wedding 2025 | Designing the invitation suite

date posted: February 20, 2025

Photo by Love Me Do Photography.

Photo by Fiona Murray-Degraaff

Receiving a wedding invitation should be a joyous moment in itself. Save-the-date cards and invitations are like teaser ads for movies— your wedding’s first public appearances, giving hints of the delight that will follow. The first decision you need to make is whether you prefer old-school physical stationery or a digital approach; after that, and either way, comes the fun of designing invitations that offer an enticing glimpse of your wedding’s style.

paper goodness

The traditional wedding invitation “suite” of paper products includes the invitation card (who’s hosting, who’s getting married, date, time, and venue), an RSVP card with its own stamped, pre-addressed envelope, and an inner envelope that keeps it all together, with or without a fabric or paper “belly band” around the items.If you’re celebrating your reception at the same venue where you’re getting married, just add “dinner and dancing to follow” and a word of advice on the attire, such as “black tie,” “formal,” “cocktail,” or “dressy casual.” If the reception is at another location, you’ll want to include a second card with the venue name and address and the time. You may also wish to include a map card with directions and/or a card that lists local accommodations that you recommend.

If you’re having a sit-down dinner with two or three entree choices, include the choices on the RSVP card so that people can check or circle their desired option(s).

There’s something lovely about a card with some weight and texture to it spelling out the details of your celebration in flawless calligraphy.

Photo by Kari Bjorn Photography.

Yes, you can do all of this online; we’ll get to that in a moment. But there’s something lovely about a card with some weight and texture to it spelling out the details of your celebration in flawless calligraphy. Look for eco-friendly options such as recycled paper or biodegradable “seed paper”; what could be lovelier than a plantable invitation that turns into wildflowers?

Traditional calligraphy adds a lovely old-school feel, but it’s far from your only choice. Browse around online and you’ll find all kinds of design options: less traditional fonts and colors, differently shaped cards. If one of you, or someone you love, is a gifted artist, consider a simple, lovely little work—a flower, tree, bird, or animal—that can be reproduced with your monogram across your whole suite of paper goods for a one-of-a-kind wedding logo.

Wax seals are fun; you can buy custom stamps that will make it easy to apply them. But if you want your guests to get the full effect, be sure to use them only on the inner envelope or belly band; modern mail sorting equipment will wreck them if they’re on the outer one.

Even if you order nothing else from the printer, do get a box of printed thank you cards, which you’ll adorn with a quick handwritten note.

Photo by Love Me Do Photography

Even if you order nothing else from the printer, do get a box of printed thank you cards, which you’ll adorn with a quick handwritten note.

Photo by Krit Kongjundee.

You’ll find a wide variety of choices available for digital invitations. It’s a terrific way to save yourselves some money and time, and if the vast majority of your guests are comfortable with the Internet, it’s perfectly polite. (That one relative who’s a Luddite? They’ll love a handwritten letter with a card including the wedding details and a follow-up phone call.)

online invitations

Some advantages of digital:

• Eco-friendliness: Clearly, the only thing more sustainable than recycled paper is no paper at all.

• Simplicity: You can choose design elements with a few clicks and upload your guest list with a few more. No envelopes to stamp, seal, and address; no trips to the post office. And your digital invitation links directly to your wedding website, where they can click to RSVP and check out your gift registry, as well as find maps, directions, accommodations, and any other needed information all in one place.

• Cost: Getting physical invitations printed can take a major bite out of your budget, costing up to $1,000 for a full custom suite of wedding paper goods. Going the digital route, you should be able to get everything together for under $200.