Wedding Invitation Wording Etiquette


Host Line
The traditional format is written in the third person and has the bride's parents as hosts:

Mr. and Mrs. Malcolm Lyndon

If the groom’s parents are sharing expenses, both sets of parents are listed as hosts, with the bride’s parents at first place:

Mr. and Mrs. Malcolm Lyndon

Mr. and Mrs. Christopher Williams

Sometimes couples want to mention the groom's parents, even if they're not hosting the wedding.

Mr. and Mrs. Malcolm Lyndon
request the honour of your presence
at the marriage of their daughter
Stephanie
to
Mr. George Williams
son of Mr. and Mrs. Christopher Williams

Divorced parents should be listed on separate lines with the mother’s name first.

Mrs.Diana May Hamilton
Mr. Malcolm John Williams

When either or both of the bride’s parents has remarried, it’s most proper that only the natural parents are listed, since they usually give the bride away; depending on your family’s situation, though, stepparents can be included.

Mrs. Diana May Austen
Mr. Malcolm John Williams

A good way not leave anyone out is to invite the guests yourselves, and mention both families.

Together with their families
Stephanie Lyndon and George Williams

More and more couples nowadays are paying for their own wedding and hosting it themselves.

Stephanie Lyndon
and
George Williams

Request Line

The second line is where the actual “inviting” takes place.
“The honour of your presence” is traditionally reserved for religious ceremonies.

request the honour of your presence
at the marriage of their daughter

Note theat the deferential “honour” is usually spelled English-style with the addition of “u.”

If the wedding is to be held at a hotel or at home, it is preferable to use less formal wording.

request the pleasure of your company
at the marriage of their daughter

Many couples prefer to combine traditional and formal wordings with their own sentiments.

would be honoured to have you share in the joy
of the marriage of their children

If the couple themselves act as hosts, the request should be a simple one, emphasizing the celebration.
invite you to celebrate their marriage

The Event Line

Here it is specified what the guests are being invited to.

When the bride’s parents are hosting the event, the line should read:

at the marriage of their daughter

When both sets of parents are issuing the invitation, the line could be worded:

at the marriage of their children

If the couple themselves are the hosts, the line may read:

at their marriage
or
at their wedding reception

Bride and Groom Line

In theselines, the bride and groom are named individually with the woman’s name always [receding the man’s.
Traditionally, both the bride and the groom should take no titles before their names. However, if one of you carries an official title such as “Dr.” and you wish to state that in the invitation, you should include titles for both of you.

Ms. Stephanie Lyndon
and
Dr. George Williams

If the couple is issuing their own invitations, they should use their titles of Miss and Mr., as well as their last names and the joining word “and.”

Date and Time Lines
According to the traditions, the day, date and year (including the year is optional) should be written out in full, the day of the week is capitalised and no numerals should be used. However, this would not be appropriate for a less formal wedding. When specifying the time of the day the wedding is going to take place, it is better to use “in the morning” or “in the evening” rather than “a.m.” or “p.m.”
You should be aware that the time of day your wedding takes place communicates to your guests the level of formality of the event, i.e. a seven o’clock wedding indicates a formal affair.

Location Line
Make sure you have the proper name of the church and the place for the evening reception. You can also include direction cards or inserts, so it will be easier for your guest to find the church and the evening reception site.


Punctuation Tips:

Typically, there is almost no punctuation in the invitations, except for commas to separate city and state, or to avoid confusion. Any abbreviations except R.S.V.P. should be spelled out, including “Saint” in the name of the church or the street.

Envelope Wording

Traditional etiquette recommends that envelopes should be addresses either by hand or printed in blue or black ink.