Etiquette

Etiquette

Save the Date

If you are planning your wedding during a holiday or summer season, then you may
want to send out a Save the Date card. These cards, sent at least three months before
the wedding, advise family and friends of your wedding plans and allow them to consider
them when making their own plans.

Please save the date of
Saturday, the twenty-third of August
for the wedding of
Miss Jennifer Marie Forrester
to
Mr. Nicholas Jude Strickland

Mr. and Mrs. Andrew Jay Forrester

Invitation to follow

Rehearsal Dinner Invitations

Custom suggests that the groom's parents host the rehearsal dinner and, therefore,
issue its invitations. The invitations are usually worded formally, but many times
just first names are used. This less formal style can be a way to let guests know
how you, your fiancé, and your fiancé's parents wish to be addressed.
Rehearsal Dinner invitations are usually sent two weeks before the wedding.

Formal
Mr. and Mrs. John Peter Strickland
request the pleasure of your company
at a rehearsal dinner
in honour of
Miss Jennifer Marie Forrester
and
mr. Nicholas Jude Strickland
Friday, the twenty-second of August
at half after seven o'clock
Tappan Hill
Tarrytown, New York

Informal
Nellie and John Strickland
request the pleasure of your company
at a rehearsal dinner for
Jennifer and Nick
Friday, August twenty-second
at seven-thirty
Tappan Hill
Tarrytown, New York

Wedding Invitations

Wedding Invitations are traditionally issued by the bride's parents. Therefore, the names of the
bride's parents appear on the first line.

Mr. and Mrs. Andrew Jay Forrester

Medical Doctors do use their professional titles and should not be abbreviated.

Doctor and Mrs. Andrew Jay Forrester
or
Doctor Mary Anne Forrester
and Mr. Andrew Jay Forrester

If someone does not like their middle name, it is not proper to use the initial.
It is better to simply omit the name completely.

If the parents of the bride are divorced, the proper way to list the names is
to list them at the top of the invitation. The mother's name is first and the
father's name is beneath it. The lines are not sepatated by "and".

Mr. Andrew Jay Forrester
Mrs. Mary Anne Forrester

If using the title Senior or Junior, it is to be spelled out in lowercase.

Mr. Andrew Jay Forrester, senior

Invitations issued by the Bride and Groom is usually done if the bride's parents are
deceased, if they are an older couple, or when the bride is marrying for the second time.

The honour of your presence
is requested at the marriage of
Miss Jennifer Marie Forrester
to
Mr. Nicholas Jude Strickland
etc.

Request lines invite your guests to your wedding. The proper use depends on
where the wedding is being held. If it is in any house of worship, "request the honour of your presence"
is correct. For weddings held in any location other than a house of worship, "request the
pleasure of your company" is used.

Date, Time and Place Lines
The day of the week and date are written out in full (abbreviations and numerals are not used).

Saturday, July twenty-fifth
Two thousand five
at half past six o'clock in the evening

Afternoon begins at twelve o'clock and evening starts at six o'clock.

Saint Andrews Catholic Church
Baton Rouge, Louisiana

Include name of wedding location and city and state.
If at home, then simply include the address (no zip code).
If being held at a home other than the parents'...

at the residence of
Mr. and Mrs. Michael Anthony LaPointe
211 Old Orchard Road
Bedford, New York

If the reception is at the same place as the wedding, you should include a
line after the city and state that reads, "and afterwards at the reception".

Reception Cards are used whenever the ceremony and reception are held in
different places. The first line indicates the occasion, as in "breakfast" or "reception".
The next line indicates the time and usually includes, "immediately following the ceremony".
The third line includes the name of the facility, and address on the fourth line. The address
line can be omitted if the facility is very well known or when direction and map cards are used.

Reception
immediately following the ceremony
Sleepy Hollow Country Club
Baton Rouge, Louisiana

(Formal receptions are indicated by the time of day... However, most people may not know this
so to inform them of a formal reception you may include "Black tie" on your reception cards.)

For reply cards, you can use any of these lines, "The favour of a reply is requested,"
"R.s.v.p.," or "R.S.V.P.".

Thank You Notes should be sent out in a timely manner after the wedding. They are usually
white or ecru foldover notes that match your wedding invitations. Your monogram is usually
blind embossed or engraved in a conservative color on the front of the note.

3482 Drusilla Lane, Suite H • Baton Rouge, Louisiana 70809
225-925-5000

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