The Essential Wedding Stationery Checklist 2020
There is so much to do for the big day.
For many brides, organising a wedding can be one of the most stressful times of their lives. From organising venues to choosing the perfect dress, it can seem like your to do list will never end.
Did you tell the florist Amaryllis or Asters? Did you forget to invite your cousin Susan? What about the seating plan? Where do you begin with wedding stationary? Once you have set the date and chosen your venue, now you need to think about letting the guests know the date you have chosen.
Thankfully, Julie from Elizabeth-Rose Designs is here to help make sure your wedding stationary is taken care of with The Essential Wedding Stationary Checklist for 2020.
Read on, take notes and get inspired!
1) Save the dates
Whether this be a simple tag with your wedding date or something more elaborate, a ‘Save the Date’ provides guests with the first glimpse of your wedding. They can be plain or match your theme and colour pallets, and can include a meaningful message from the bride and groom to be.
We recommend sending these at least 12 months in advance for ‘peak’ holiday weddings, or if you’re getting married during the week. To allow guests to make the necessary arrangements, a 12-month period is usually sufficient. For those planning to tie the knot abroad, you might want to give even more notice to allow guests to save up and arrange travel plans.
It is also a nice idea to send special invites at this time to your bridal party–especially flower girls and page boys.
2) Invitations
Your invitations really are the first glimpse of your special day and as such they should reflect your wedding, setting the theme that the guests can expect.
Do you love glitter and bling? Do you have an accent colour or two? Do you want to keep your guests wondering with a simple white or ivory? Would you prefer a more rustic theme?
No matter what you decide, these ideas can all be used in the choice of invites and be incorporated into your invitations.
Invitations should be sent out between 3 and 6 months before your wedding.
3) The Table Plan
The table plan will guide your guests to their allocated tables, saving a lot of confusion and allowing you to choose the best mix of personalities and relationships for each table.
Table plans can come in many different forms, and can be adapted and designed to suit your colour themes of the day. Although they can be framed, unframed table plans are often created on a covered canvas for additional stability, or on mirrors.
4) Order of Service
An Order of Service is traditionally used for Church Weddings. They essentially allow your guests to see an overview of the services and the running order of each. Introductions for anyone taking part in the service with readings or musical contributions can be included.Orders of Service can contain anything you’d like, including lyrics for the hymns and songs which will be sung during the service.
For venue-based weddings, an Order of the Day is typically used in place of the traditional Order of Service, to keep guests informed of the running order. An Order of the Day can also include other information such as the Menu.
5) Place cards
Although your table plan will direct your guests to the correct table, place cards will tell guests where they should sit. This incredibly important to make sure that your auntie Maureen doesn’t sit next to your third cousin Susan who she dislikes. Place cards are also useful for the reception staff to identify those with specific dietary requirements.
6) Table Numbers or Names
Table names or numbers are necessary for guests to identify their allocated table. These can be free standing or be held in holders to raise them.
Table names can match your theme and even add a little more of an insight into the lives of the bride and groom, including places you have travelled to or local places of importance, favourite films, or bars of chocolate to name just a few.
7) Wedding Signs
Signs can be used for all sorts of things and are really useful at weddings. Signs can be used to ask guests not to put photos on social media, or where to sit during the ceremony.
You may be providing slippers or toiletries in the bathrooms at your venue, with signs that let your guests know they are there for them to use. How about a sign for your guest book or wish tree? These can be free standing or put into frames.
8) Thank You
Finally, we always need to say thank you–to guests and also to relatives or friends who mean a lot to you or have played a big part in your wedding.
More ideas…
While this checklist certainly isn’t exhaustive, it includes the main things you need to consider when planning the stationary for your wedding.
The truth is, the possibilities are endless! Are there any additional stationary touches you’d like to add to the big day? How about menus for the tables, confetti packets with little poems or quotes for the wall?
One important thing to note is that wedding stationers create from scratch, cutting the card and tying ribbons and getting covered in glitter! We love what we do, and we need time to do it well. It may take longer than you think, so please don’t leave your stationery until the last minute.
About Elizabeth-Rose Designs
Elizabeth-Rose Designs is Wirral’s premier wedding stationery designer. They create beautiful handcrafted bespoke wedding invitations and wedding stationery that is tailored to coincide with the theme of your wedding or event.
Visit Elizabeth Rose designs Website here or contact elizabeth-rosedesigns@hotmail.com today for more information.
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