What Wedding Stationery Do I Need? The Complete Guide

There are several components that go into making your wedding day run smoothly – finding the perfect venue, the dress, the food and, of course, your wedding stationery suite. This may come as a surprise, but we (and many others) believe your wedding stationery ends up setting the tone for the entire event and plays quite an important role in the proceedings. Invitations landing on doormats or save the dates flying into inboxes may be the first time some of your guests have heard that you’re getting married, so it’s important to drum up excitement right from the beginning and give your loved ones a little taste of what’s to come! Before you start designing or shopping for all the stationery, sit down with your partner and go through everything you need to include in your stationery list. Spoiler alert: there are lots to consider, from engagement party invites and those crucial wedding invitations, all the way to inner envelope and outer envelope decisions (yes, really!). We've compiled a thorough wedding stationery checklist that walks you through everything from pre-wedding stationery to on-the-day wedding stationery and, of course, post-wedding stationery too - don’t forget those thank you cards. While this might sound like a lot, don’t panic, every wedding is unique, so not all of these elements are essential - feel free to pick and choose whatever is necessary and feels right for your big day.

The Joy of Going Digital

The good news is that by enlisting the help of Say I do, you can reduce the amount of traditional paper wedding stationery you need and join the thousands of couples capitalising on the joy of going digital. Think of us as your online wedding planner. Find loads of handy tools and resources within the platform that will keep you on track with your wedding planning and ensure that you have some fun along the way! Not only can you create a professional-looking wedding website with Say I do, but you can also design a beautiful range of digital wedding stationery to work in harmony alongside it. The best bit? You don’t need to be an artist, a graphic designer or a web developer to start; there are tonnes of beautiful templates to choose from, leaving you to select a wedding theme that suits you and your wedding vibe perfectly.

Before the Wedding Stationery

Engagement party invitations

An engagement party is the way to go if you want to kick things off with a bang! This first celebration of your love should take place within a few months of your engagement and can come in many different forms - just remember to send out invitations in good time to ensure your guest list reserve the date in their diaries.

Save the date cards

Life is hectic and full of distractions. If, like us, getting all of your friends in the same room at the same time is difficult, send out your save the dates approximately 12 months before your wedding to ensure a full house. If you’re jetting off to tie the knot, give your guests as much notice as possible; destination weddings mean that your guests may need to secure time off work, book travel and accommodation in advance, and arrange child/dog care. Your save-the-dates needn’t be complicated though. They should include the date and venue of your wedding, as well as the unique wedding URL for your wedding website if you’re having one.

Bridal shower invites or stag party invitations

Whilst not an essential part of wedding stationery, you may wish to include pre-wedding celebration invitations for events such as bridal showers, stag or sten parties. The more notice you give your bridal party members or stag party guestlist, the higher your numbers (and the bigger the party) will be!

Wedding invitation suite

Your wedding invitations are unquestionably THE most important piece of wedding stationery. Depending on whether you've got a wedding website or not, we'd recommend sending your formal invitations six to eight weeks prior to the wedding. Your guests will discover all of the important information regarding the event via your wedding invite, as well as directions on how to RSVP. The formal invitation can be made up of the following cards (or all of the information can be included on one webpage):

The invitation card: The most important part of the invite, this informs guests of the wedding date, time, wedding venue and ceremony location.

Wedding reception card: Include this information if your reception is at a different location to your ceremony RSVP cards: This is most effectively done through your wedding website; at Say I do, we offer a really handy digital RSVP tool that helps you manage your guest numbers digitally. But if you prefer the traditional way, you can always send a response card with an envelope along with the invite if you wish.

Accommodation card: If you have a list of accommodation options nearby, it can be useful to include this to help your guests out. Just remember to secure any accommodation that you/your close friends and family require first before other guests snap them up!

On-the-day wedding stationery

Ceremony programs

Keep your wedding guests in the loop by presenting them with a beautifully designed ceremony card or order of service on arrival. This useful booklet or card will inform guests of the schedule for the entire day, from the wedding ceremony to the dancing and fireworks.

Wedding table plan

Congratulations! You've finished your wedding table plan; never an easy task! If you’re having a table plan, this is the important time of the day when you need to show your guests to their seats. The usual approach to display this information is with a seating chart or wedding table plan. Another option is to create escort cards; these are usually no bigger than business card size and help direct guests to their assigned tables, making it nice and easy for your guests to find their seats. Wedding place cards can also add a nice finishing touch to a sit-down wedding dinner and are fairly inexpensive. They will also assist servers in determining who is having what, whether there are any dietary requirements or allergies, etc.

Table numbers or names

Next up, it’s your wedding table numbers or table names. These are a must-have for bigger weddings; they keep things straightforward and help guide guests in the right direction. As long as the numbers are big enough to be seen clearly, they will help direct guests to their seats in a timely manner. A table centrepiece with flowers and/or candles is the perfect place to incorporate your table number. Some couples use table names that are relevant to them, such as names of countries they’ve visited, drinks they love or characters from a movie they are obsessed with. Table names are always a great conversation starter between guests, especially if they aren’t already acquainted.

Printed menus

Get your guests excited for the feast that’s about to come with some printed menu cards. Depending on the table configurations, we recommend one menu per four guests. It will be a little more intimate than one large sign and can also get guests chatting with each other. Keep these aligned with the rest of your stationery for a more professional, luxurious feel. A menu is also great if you are serving a plated dinner and will inform guests of what they are about to enjoy instead of them having to play the guessing game!

Favour tags

Favour tags are a beautiful finishing touch to an awesome wedding favour. The name of the couple and the date of the wedding are often included on these labels. If you’re making your favours, preserves or flavoured alcohol, for example, adding a personalised tag is a nice opportunity for guests to take them away as a keepsake.

Guest book

A guest book is a great thing to include in your evening reception. It allows your guests to write a personal, heartfelt (or hilarious) message to you - whether that's to congratulate you on your big day or offer words of wisdom for your future together. Either way, it will create special memories for years to come.

After the big day stationery

Thank you cards

The happy tears have been cried, the big day is over, and the decorations have been packed up - now it's time to thank your guests for their presence. Remember to express your gratitude for any gifts received, and keep in mind that your wedding thank you cards should be sent fairly soon after you return from your honeymoon. We don’t want you to feel overwhelmed by this list of stationery items; remember, you only need to go for whatever's necessary for your wedding, as everyone’s celebration is wonderfully different. However, going digital with some of the above will absolutely save you time and money. Why not check out Say I do and see how we can help you go online with your wedding stationery? In fact, we’d recommend a nice balance of both traditional paper (on-the-day items) and digital wedding stationery (save the dates, digital wedding invitations). If you’re currently deep in the planning process, now is the time to get your creative juices flowing and remember to have fun – you’re only going to do this once!