When a couple are planning their wedding, many seem to completely lose their confidence as they are overwhelmed with ideas of etiquette and wedding rules.

But the truth is; this is your special day. You are allowed to do whatever you want to make it the perfect day for you. However, there are certain guidelines which can make planning your day a little easier.

Most people choose to have a wedding reception straight after the wedding ceremony. This is so that guests don’t have to wait around unnecessarily. Many couples choose to have their ceremony and reception at the same venue and others ensure that the drive between the two venues is no longer than half an hour.

Once all of your guests have arrived, there will often be a meal. But if you have decided to opt for designated seating, you may wish to invest in escort cards as well as wedding place cards and also table cards.

The escort card will be placed near the entrance to the reception room and it will consist of a list of guest’s names along with their table number. The wedding place cards are placed on each table and will let each guest know which specific seat is theirs. The table card will display the name of the table – whether this is decided upon the theme of your wedding or your favourite flowers etc is up to you.

Choosing your wedding stationery is not something that you should leave until the last minute. Your wedding stationery is what will tell your guests exactly how your day will be; from the tone and style of the day to the details of times and venues.

So how do you choose your wedding stationery?

Try to picture your big day when you are choosing your wedding stationery. Think of the colours, the flowers and type of venue to try and get an overview of the atmosphere of the day. Your chosen wedding stationery should complement and match with the colours and the style of your wedding day.

Once you have decided on the style of the wedding stationery, you need to establish exactly what stationery you need. For example, will you need save the date cards, to warn your guests of the date of your wedding as soon as possible?

Always remember to order more invites and save the date cards than you will actually need. This is in case you have forgotten someone or in case you make any mistakes when you are writing out your invites.

Remember, your wedding invites are a great way of letting your guests know what your wedding day will be like, so don’t leave your wedding stationery until the last minute.

Sending out the wedding invites is a really exciting time. It’s normally the first time that a lot of your friends will be hearing news of your big day and it is also a chance to let them know what the theme or tone of the day will be.

But while you can find a lot of advice related to how to send your invites out, there is often not much to tell you how you address the envelopes.

Most couples want to ensure that everything is perfect for their wedding and that comes down to the addressing of the envelopes as well as everything else.

Firstly, it is important to ensure that the envelopes are addressed properly so that you can be sure that they will all reach their correct destinations.

Wedding invites are normally written by hand, whether they are formal or informal and the full street names should be written instead of using abbreviations.

Also, use the recipient’s full name, including their middle name, to ensure that the wedding invites appear official.

Try not to use generic terms such as ‘and family’ or ‘and guest’. Make it more personal by addressing each person who is invited. This can be done by using an inner and outer envelope. The outer envelope can mention the name and address of the recipient and the inner envelope can address anyone else who is invited, including partners and children.