needed. Size of the envelope, stiffness of the envelope, orientation of the address printed on the outside of the envelope, if you added a ribbon, or a wax seal! WHEW! That is a mouthful.
• Custom stamps have become popular, but check with the post office before you invest. There was a new movement recently that they are no longer accepting custom stamps through Zazzle.com.
• Vintage stamps ARE NOT face value anymore. You will not only pay the .71 cents you need to mail the envelopes, but you could pay at least $1.00 MORE. So make sure you budget for that if it’s a wishlist item for your suite.
  • I sometimes suggest just getting one set for your heirloom suite that you will keep. Many times your guests won’t appreciate the vintage stamps as much as you do!

4. Proofing.

• This may seem odd to be on the list of mistakes because of course you have to proof your invitations, but the mistake is not taking the time to look at every line of your invitation! Better yet, the mistake comes when  you don’t send your invitation to your mom, your mother in law, your best friend, etc to also help you proof!
  • I have had brides accidently look over the spelling of marriage, their future last name, the day they are getting married, etc. This is not the fault of the paper designer, it is the fault of the person who agrees to the proof and says that it is ready to go to print.
  • Moral of the story. If you sign off on your invitation design without fully proofing the invitation, it is your fault if something is wrong.

5. You don’t order enough.

• Unfortunately, this happens more often then one would like. You make a list, order the invites, then realize you have forgotten yourself, your parents, and even your in laws on the list. Guess what, many times you aren’t able to add just those three on if the order is already processed. If  you are working with a custom designer, they may have a minimum order of 25 to send for a reprint.
  • Moral of the story. Always order 10-15 more invitations than you think you will need.
  • Flipside. DON’T ORDER YOUR INVITATIONS UNTIL YOU HAVE MADE YOUR GUEST LIST. That seems silly to even point out, but if you are inviting 150 guests, you may think you only need 75 (since you order one invitation per couple/household) but you may need 85 to include single guests, or adult children that no longer live with their parents.

For good measure, here is a bonus.

• Addressing.
  • Double check that your addresses are correct. It is not our fault if the address is incorrect and the invitation doesn’t reach your grandmother or if a friend has recently moved and they didn’t forward their mail. This wedding is just as much YOUR JOB as it is ours.
    • In order for us to excel and surpass your expectations, you need to set us up for success rather than failure.
    • One of my favorite quotes of all time is “lack of planning on your part does not constitute an emergency on mine.”
  • It is not your wedding planner’s job, the calligrapher, or the custom invitation designers job to go through your list of addresses and decipher how you want the names to be printed on the envelopes. You need to send the list EXACTLY how you want the envelopes addressed.
    • If you want them to read, Mr. and Mrs. James Dean, don’t send it to us as Mr. & Mrs. James Dean.
    • This also applies to spelling out Florida instead of FL and Street instead of St.
    • Simply put, don’t abbreviate.

Thank you to Heather O’Brien Design & Olivia Grace Paperie for the gorgeous invitations featured in this post.