The moment of truth is here, you’ve got the ring on your finger and now it’s time to get your guests in the loop. Wedding planning is always thrilling, one baby step at a time and suddenly you are two weeks away from your wedding! It’s important to work on a timeline to make sure everything falls into place. Now that it’s getting real, a question you may have in mind is when do save the dates go out?
When to send out save the dates
The answer to when should save the dates go out depends on what kind of wedding you are having. From our experience, there are two types of weddings that differentiate when the save the dates are sent. The first is a hometown wedding when your wedding is in the city and most of your guests are people from your hometown, and the second is a destination wedding where most of your guests need to travel to the location. This article will help you make up your mind and choose the best decision about when to send save the date cards according to your type of wedding.
When do you send out save the dates for a hometown wedding?
Hosting a hometown wedding means your time is flexible and you don’t need to rush. You might be thinking, when should you send out save the dates for a hometown wedding? From our experience, between six to eight months is the best time to send out save the dates. If your wedding takes place over the holiday weekend or if a good portion of your guests is travelling in from out-of-town, send save the dates around eight months ahead to allow them to plan their schedule. However, when most of your guests are local, six months prior would give them enough time to plan their schedule without having to worry about sending the save the dates too fast.
When do you send save the dates for a destination wedding?
If you’re having a destination wedding and most of your guests are travelling to get there, it is very important to consider how far in advance to send save the dates for a destination wedding. You would want to make sure your guests have enough time to plan their schedules and save money to book plane tickets and accommodations. We suggest sending out your save the dates eight to twelve months before your wedding date. It is also essential to ensure you have all important information enclosed, such as the city or country the wedding will take place, and your wedding website for your guests to check further information prior to book their flights and accommodation.
How far in advance do you send the save the dates for a well planned wedding?
If you’re planning your wedding according to a perfectly-timed schedule, there is a three to four-month window where you may want to let people know you’re getting married and when, but don’t yet have all the details of the day. In this instance, it doesn’t really make sense to wait for the invitations to go out. This is the perfect time to send out the save the date invitation. In this case, it’s as simple as a card with the date and place, with a note that information is to follow. Maybe you’re not much of a traditionalist, and you don’t really want to send out a save the date? That’s alright as well, just make sure you’re not asking anything from guests that they may need to be warned about well in advance.
How early to send save the dates for an international wedding?
In our global society, it is more than likely that at least one of your guests, if not several, are living overseas. Whether it is your grandparents from the home country, cousins from across the ditch, or friends who have moved overseas to study or work, it is extremely common these days that several of your intended guests live abroad. Many such guests would love the opportunity to fly to share your happy day, but like everyone else will need time to plan a trip: particularly if it involves 30 hours in the air. If you are expecting that one or several of your guests fall into this category we highly recommend sending save the date wedding invitations such as save the date postcards, sent out as early as possible.
What to write on save the date cards?
We get asked at paperlust all the time about what to write on save the date cards. Addressing Save the date cards is simple as you just need to put the three most important details of the wedding; your name and your partners, the location (you can put the city if you haven’t booked the venue yet), and the date. It doesn’t need to be showered with detailed information since there is a high chance your guest will quickly forget everything except those three important details. To make it even more convenient for your guests to follow your wedding plan and prepare for the day, you can also put your wedding website link on your save the dates.
Other questions?
Some of the other things we get asked regularly at paperlust is how big are save the date cards? They are generally smaller than the main invitation cards to follow, around 2/3s the size. ur standard size and the industry standard is 4” by 6” (or 140mm x 107mm) YOu do not need to stick to this standard sizing if you wish but keep in mind that it may be hard to find envelopes that you like in the colours you want as envelopes are standard sizes.
Another often asked question is how to make save the date cards. Of course the easiest way is to use our fantastic design tool but if you want to get creative then head down to your local stationery supply store and stock up. Just be aware special finishes for save the date cards such as white ink, metallic ink, foil stamp and letterpress can only be achieved by employing a specialist printing company like paperlust.
Common mistakes in sending save the dates
While sending save the dates looks easy and uncomplicated, a lot of couples made big mistakes when they sent them too early or too late. Too early and your guest will toss the notice aside and forget about the wedding, too late and your guests will have their calendar all marked so they can’t make it to your wedding day. The next common mistake is not sending save the dates at all. Since you surely want all the invited guests to come, letting them know about when and where it will take place is very necessary. If you don’t want to spend a large portion of your budget to save the date cards, you can always choose e-save the date that you can send via email or Facebook.