You’re engaged! What wedding stationery do you need and when?
You’re engaged! Firstly, a huge congratulations from me and a big welcome to the beginning of your wedding planning journey. You may have already started looking into wedding stationery, or you got stuck at the initial thought. I get it. Wedding stationery is a wonderful world, but my goodness it can be a little overwhelming. Well fear not, I am here to help. In fact, my hope is that stationery becomes one of your favourite parts of your wedding planning.
What wedding stationery do you need?
Wedding stationery is typically split into three categories; before, on and after the day. The before stationery includes your save the dates and invitations. On the day is for your big day itself and includes any stationery and signage for your ceremony, dinner and venue. After is for those all-important thank you cards. You certainly don’t need it all. You can keep it simple and opt for a few pieces, or go all out and have it all. This is the wonderful thing about stationery, the pieces you choose become a set just for you and your wedding, making them beautifully personal to you.
When should you send your wedding stationery to your guests?
When to send this stationery to your guests is a personal preference but as a rough guide, send your save the dates 10-12 months before your wedding day and your invitations 2-4 months before. If you’re not opting for save the dates, then send your invitations a little sooner. The location is also a factor to consider in these timelines. If you’re having a destination wedding, or your guests are travelling from far and wide, then it’s recommended to send a little sooner so there’s plenty of time for your guests to organise their accommodation, transport and so on.
When should you book a wedding stationer?
In terms of when to order your stationery, from design to delivery expect your save the dates to take between 3-5 weeks, invitations 4-6 weeks and for on the day stationery and signage, also 4-6 weeks. If you’re opting for a bespoke design, allow a couple of extra weeks. I should add, stationers are busy people. Throughout the Summer we’ll typically be found designing stationery for the wedding days themselves and through the Winter is the busiest time for save the dates and invitations. So it’s always advised to book well in advance of these timings.
Hopefully that is a helpful whistle-stop tour of all-things-wedding stationery. If you have any questions I’m just an email away, or if you’d like to browse through my wedding stationery collections you can begin so here.
Happy wedding planning!