Ordering Your Invitations
◊ Order invitations at least four months before the wedding to allow ample time for their preparation, addressing and mailing.

◊ Also, order at least 10-20 additional invitations & envelopes to cover last minute guest add-ons and mistakes. 

◊ A return address on the outer envelope is a must! In the event an invitation has an incorrect address, the post office needs to know where to return it.  The invitation company should have already printed this on the envelopes when they were shipped to you.

"Save the Date" Announcements
With hectic lives and tightly packed schedules, friends and family will welcome the advance notice of a "Save the Date" announcement — especially those who live out of town!

"Save the dates" should go out 6 to 8 months before the event.  There is no need to coordinate them with your invitations.  Anything from your favorite baby pictures to your favorite hobbies could really whet the appetite for a fabulous affair not to be missed — so be creative!

Response Cards
Request guest responses at least three weeks prior to the wedding date.  For example, if your wedding is on July 1st, you should mail your invitations out by May 15th — and ask your guests to respond by June 7th.  This will give your guests time to reply by mail, which will in turn, give you time to firm up catering plans, seating arrangements, etc.  Also, consider number coding your response cards to match a number that you assign to each guest who is invited... this will help you to know who responded when illegible or unsigned response cards are returned.

Mailing the Invitations
◊ You should mail your invitations four to six weeks prior to the wedding date.

◊ Make sure that all of your addresses are correct before having the envelopes addressed.  Again, ordering extra envelopes is important to cover mistakes, etc. 

◊ Make sure that you bring a completely assembled invitation to the post office to verify postage amounts for each invitation. 

◊ Also, make sure you drop off your invitations to a postage clerk to be "HAND STAMPED" or "HAND CANCELLED."  This will ensure a better appearance of the invitation when it is delivered to your guests. If they will not hand cancel them for you, inquire as to whether or not they will allow you to do it yourself.

◊ Assembled invitations often require additional postage. To avoid postal delays and returned invitations, take a completely assembled invitation to your post office prior to mailing to determine the proper postage.

◊ Be sure to include a return address on each outer envelope. Invitations returned to the post office will allow you to invite those individuals personally.