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Yes, we know…we have talked about wedding paper before, but that was more specific to the timing of ordering and sending each stage of save the dates and invitations. Today, we want to talk about the actual address on the envelope.

They say first impressions are everything and that is definitely true when it comes to your wedding stationary suite (starting with the Save The Dates). It sets the tone by giving your guests a glimpse into your wedding and everything you have been planning, and also helps signify who is invited. Before your guests even see the beautiful created piece of stationary, they will see the envelope and most importantly, the address. It should help set the tone for the invitation and thus, the wedding. When your guests pull the invitation out of their mailbox, you want it not only to say something, but to say the CORRECT something.

First and most obvious, but also most important, you need to make sure that everything is spelled correctly. To ensure the proper and most prompt delivery, it is crucial to have everything on the envelope in the most legible possible letters it can be. This leaves several options: 

“With the changing times, I feel that some of the old etiquette isn’t appropriate anymore. You don’t have to use a pen on the envelopes – digital and other printing methods are perfectly acceptable – just no printer labels – not ever! Using the fonts from your invitations makes for a very cohesive suite from start to finish.”

If you are looking to cut some of your cost, you can think about the size of your invitation, the weight of the paper itself, and even the inner envelopes:

“Inner envelopes are a thing of the past as well. They just add more paper waste and postage. [You can] address the envelopes with “and Guest” on the outer envelope. And finally, address the envelopes by what makes sense for each guest. If you are addressing your grandparents, by all means do Mr. and Mrs. John Doe. But if you are sending an invitation to your very progressive best friend, Amy and John Doe makes more sense for them. Do what makes you feel right, not what Emily Post said to do in 1950.”

If you are going to eliminate inner envelopes (typically where you would list the names of everyone invited in a less formal way than on the outer envelope) as Tifany suggested, you will need to ensure that all guests names are included on the outer envelope and not just the words “and family.”  This will show your guests exactly who is invited to the wedding and ensure that you don’t get any extra or unwanted guests (especially if it is an adults only reception or if you are on a tight budget and haven’t accounted for plus ones for all of your guests).

A BIG thanks to Tifany Wunschl with Gourmet Invitations for the expert opinions and the beautiful photos! Check out more of her beautiful work here.

~Kelly & Leslie