Gloster Hill » a Mahattan based boutique company specializing in Month-of-Wedding Coordination & Full Planning

Choosing you wedding stationary is a huge step in the planning process. For your guests, it is their first impression. Your invitation sets the mood; without reading a word most guests know the level or formality, time of year, and theme if any. You would think you were in the home stretch once you chose your stationary, but then questions in regards to wording, stamping, and mailing begin. The below information on wedding invitation etiquette is provided by www.chereeberrypaper.com. The wedding stationary is from their Signature Collection. I love this cohesive look. (…and the bride who picked it)!

STUFFING YOUR INVITATION SET

Wedding invitations are assembled in size order similar to a wedding cake with the largest layer on the bottom and the smallest layer on the top! When stuffing your invitation set, start with the invitation first as the bottom layer. Next, tuck the reply card underneath the flap of the reply envelope and set this on top of the invitation. If you have a reception card, this would then be placed on top of the reply card and the set would be placed inside the envelope. If you have additional insert cards, assemble them according to size relative to the other inserts.

To ensure you have stuffed your invitation the proper way, remove the invitation from the envelope with your right hand. If the insert cards sit on top of the invitation and you can read the invitation without turning it, you know you have stuffed correctly.

WORDING

You can certainly have fun with the design of your invitation, but a good place to stick to tradition is in the wording. It will make your parents happy, won’t confuse your guests, and really who doesn’t love a little Emily Post sometimes? That being said, getting creative or smart with the copy on the reply card is a great way to personalize your set.

See below for a sample of traditional wording for a wedding being held in a house of worship:

Mr. and Mrs. John James Smith
request the honour of your presence
at the marriage of their daughter
Emily Elizabeth
to
Mr. Jason Adam Hatch
Saturday, the first of June
Two thousand thirteen
at six o’clock in the evening
Immaculate Conception Church
Bridgewater, New Jersey

If your wedding ceremony is not being held in a house of worship, use the following template as your guide:

Mr. and Mrs. John James Smith
request the pleasure of your company
at the marriage of their daughter
Emily Elizabeth
to
Mr. Jason Adam Hatch
Saturday, the first of June
Two thousand thirteen
at six o’clock in the evening
Tribeca Rooftop
New York, New York

Traditionally, the address on the outer envelope and the reply envelope belongs to the parents of the bride or to those hosting the wedding. The reply date for your guests is usually one month before the wedding date, but this can be changed to accommodate the bride and groom’s needs.

STAMPING REPLY ENVELOPES

A major etiquette faux pas: forgetting to stamp your reply envelopes! It is traditional and customary to stamp your reply envelope before stuffing it into your invitation set so your guests can easily mail in their replies. Believe us, if you forget this step it is near impossible to steam envelopes open once sealed! If you did not read this before you mailed your invitations and forgot this step, do not panic! Give your guests a stamp back at the reception for a fun way to make light of your mishap…

RECEPTION CARDS

It is most traditional for a reception card to be used when the ceremony and reception locations are different. Reception cards should include the time, place and if necessary, address, of the venue. They can also be used to specify attire. Traditional reception card wording is as follows:

Reception
Immediately following the ceremony
Newport Beach Club
10 Ocean Drive
Newport, Rhode Island

If you are looking for a less traditional reception card, you can also use the language “Dinner and Dancing to Follow” or “Join us for cocktails, dinner and dancing.” A reception card can also be a fun place to add design elements into your invitation set!

HOW MANY INVITATIONS TO ORDER

Please keep in mind that you’ll need to order one invitation set for each couple or family and not one per person that will be attending the wedding. As a general rule, your estimated quantity of save the dates or wedding invitations will be a little over half of your total guest list. Your stationer will usually provide you with extra envelopes to account for calligraphy mistakes, but it is always smart to order 10-20% extra save the dates or invitation sets to allow for any last minute additions to your list or to replace any invitations that are returned to you and/or damaged in the mail. It is never economical to reprint for a few additional pieces, so it’s always better to have a few extras on hand just in case.

ADDRESSING INNER AND OUTER ENVELOPES

Once you become a CBP client, you will receive a calligraphy and addressing guidelines document to help you properly format your guest list, but for now, basic inner and outer envelope addressing is as follows. The outer envelope contains names of main invited guest(s) – no children or guests. The inner envelope contains names of main guest(s), plus extra guests, such as children or “and Guest.” See a few examples below:

Outer Envelope:	Inner Envelope:
Mr. and Mrs. Robert Armstrong 545 Fifth Avenue New York, New York 10028	Mr. and Mrs. Armstrong	Married couple
Kristen and Robert Armstrong 545 Fifth Avenue New York, New York 10028	Kristen and Robert	Married couple – if you prefer to be more informal on your envelopes
Mr. Michael Roberts 545 Fifth Avenue New York, New York 10028	Mr. Roberts and Guest	Single person with guest – even better: find out the guest’s name and include it on envelope
Mr. and Mrs. Robert Armstrong 545 Fifth Avenue New York, New York 10028	Mr. and Mrs. Armstrong Miss Abigail Armstrong OR Mr. and Mrs. Armstrong Abigail	Married couple with child

HAND CANCELING

You’ve just spent a lot of money on your gorgeous wedding invitations so why let the post office run them through a machine? If your post office offers hand canceling, take them up on this. Hand canceling is when the post office stamps a seal over the postage as opposed to running the envelope through a machine. It will at least ensure that your invitations start the mailing process on the right foot! If you can convince your local post office to do this for you (candy usually helps!), we highly recommend it. If CBP mails your invitations or save the dates on your behalf, we’ll do our best to ensure all items are hand canceled.

TIMING

Wedding invitations should be mailed about 7-10 weeks prior to the wedding date. 8-10 weeks is suggested for a lot of out-of-town guests or destination weddings. Save the dates should be mailed 5-9 months in advance depending on the date and location of the wedding.

As for when to get started on your wedding stationery, it’s always better to have more time than not enough! Contact us as soon as you have your wedding date and venue locked in place.

MONOGRAMS

Using a monogram design on your save the date or invitation can be a lot of fun and can help you truly customize your wedding stationery! But do not get carried away too fast – stick to only your first initials for any printed materials unveiled before you become husband and wife. Save your married monogram for after you officially become “Mr. and Mrs.” Think menus, cocktail napkins, drink stirrers or other day-of items at the wedding reception itself.

INNER ENVELOPES

Before the postal system was founded, invitations were delivered by men on foot. Often their hands were dirty or soiled and thus, so was the mail they were delivering! This led to wedding invitations being delivered in two envelopes so that the invitation and its envelope remained clean and protected. Although the mail is no longer delivered by foot (though sometimes it still feels this way!), there are still benefits to using an inner envelope with your wedding invitation set.

Benefits of Inner Envelopes

• It adds a layer of protection in the mail as your invitation set will all be placed in the inner envelope which will then be placed into the outer mailing envelope with your printed return address on it.
• Your gorgeous envelope liner will have more impact with an inner envelope. This is because the inner envelope has no gum and does not get sealed so our liner will be showcased to your guests in all its glory! In addition, you can use the inner envelope to print an optional fun message on the shoulder of the envelope.
• The inner envelope allows you more room for delineating who of your guests is invited with children and/or with or without guests.

Drawbacks to Inner Envelopes

• It is an added cost for the envelopes and for the calligraphy as both your inner and outer envelopes will need to be calligraphed.

Oldie, But a Goodie, Blog Post~

Every Bride~To~Be always asks me the same question, “Where do I start?” The Practical answer is Budget and Guest Count. But, you just got engaged. Practical shmactical… First things first….. Be a girl!!! Race to the nearest magazine stand, grab every bridal mag you can get get your bling adorned paws on, rip out everything that appeals to you, and put it all in your wedding binder (aka The Holy Grail).  Your bridal binder should include, but not be limited to, tabs such as these: venue ideas, vendors, budget, style, wedding dress and wedding party attire, flowers, images that appeal to you, and images that don’t, vendor contracts…

 

A Month-of-Wedding Coordinator is a popular alternative for couples who did their own planning, but would like a professional to execute the final details. After months of planning, it is truly priceless to have the support of a coordinator in the final month. Gloster Hill’s primary focus is to provide the couple with a stress-free month while ensuring their wedding day remain true to their vision.

Popular questions:

1. Can I afford a coordinator on my budget? A Month-of-Wedding coordinator should not be considered a luxury, but an essential part of your wedding budget.

2. Can I coordinate my own wedding? Even if you have planned your wedding day down to the last detail, it is practically impossible to oversee the set-up of each venue and direct the caterer, florist, photographer, DJ, officiant, ceremony musicians, family, guests, and wedding party throughout your wedding day. Every wedding has “glitches”, which is no surprise when you consider how many people: family, wedding party, guests, vendors, and staff are involved. The best way to plan for “glitches” is to have a coordinator to resolve the problems in an efficient and professional manner.

3. Can’t a family or friend coordinate for me? By asking family or friends to help, you run the risk of them missing much of  the wedding, being unable to complete a task as you expected, or lose focus because they get caught up in the wedding festivities.

4. What is the difference between a Day-of-Wedding Coordinator & Month-of-Wedding Coordinator?    A DOC usually get involved a week before the wedding and works with the information you provide them. They are great for moving table arrangement, tying bows, acting as your assistant, and running any errands you ask of them. Where as, a MOC gets involved a month before the wedding. An MOC asks for all of your contracts and organizes the information on to their own customized worksheets. They contact your vendors to confirm commitments and finalize plans, create timelines, and make set up lists for each venue. They will visit the ceremony site and reception site before the wedding day. On the wedding day they will be the first to arrive and they will usually know the “flow” of the day better than the couple.

5. What sets Gloster Hill apart? Although my services officially start one month prior to the wedding, I recommend hiring me in the early stages of planning. Upon hiring me, I provide my clients with customized Gloster Hill Budget Tracker & Gift Tracker spreadsheets, along with a Gloster Hill Wedding Checklist and other helpful worksheets such as: example invoices for caterers, rentals, florists, DJs, tent companies and forms such as: a timeline spreadsheet and vendor contact & wedding party contact spreadsheets. All of which help to ensure your planning process is organized and efficient.

The Gloster Hill Budget Tracker acts as your very own personal accountant throughout the planning process. Not all budgets are created equal. For example; you might be using your mother’s wedding dress, but want a Sylvia Weinstock cake. For this reason, “cookie cutter” budgets found in wedding planning books, will not work for you. I approach wedding budgeting from a percentage stand point. On a customized spreadsheet, I list all parts of the wedding budget: venue, vendors, attire, decor, etc., after an in depth meeting with the couple I assign each part of the budget a percentage. Once this is done, you simply input your overall budget number and each part of the budget is assigned a monetary amount. Along with the GH Budget Tracker, my clients also receive a GH Gift Tracker Spreadsheet. This spreadsheet is great for keeping you organize while writing your Thank You Cards. I recommend the couple hold on to the Gift Tracker spreadsheet for a few years, to refer to as a “gift buying guide” when their friends marry.

Click this link to view Gloster Hill’s Month~of~Wedding Coordination Package