A great invitation generates excitement and anticipation about your special day, and your guests will bring that excitement to your event. This is your chance to make a fabulous first impression!

As you wonder how to word your invitation, keep in mind that many people will only scan the invitation for the essential information. You don’t have to reinvent the wheel. Our recommendation is to choose clear, descriptive wording and also impress your guests with a great design. The overall style of the invitation leaves the biggest impression on your guests. The text, font, graphics, colors and textures all work together to create a mood and tone for your event.

If you do decide to do something different with your wording, make sure that the date, place and time of your event are clear. How can you be original? If you have a favorite song, quote, or something special about your story, that could be a starting point for writing your own unique invitation text.

Be Descriptive

However you word your invitation, you should be descriptive. Writing an invitation is like writing a poem. Use strong verbs and nouns and carefully select adjectives. “Reception to follow” is concise. But saying that “Merriment, barbecue and live jazz will follow” paints a better picture of your event. That gives guests a better idea of how to dress and what the event will be like, and generates positive (and accurate) expectations for your event.

Names on the Invitation

The biggest question that most people confront is whose names should be on an invitation. Obviously, you’ll include the names of the guests of honor. Who else should be on there? Traditionally, we recommend that you include whomever is paying for the event, and you can even consider including those who are putting in a lot of time and effort to host the event.

We know that this gets complicated in this modern age of parents, divorced parents, step-parents, couples who are footing the bill themselves, and many other scenarios. That’s why we have written out many examples of standard invitation formats to help you craft your invitation. We are also happy to help you navigate various situations with our tips and recommendations about appropriate etiquette.