ALESIA ZORN CALLIGRAPHY & ENGRAVING: When To Mail Your Invitations

May 02, 2012

When To Mail Your Invitations

I've had a few conversations this week about the timing of addressing and mailing invitations and that's inspired this blog post!! Etiquette says they should be mailed 6 to 8 weeks before an event. You're fine on the 6 weeks side of the scale if you've done any of the following:

sent out save-the-dates
you've already directed guests to your wedding website where they can find lots of info on travel & accomodations
your guests are local

If you haven't done any of the above (not that there's anything wrong with that ;-), you're better off at the 8 weeks side of things.

"Great!" you exclaim! "I'll get them out even sooner than 8 weeks!!" "Nope," says Goldilocks (that's me) , "you need to time it just right." If you mail them too early, you could run into all sorts of circumstances:

Someone moves unexpectedly. Happened to a client when the real estate market took a sharp nose dive and their poor Cousin Trent AND his cockatoo (long story) were evicted when their landlord went into foreclosure.
Sadly, someone passes away
Someone breaks up
On a more lighthearted note, you address an envelope to Mr. & Mrs. John Smith, Susie and Baby Sister - and Baby Sister is born Baby Brother (true story, I'm imaginative but even I couldn't make that up)
The RSVP is soooo far away, with a devil-may-care-I-have-all-the-time-in-the-world attitude, it is stuck on the fridge or in a "to do" pile and then it drowns in more time sensitive business. I shamefacedly admit to doing that twice. In the past month. Yes, I know I should know better, that's why I made up the word "shamefacedly."

6 to 8 weeks, my friend, it's the best way to go.

(A million thanks to Paul Rich Studio for the photo of my envelope! The script is dip pen Flourished Formal Script done with a sparkly white ink and a vintage Spencerian #1 nib)

May 2, 2012 10:20:47 AM | addressing, Calligraphy, envelopes, etiquette, flourished script, invitations