More Wedding Info

You’ve dreamed of the perfect wedding reception for years. You know exactly what you want and you’ve envisioned all the details from what the cake looks like to what the guests are wearing. But how do you make sure the guests wear the attire you’d like them to wear? Well, you could ask them.

Invitations often have a line added that mentions attire, such as “formal attire” or “casual attire”, and wedding invitations are no exception. What follows is a list of different attire labels and their descriptions.

Casual
This means pretty much anything is acceptable without being trashy or inappropriate for public viewing. This might be your choice if you are having an informal backyard barbeque reception.

Dressy Casual
When you want them to dress nicer than they would dress for “everyday”, dressy casual means slacks, button-down shirt and perhaps a blazer for the men, and dressy pants and a nice blouse for the women.

Semi-formal
This attire is definitely more dressy than casual or dressy casual. The men should wear suits and ties whereas the women should wear short dresses.

Informal
Same as semi-formal.

Casual Evening
Really the same as dressy casual except they might wear darker “night time” colors. A nice shirt and slacks on the guys and dressy pants and a pretty blouse for the gals.

Black Tie
Using this label means you want your guests to come formally attired in tuxes and long gowns or very dressy cocktail dresses with elegant bling.

Formal
Same as black tie attire.

Black Tie Optional
This means tuxes or dark suits with ties for the men, and long dress, cocktail dress, or dressy pantsuit for the women. If they don’t wear tuxes and long dresses, they should still be very dressed up.

Cocktail
Cocktail attire calls for short dresses and heels for the ladies and dark suits for the gentlemen.

Festive
This attire comes in to play at times such as Christmas. Females get to wear extra theme-appropriate bling or sparkly blouses or sweaters, and males might add a Santa tie to their suit.

Redneck
Time for people to pull out their cutoffs, tank tops, and flip flops and slap on a couple temporary tattoos!

In case you were wondering, putting the preferred attire on the invitation is not pushy; many people are relieved to know how you would like them to dress. If you decide not to put it on the invitation, people will generally look at the time of day and the wedding reception location for clues.

If it’s an afternoon wedding guys will probably wear sports coats and casual slacks while women wear dresses ranging from informal sun dresses to cocktail dresses.

If it’s an evening wedding expect to see more dark suits on the men and cocktail dresses on the ladies.

Keep in mind that even if you put your desired attire on the invitation it does not guarantee everyone will follow it. Remember that you are merely giving a suggestion and even though there are those who will wear what they want, your wedding and reception will still be the magical event you dreamed of.

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Wedding invitations are an integral part of a wedding’s theme and the “mood” you want to set for your ceremony. After all, if the purpose were to solely inform the guests of the details of the event, then you could just send an email or postcard. However, the invitation also serves as a souvenir of a special occasion, and an announcement of a couple’s love. Like the wedding ceremony itself, it must be beautiful and personal.

Selecting the Wedding Invitation’s Design

There are thousands of ready-made wedding invitations to choose from; simply select a design, send the details, and the printer can have it ready within weeks. With such a wide selection, it may be difficult to pick which one is best. Here are the things to consider: * Formal or casual. You want a wedding invitation to complement the overall theme and mood of the wedding. Is your wedding formal or casual? A formal wedding may need classic script fonts, formal wording, and the traditional double envelope. A more casual invitation may use more modern fonts and more natural wording (i.e., instead of “we cordially invite you”, say “please join us…”), but care must be taken to retain the solemnity of the occasion. Let’s say you want to enclose a photo of you and your fiancé—not typically done for traditional invitations. Wear appropriate clothes to the photo shoot: shorts and tank tops simply don’t work.

* Color. You should always choose a subdued color. If you are using a rather bright color for your motif, like turquoise, opt for a delicate ribbon trim or small accents at the sides or corners rather than applying it to the whole invitation. This makes the invitation look more classy, and again, is in keeping with the nature of the event. It’s a wedding, not a night dancing at a trendy club.

* Personal Touches. You can add a short poem, a photo of the couple, or a song lyric from the wedding ceremony.

Wedding Invitation Inserts

Most wedding invitation companies can provide a selection of templates where you just have to fill in the specific names, places and dates. However, many couples prefer to make their own, to make the invitation less stiff and more personalized. If so, here are a few guidelines:

* It is not necessary to put the entourage in the invitation. However, you can have a separate piece of paper listing the members that can be inserted in select invitations—specifically those that go to the entourage themselves, and to the more immediate family and friends. They would appreciate the souvenir; plus, it is a way of thanking them for their participation.

* You’d never forget to put the date and the venue, but many couples forget to put a map to the church and/or reception area. A map would be very helpful, and would save many guests any inconvenience especially if the wedding is located in a place they are unfamiliar with.

* If you are trying to control the number of guests, insert a small card that says, “We have reserved # seats for you.” This is a subtle and polite way of minimizing the headcount.

* If you are moving to a new home after the wedding, you can include another small insert announcing your new address.