Many couples like to have a theme to their wedding. Those couples who share a hobby or a profession may well use that as a theme for their wedding, whereas others just want something simple that ties the whole event together. As the wedding invitation is usually the first contact your guests have with the occasion, it makes sense to choose a design that works with your theme – or inspires it.
Wedding invitations – say it with flowers
A flower theme is a great choice for a wedding, because it’s usually so easy to follow through. From 
the beautiful flower on the wedding invitations through to the bride’s bouquet, the gentlemen’s buttonholes and the table arrangements, the whole event can be constructed around a simple theme. Use the colours of the flowers and foliage in your wedding invitation for your bridesmaid dresses, or for the ribbon on the cake. It’s easy to take the colour, style and texture of flowers and weave them in to a simple theme that can run throughout your day. Give the theme a final touch by using the same design for your thank-you cards and gifts to your chief attendants as you did for your wedding invitations.
Colour-themed wedding invitations
Many brides and grooms choose to make colour their theme. Dresses, flowers, cakes and favours are all colour-co-ordinated to ensure that everything works together. This colour theme should always extend to the wedding invitations – whether the theme is black and white, or a mix of vibrant summer colours. Using matching stationery such as place-cards and menus means that guests can see the time and consideration that’s been put into planning the wedding and because you can order all your stationery in one place, you don’t need to worry about hunting high and low for the right design.
Beach wedding invitations
Beach weddings are becoming ever more popular, and you can choose your wedding invitations to complement the style of wedding you’re having. Beach weddings are often smaller than traditional 
weddings because of the cost of flying to the destination, but that’s no reason not to ensure that the theme is there. Just opening a wedding invitation with a picture of the warm sun and the blue sea gets everyone in the mood for a romantic beach wedding.
The Card Gallery is an online card shop that specialises in personalised stationery, including wedding invitations, Christening stationery, new baby announcements, blessing invites and much more. With free second class postage with every order, and the chance to design your own wedding invitations online, this is the perfect one-stop-shop for your special occasion. Browse our website now to choose the perfect design for you, or call us for help and advice on 01746 766876.
Your wedding invitation may be the first contact your guests have with your big day, but it certainly won’t be the last. Many couples choose to co-ordinate their stationery for the day, giving a consistent theme throughout the whole event. So the design you choose for your wedding invitations is also likely to be the design you use for place-cards, Evening invitations, thank-you cards and even your order of service.
Choosing the right wedding invitations
With this in mind, it’s important that you make sure you’re happy with your choice of wedding invitations. Choose a design that reflects your approach to your wedding, and what’s important to you. It might be the traditional symbol of two wedding rings together. This is a theme that can be either traditionally designed or look far more contemporary and gives a classic feel to your wedding. On the other hand, you might want your wedding invitations and other stationery to be bold and bright, setting the tone for the other décor and accessories you’re using on the day. Whatever you choose, it’s a good idea to make sure that you order all the wedding stationery you need as soon as possible.
Not just the wedding invitations
Depending on the type of wedding you’re having, you may need several different types of wedding stationery. Even for a simple beach wedding, although the wedding invitations may only be going out to a few close family members, most couples also have a party for friends and other family when they return home. You can co-ordinate these invitations, along with thank-you cards so that the beach theme is carried through even when you’ve returned to a chillier UK to celebrate. Stationery you need to think about includes:
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RSVP cards – many couples like to include these with the wedding invitations. RSVP cards give your guests a quick and easy way to respond to your invitation, but they need to be ordered at the same time as your wedding invitations so that they can go out together.
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Evening invitations – if you are inviting some people to an evening reception rather than the whole wedding, you’ll need separate evening invitations. These just need to have the details of the wedding couple, and the time and venue of the reception. You can include RSVP cards with these invitations too, if you choose.
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Orders of service – whether you are having your wedding in a church or other religious building; or you’ve chosen a non-religious ceremony, you might still want to produce an order of service so that your guests know what’s happening, and who you’ve chosen for readings or other contributions to your ceremony.
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Place-cards – your tables will need place cards so that everyone knows where they will be sitting, and it’s a great idea to have these cards matching your wedding invitations design. If you or someone you know has great handwriting, place-cards can make a nice memento of the wedding for your guests.
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Thank-you cards – you will need to thank your guests for any presents they have given to you, and you may also want to write and thank the venue, or a wedding planner, or other people that have been important in making your big day run smoothly. Ordering thank-you cards that match your wedding invitations is a lovely touch to finish everything off.
The Card Gallery is an online card shop that specialises in personalised stationery, including wedding invitations, Christening stationery, new baby announcements, corporate invites and much more. With free second class postage with every order, and the chance to design your own wedding invitations online, this is the perfect one-stop-shop for your special occasion. Browse our website now to choose the perfect design for you, or call us for help and advice on 01746 766876.
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Whether you’re a follower of formal wedding etiquette or you want to make your wedding invitations as unique as you are, the wording you use to invite people to your big day is important. Traditionally, it’s the bride’s parents that issue the invitation, but with so many couples paying for their own wedding, or coming from families where parents are no longer together, this format doesn’t work for everyone.
Your wedding invitation words
There are several key elements to a wedding invitation – important information that you have to give out. These are:
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Who you are inviting – many a wedding plan has gone awry because people haven’t made it clear who is actually invited. If you’re inviting someone single, but you’re happy for them to bring a guest, then say so. If you’re inviting parents, but not children, be specific about it. That way, no-one can make assumptions about who’s coming to your wedding and you’ll have no nasty last-minute surprises.
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Who’s getting married? – yours may not be the only wedding invitation your family and friends receive this year. Make sure you are clear about the names of the bride and groom.
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When’s the wedding? – you know exactly when your wedding is, because you’ve spent months planning it. Make sure you specify the day, date, month and year on your wedding invitations so that there’s no doubt about when it needs to be in people’s diaries. Don’t forget to include the time the service starts, and the time that the evening reception starts, even if you’re inviting people to the whole event. Knowing when the evening begins means that people can plan to go back to their hotels to rest or change outfits if they want to.
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Where to go – give the name of the wedding venue and the town or village it’s in. You should include separate directions to the venue with your wedding invitations, so you don’t need to give the full address on the invitation itself.
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The reception venue – the same rules apply to the reception venue as to the wedding venue. Guests need all the relevant information to arrive with their wedding invitation and in today’s internet-driven world, they can go online to see your reception venue or to print off directions. Make sure you give the full name of the venue and the town or village it’s in, so that guests are looking for the right place.
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RSVP details – you must include a name and address on your wedding invitations for guests to reply to. You can make this a full postal address or an email address, but you need to be sure that everyone on your list will be able to reply. Make sure you also include a date by which all the replies must be received. This will help you with planning the catering for your wedding.
We have several samples of traditional wording on our website that you can use as a template for your own wedding invitations. If you can’t find a sample that fits your circumstances, or you simply want to design your own wording, just use the personalised card insert wording box once you’ve chosen your wedding invitation design.
The Card Gallery is an online card shop that specialises in personalised stationery, including wedding invitations, Christening stationery, new baby announcements, corporate invites and much more. With free second class postage with every order, and the chance to design your own wedding invitations online, this is the perfect one-stop-shop for your special occasion. Browse our website now to choose the perfect design for you, or call us for help and advice on 01746 766876.
