Wedding Stationery Basics: Save the Dates

Mailing save the dates has become one of the most popular ways to announce your upcoming nuptials to your guests. Generally, once you have chosen a venue, set a date, and taken your engagement pictures, it’s time to start thinking about designing and mailing your save the dates!

You may be wondering: Why should I send a save the date? Won’t my guests find everything out when I mail my invitation? In short, yes, but while your guests may get all the details in your formal invitation suite, these are generally only mailed out eight weeks prior to your wedding date. For some of your guests who will need to arrange for travel, this may not be enough time to clear their schedules. Save the dates are necessary because they allow your guests ample time to arrange travel plans, book hotels, and work out any conflicts within their personal schedules.

It’s good to think of save the dates as a teaser for your formal wedding invitation. You only need to include the information that guests need to mark their calendars and arrange travel plans. See below for my top three pieces of information to include in your save the dates:

Your names

You can either use just your first names, or your first and last names depending on how formal you would like the save the dates to be.
 

The date

Always include the month, day and year of your wedding.

The city and state 

There is no need to include the specific venue location. That will be part of the formal invitation.
 

Along with those top three, there are a few more optional pieces of information that I recommend including if you are able. The first is your wedding website. Websites are so helpful to guests, and this is where you can place information on hotel accommodations, itineraries, and your registry information. Another option is to put your hotel accommodations on the back of the save the date. This is especially convenient if you have many guests traveling and for guests who may be less likely to access a wedding website. The final piece of information I recommend is a line stating “formal invitation to follow." Although not a necessity, it is nice to let your guests know there will be more detailed information coming at a later date. This line will ensure that people do not call you asking too many questions. Also, since save the dates are still a somewhat new idea, it will help all your guests understand that this is not the formal invitation.

Now that you know what save the dates are and what they include, you are probably wondering when it is recommended to have them designed and sent out. In the wedding etiquette world there are very clear guidelines for when to mail your paper pieces. For save the dates, it is recommended that you mail them four to eight months prior to your wedding date. If you are having a destination wedding, it is often recommended to give your guests even more time and mail them eight to twelve months out. For example, if your wedding date was June 9th, 2017 and not a destination wedding, the earliest you would want to send your save the date would be October 9th, 2016, and the latest would be February 9th, 2017.
 

In order to get these out at your ideal mailing date, you will also need to consider the time it will take to have them designed, printed, addressed, assembled, and delivered to you by a stationer. I recommend adding an additional six to eight weeks to account for this process. This is a great time to reach out to the custom stationery designer you want designing the formal invitations. It will get you on their schedule and help you decide whether you like their style and design process. Check out the stationery timelines cheat sheet below for a general idea of when things should be done, based on your wedding month.
 

I found a custom stationery designer to work with. so now I’m wondering whether my save the date needs match my invitation suite, or can they be different?

It’s your choice! You won’t have your invitation suite designed yet, but if you know the general style you want, you can most definitely design the pieces to match. Save the dates are unique in that they can be either formal or casual, and they are not perceived as indicating the level of formality of a wedding. Casual and creative photo save the dates are the most popular right now, with couples often using this opportunity to showcase their favorite photograph from their engagement session. If you want traditional invitations but have a fun creative side you’d also like to represent, this is the piece to use it in.

Who should receive a save the date?

Everyone you have on your current guest list at the time of mailing save the dates can receive one. If you add people after mailing, you can send them a save the date later, or they can just receive a formal invitation. Keep in mind, it is proper etiquette that anyone who received a save the date must also receive a formal invitation. This means that if you are still unsure about certain guests, it is best practice to refrain from sending them a save the date. Stick to the core group of invitees that you know without question you will want in attendance.

Save the dates are the first announcement of your wedding and one of the first items you will be able to check off your wedding to-do list. Take the information you have learned and make an appointment to chat with a custom stationer, get the design process started and stay on schedule with informing you guests of your important wedding information!
 

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