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| Invitation
Wording Examples |
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Either
scroll down the page to read the complete article or click on
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interested in.
Introduction
Examples of formal wedding invitations
Examples of informal wedding invitations
Mentioning deceased parents' names
Many people seem to become very confused over phrasing when deciding
upon invitation wording, especially where their parents are divorced,
separated, remarried or widowed. Quite simply, the traditional style
of invitation wording should make clear the identity of the hosts
and their relationship with the bride.
Formal invitations are written in the third person, refering to the
hosts using their full names. We have set out below a wide variety
of formal invitation styles. If the wording to match your situation
is not shown it should be possible, by observing the conventions used
in the following examples, to arrive at a suitable alternative.
All invitations should have R.S.V.P. (répondez s'il vous
plait) details printed in the bottom left hand corner of the invitation,
as shown in the example below.
Traditional
Wedding Invitation
(with the bride's parents hosting the wedding)
(the
names of guests are hand written in the top left hand corner).
Alternative Traditional Wedding
Invitation
(where the names of the guests are included in the wording)
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Mr.
& Mrs. Jeremy Smythe
request the pleasure
of the company of
_______________________________
at the marriage of their daughter
Sarah Katherine
to
Mr. Michael John Williams
at St. Mary's Church, Knightsbridge,
on Saturday 11th September
at 2.30 o'clock
and afterwards at
The Savoy Hotel.
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Traditional
Wedding Invitation
(for a wedding held at a licensed venue in England or Wales)
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Mr.
& Mrs. Jeremy Smythe
request the pleasure of your company
at the marriage of their daughter
Sarah Katherine
to
Mr. Michael John Williams
at Leez Priory, Chelmsford, Essex,
on Saturday 11th September
at 2.30 o'clock
followed by a reception.
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Traditional
Wedding Invitation
(for the evening reception only)
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Mr.
& Mrs. Jeremy Smythe
request the pleasure of your company
at an evening reception to celebrate
the marriage of their daughter
Sarah Katherine
to
Mr. Michael John Williams
at The Savoy Hotel, London,
on Saturday 11th September
at 8 o'clock.
(the
word reception may be substituted by party if desired)
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Bride's
parents separated or divorced
(but still sharing surname)
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Mr.
Jeremy Smythe
and
Mrs. Jane Smythe
request the pleasure of your company
at the marriage of their daughter
Sarah Katherine
to
Mr. Michael John Williams
at St. Mary's Church, Knightsbridge,
on Saturday 11th September
at 2.30 o'clock
and afterwards at
The Savoy Hotel.
|
Bride's parents divorced, mother
remarried, hosting wedding together
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Mr.
Jeremy Smythe
and
Mrs. David Cox
request the pleasure of your company
at the marriage of their daughter
Sarah Katherine
to
Mr. Michael John Williams
at St. Mary's Church, Knightsbridge,
on Saturday 11th September
at 2.30 o'clock
and afterwards at
The Savoy Hotel.
|
Bride's parents divorced, mother
absent or deceased, father remarried
|
Mr.
& Mrs. Jeremy Smythe
request the pleasure of your company
at the marriage of his daughter
Sarah Katherine
to
Mr. Michael John Williams
at St. Mary's Church, Knightsbridge,
on Saturday 11th September
at 2.30 o'clock
and afterwards at
The Savoy Hotel.
|
Bride's
father absent or deceased, mother remarried
|
Mr.
& Mrs. David Cox
request the pleasure of your company
at the marriage of her daughter
Sarah Katherine Smythe
to
Mr. Michael John Williams
at St. Mary's Church, Knightsbridge,
on Saturday 11th September
at 2.30 o'clock
and afterwards at
The Savoy Hotel.
(the bride's surname has been included
since it differs
from the hosts' names. It can be excluded if desired)
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Bride's
mother widowed, not remarried
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Mrs.
Jeremy Smythe
requests the pleasure of your company
at the marriage of her daughter
Sarah Katherine
to
Mr. Michael John Williams
at St. Mary's Church, Knightsbridge,
on Saturday 11th September
at 2.30 o'clock
and afterwards at
The Savoy Hotel.
|
Bride's parents deceased or
absent, groom's parents hosting
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Mr.
& Mrs. David Williams
request the pleasure of your company
at the marriage of their son
Michael John
to
Sarah Katherine Smythe
at St. Mary's Church, Knightsbridge,
on Saturday 11th September
at 2.30 o'clock
and afterwards at
The Savoy Hotel.
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Wedding hosted by a relative
(in this example, by the bride's aunt and uncle)
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Mr.
& Mrs. Matthew Smythe
request the pleasure of your company
at the marriage of their niece
Sarah Katherine
to
Mr. Michael John Williams
at St. Mary's Church, Knightsbridge,
on Saturday 11th September
at 2.30 o'clock
and afterwards at
The Savoy Hotel.
(the bride's surname can be included if
it differs
from the relatives' surname)
|
Bride and groom hosting their
own wedding
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Miss
Sarah Katherine Smythe
and
Mr. Michael John Williams
request the pleasure of your company
at their marriage
at St. Mary's Church, Knightsbridge,
on Saturday 11th September
at 2.30 o'clock
and afterwards at
The Savoy Hotel.
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For a reception following a
marriage that has already taken place
(where the marriage was overseas, for example)
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Mr.
& Mrs. Jeremy Smythe
request the pleasure
of your company at a reception
following the marriage
of their daughter
Sarah Katherine
to
Mr. Michael John Williams
at The Savoy Hotel, London,
on Saturday 11th September
at 6 o'clock.
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For
a Service of Blessing
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Mr.
& Mrs. Jeremy Smythe
request the pleasure of your company
at the Blessing of the marriage
of their daughter
Sarah Katherine
to
Mr. Michael John Williams
at St. Mary's Church, Knightsbridge,
on Saturday 11th September
at 2.30 o'clock
and afterwards at
The Savoy Hotel.
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For a simple wedding at a register
office
(usually a small gathering followed by a luncheon, not a reception)
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Mr.
& Mrs. Jeremy Smythe
request the pleasure of your company
at the marriage of their daughter
Sarah Katherine
to
Mr. Michael John Williams
at Chelsea Register Office,
on Friday 11th September
at 11 o'clock
and afterwards for luncheon at
The Savoy Hotel.
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For
a slightly less formal wedding invitation, it is usual to omit the
hosts' titles such as Mr. and Mrs. Therefore, the invitation would
read "Jeremy and Jane Smythe request the pleasure of..."
When writing the guests' names on your invitations, you should match
the style of the hosts' name, for example, "Jeremy and Jane
Smythe request the pleasure of the company of Michael and Jackie
Cox..." You would also substitute pm for o'clock. Informal
wedding invitations could take the following form:
Informal
Wedding Invitation
(with the bride and groom hosting the wedding)
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Sarah
Katherine Smythe
and
Michael John Williams
invite you to share in their love
and happiness as they exchange
vows of marriage and begin their
new life together
at St. Mary's Church, Knightsbridge,
on Saturday 11th September
at 2.30pm
and afterwards at
The Savoy Hotel.
|
Informal Wedding Invitation
(with the bride's parents hosting the wedding)
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Jeremy
and Jane Smythe
invite you to share in the
love and happiness of the
marriage of their daughter
Sarah Katherine
to
Michael John Williams
at St. Mary's Church, Knightsbridge,
on Saturday 11th September
at 2.30pm
and afterwards at
The Savoy Hotel.
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Informal Wedding Invitation
(The bride and groom and their parents hosting the wedding)
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Together
with their parents
Sarah Katherine Smythe
and
Michael John Williams
invite you to share in their love
and happiness as they exchange
vows of marriage and begin their
new life together
at St. Mary's Church, Knightsbridge,
on Saturday 11th September
at 2.30pm
and afterwards at
The Savoy Hotel.
(the names of the people at the RSVP address
should be also included)
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For
even less formality, well anything goes, particularly if the
bride and groom are hosting their wedding, in which case they
may choose a style of wording that suits their characters or
the theme of their wedding.
Sadly, it is not customary to mention the names of deceased parents
on wedding invitations.You can still show that your loved ones are
in your thoughts in many other ways. Our feature, Gone,
But Not Forgotten will show you how.
If
you still have any unanswered questions about wording for your
wedding
invitations, please post your question on our Wedding
Forum.
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