Wedding Planning: What to Write on Wedding Invitations

Finding the right wording for your wedding invitations can be tricky. With so many different family situations, traditional etiquette doesn’t always cover your needs. Here at Funky Pigeon, we have put together a range of wording options to help make your wedding planning less stressful.

Bride’s Parents Hosting

Weddings were traditionally hosted and funded by the bride’s parents. Because of this, their names appear at the top of the wedding invitations. If this is the case for your wedding, then start with the parents’ names. Next, include key points like the date, ceremony venue and evening reception details. Because the parents are hosting, their address should be used for the RSVP. Or, if you want to keep track of guest correspondence personally, use your address instead.

Hosting Your Own Wedding

Paying for your own wedding? Or don’t want to go down the traditional route of having the parents hosting? If so, address the wedding invitations from yourselves rather than your parents. This will inform guests that you are hosting your wedding, which avoids potential confusion. As both of your names are on the invites, the RSVP details will just be your address, keeping you in control of your big day.

Same Sex Couples

With same sex marriages, you can generally follow the traditional wedding invitation wording layout. You could put the hosts’ names first, whether that be your parents or yourselves. If you’re taking your partner’s name (or vice versa), perhaps write their full name and only use your first name. Alternatively, opt for something totally unique – just remember to include important details like times, dates, and locations! Here are some examples of how to start your wording below:

Divorced Parents

If your parents are divorced and still share the same last name, you can start off the wedding invitations by separating their surnames with ‘Mr’ and ‘Mrs’, e.g. ‘Mr Hickman & Mrs Hickman’. But, if they have remarried, use their new surnames. RSVP details should also include both addresses if applicable to your wedding planning.

Widowed Parent Hosting

If a widowed parent is hosting your wedding day, it can be hard to word your invitations. To show who is hosting your wedding, include the name of the parent at the top in full.

Step Parents

If both of your parents are remarried and you want to include these step parents in your big day, simply write both sets of names at the top of your invites. If you choose this option, it’s best to contact both parents beforehand to check if they’re okay with this decision.

For more ideas and inspiration, visit our range of unique wedding invitations.