Wedding 2020 | a guide to what to send and when

date posted: March 11, 2020

Your wedding stationery—from the “save the date” card to the final thank you note—is your ambassador. It makes its way to the homes of loved ones of all sorts, gets posted on the fridge or set carefully on the mantelpiece or desk, carrying with it a warm little burst of happiness and the joy of sharing the moment. Here’s a timeline of the essential pieces you’ll want to include:

1 YEAR:

Mail save the date cards one year in advance, if possible, or as soon as the date’s definite.

6 MONTHS:

This is the time to choose and order your invitations and matching RSVP and thank you cards.

3 MONTHS:

Mail invitations (including RSVP cards) for a destination wedding. Six to eight weeks in advance works for an in-town wedding. (If your wedding is local to you but you have loved ones who’ll need to travel a ways, you might want to correspond with them individually before the two-month mark.) Order other paper goods such as programs, reception menus, signage, and invitations to related week-of events.

1 MONTH:

Send invites for rehearsal dinner, morning-after brunch, and other festivities.

3 WEEKS:

Go through your RSVPs and follow up as needed so that you can finalize seating charts.

6 WEEKS POST:

Send thank you cards.

These ideas sound (and look!) more expensive than they actually are. If you’re at all crafty, there are a lot of good DIY guides out there. But whether you decide to go hands-on or not, paper is about so much more than cream-colored card stock. Have you considered:

• Natural and recycled papers, now available in a wider selection of colors and textures than ever. As sustainable as the love that brought you here!

• Creative papers, from vibrant jewel tones to delicate pastels, from tie-dye or silkscreen to bold geometrics and formal borders.

• Fabric invitations—such as silk, hemp, or lace—printed with your design and stitched to card stock, add a very special feel.

• Handmade paper is a centuries-old art that today’s designers have taken in thousands of exciting new directions. It’s a warm-hearted way to underscore how special this occasion is.

• Eco-printing using natural vegetable or mineral dyes applied directly to your stock.