The Wedding Invitation

Invitations to the wedding should be sent out three weeks before the ceremony takes place. They should be sent to all relatives and intimate friends, whether or not they will be able to attend the wedding. This gives guests sufficient time to make arrangements to be present, and the bridal couple still have a reasonable period in which to notify the inevitable "omissions."

After the bride and bridegroom have compiled their separate lists, it is customary for the bride's mother to send out the invitation cards. As the costs of the wedding will be met mainly by the bride's family, they should have the final decision regarding the number of persons to be invited, and the other arrangements. The invitations should all be posted on the same day. The engagement list will be found useful in compiling the invitation list.

The invitation should be engraved on a double sheet of white or cream letter paper, 7X4} in., in script. A good stationer should always be consulted. Wedding invitations are always drafted in the third person. A brief personal note should be enclosed, to relatives and close friends.

If the wedding does not take place from the home of the bride's parents, the invitations should be sent out in the name of the host and hostess, who may be, perhaps, a brother and sister-in-law of the bride, or a close friend.

In the majority of cases, the answer is "No." The ruling is that the reception must be at the home of the bride's parents, or other relative, or in a hall or rooms hired by the bride's family. The groom's family may provide entertainments for the couple after they are married, but not the reception meal.

However, if the bride has no family, it would be correct for her to go to the house of the bridegroom's parents for the wedding breakfast or reception.

If daughters are to be included, their names should be set out fully below their parents. Sons should receive separate invitations. The term "and Family" should not be used.