You got engaged – congrats! You’ve chosen a venue, picked out some vendors, taken engagement photos, and creeping up on your list is a very important item: wedding invitations. When do they need to be designed? Ordered? Sent? While the rules here are not set in stone, like everything on a wedding timeline there are some general guidelines to help make this process as smooth as possible. Here are our recommendations on when to do what:
1. Designing wedding invitations
4 – 6 months before the big day
Designing your invitations can be a fun way to see your wedding day’s theme and style start to take shape. There’s nothing wrong with starting this process early and modifying it as you make other decisions. We recommend that you start designing your invitations at least 4 months before your wedding – but if you want to start earlier go for it! The big idea to keep in mind is that this is not something you want to leave to the last minute. Give yourself at least a month to design and tweak before you place your order.
Our favorite places to design invitations:
minted. | Invitations by Dawn | Darby Cards Collective
2. Ordering wedding invitations
2.5 – 3 months before the big day
Which brings us to the second step – ordering your invites. Once you have designed your invitation suite and are confident you have the right fit for your wedding day, it’s time to place an order. Make sure to place your order at least 3 months before you want to send out the invitations. By doing this, you will have time to put them together and address them. If you are having a calligrapher do any of the addressing/writing keep that timeline in mind as well. Again – giving yourself plenty of time between the order date and the day you want to send out the invites is key. Don’t forget to have a friend or family member proofread!
3. Sending wedding invitations
2 months before the big day
At this point you have picked the perfect suite, received your order, and all the envelopes are stuffed and stamped – ready to go. When is the right time to send the invitations? Traditionally you should send out invitations between 6 to 8 weeks before the wedding date. This gives your guests enough time to receive your invitation and respond by your RSVP date. If you are having a destination wedding, you may want to consider sending out official invitations as early as 3 months in advance to give your guests extra notice.
Designing invitations can be one of the most fun parts of wedding planning since it is a way to let your guests have a peek into what your big day will look like. Give yourself time to consider all your options and play around with different layouts and themes. Starting this process earlier will just alleviate potential stress later. Whatever you do – have fun with it!
