“Rules” for Invitation Wording

Invitation wording seems like an easy thing to tackle until you sit down to actually decide on what you want to say and realize you have no idea what you should be including! Here are some general rules that are good to follow, but like all rules exceptions are inevitable.


▪ No periods at the end of a line
▪ Use proper given names; for example William, not Bill (it is ok to confirm with the person as to how they want to be addressed and if they want to use their common name, break this rule)
▪ No abbreviations other than titles
▪ The first letter of each line is not capitalized, unless it is a proper noun - for example: "Saturday, the first of June" or "on Saturday, the first of June"
▪ Dates and times are written out: half after five o’clock, two thousand and three (depending on how formal your invitation is, sometimes numbers look better graphically – another exception)
▪ The “honor of your presence is requested” is traditionally used for church weddings
▪ Never type in all-caps (I don’t agree with this one at all – there are some really amazing fonts out there that are only in capitals)

So now that we established the “rules” and determined that it is totally ok to follow them or not – here are some examples of invitation wording:

When the couple and both families are hosting the wedding:

Together with our families
join us in celebrating the marriage of
Kathryn Wenzel
and
Justin Shepard
Saturday, the twenty-third of June
two thousand and twelve
five o’clock in the afternoon
at Tyrone Farm
Pomfret, Connecticut

Church Ceremony

Mr. and Mrs. William Wenzel
request the honor of your presence
at the marriage of their daughter
Kathryn Wenzel
to
Mr. Justin Shepard
Saturday, the twenty-third of June
two thousand and twelve
five o’clock in the afternoon
First Church of Religion
Boston, Massachusetts

Ceremony at Home of Friends

Mr. and Mrs. William Wenzel
request the pleasure of your company
at the marriage of their daughter
Kathryn Wenzel
to
Mr. Justin Shepard
Friday, the twenty-seventh of June
two thousand and three
five o’clock in the afternoon
at the home of
Mr. and Mrs. Robert Metro
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

When the grooms parents host:

Mr. and Mrs. Guy Shepard
request the honor of your presence
at the marriage of
Kathryn Wenzel
to
Mr. Justin Shepard
Saturday, the twenty-third of June
two thousand and twelve
five o’clock in the afternoon
First Church of Religion
Boston, Massachusetts