Formal Wording for Wedding Invitations – Traditional Wedding Invitation Wording
What is the correct wording for formal wedding invitations? The wording of a formal wedding invitation may change depending on who is hosting the wedding.
Traditionally, the bride’s parents pay for the wedding. This idea originated from the concept of ‘dowry‘, where a sum of resources was paid to the groom in exchange for becoming the bride’s provider. In those days, women were unable to provide for themselves so it was a big deal for the groom to financially provide for the bride and take responsibility for her.
Nowadays, when it comes to who pays for the wedding, anything goes! So the wording of your invitations may depend on several factors or may depend on who is hosting the wedding.
Below you will find a How-To Guide on Formal Wording for Wedding Invitations.
Here some examples of Formal Wording for Wedding Invitations, based on various hosting scenarios.
Scenario 1: The Bride’s Parents Host
Mr. and Mrs. Ralph Thompson
Request the honour of your presence
at the marriage of their daughter
Laura Anne Thompson
to
Jonathan George Muscat
on Saturday, the fifteenth of September
at three o’clock in the rose garden of Lyndoch Hill
The Barossa Valley, South Australia
Reception immediately following at six o’clock
Scenario 2: The Bride’s Parents, who have Divorced
and Remarried, Host
Mr. and Mrs. Sean Harrison
and
Mr. and Mrs. Ralph Thompson
Request the honour of your presence
at the marriage of their daughter
Laura Anne Thompson
to
Jonathan Gregory Muscat
on Saturday, the fifteenth of September
at three o’clock in the rose garden of Lyndoch Hill
The Barossa Valley, South Australia
Reception immediately following at six o’clock
Scenario 3: The Bride and Groom’s Parents Host Together
Mr. and Mrs. Ralph Thompson
and
Mr. and Mrs. Gregory Muscat
Request the honour of your presence
at the marriage of their children
Laura Anne Thompson
to
Jonathan Gregory Muscat
on Saturday, the fifteenth of September
at three o’clock in the rose garden of Lyndoch Hill
The Barossa Valley, South Australia
Reception immediately following at six o’clock
Scenario 4: The Bride and Groom Host
Miss Laura Anne Thompson
and
Mr. Jonathan Gregory Muscat
request the honour of your presence
at their marriage
on Saturday, the fifteenth of September
at three o’clock in the rose garden of Lyndoch Hill
The Barossa Valley, South Australia
Reception immediately following at six o’clock
General Rules on Formal Wording for Wedding Invitations
There are some general rules you can follow when it comes to the wording for formal wedding invitations.
– No punctuation is needed, except in titles such as Mr. and Mrs.
– Therefore sentences will not need full stops
– Capital letters are not needed at the beginning of every line
– Proper names and titles are to be capitalised
– Avoid using abbreviations and spell out the full word if possible
– Numbers and dates are written out in full without using numerals not numbers (eg Saturday, the fifteenth of September)
– Including the year is optional
– The time is written as a description of hand placements on a clock (for example three o’clock instead of 3pm, or half after two o’clock instead of 2.30pm)
– Be sure to write in third-person (eg “Miss Laura Thompson and Mr. Jonathan Muscat” instead of “we”)
– Formal invitations will include the reception information on a separate card
– Formal invitations will typically include a dress code
– Formal wedding invitations will typically include a separate Gift Registry or Wishing Well Card
