Everything You Need to Know About Save the Dates
If you're in the process of planning and creating your save the dates, you may be thinking, "where do I begin?!". Navigating stationary can get confusing and stressful sometimes, but rest assured this article will tell you everything you need to know about your save the dates!
What Are Save the Dates?
Save the dates are an official announcement of your wedding day and location. You send them to all of your guests you'll be inviting to the wedding so they know your date ahead of time, and can make plans to take time off to be there for your big day.
Do I Need to Send out Save the Dates?
Ultimately no, you do not need to send out save the dates. However it may be very beneficial to your guests if you do, that way they can mark your wedding on their calendar to plan ahead for. If you're opting to save money on your save the dates, you can send them digitally rather than printing them out too.
When Should We Send our Save the Dates?
You can send your save the dates out as soon as you have your wedding date set, but they are typically sent out 8-6 months before the wedding. The sooner you can send them out the better, because your guests may need additional time to ask time off from work and plan their travel arrangements, especially if you're having a destination wedding. Don’t send them out too early though, because you don’t want your guests to forget about them!
Who Recieves our Save the Dates?
You’ll send your save the dates out to anyone whom you’d like to invite to your wedding, so make sure you compile your guest list before sending them out that way you know who you’ve already invited.
Your save the date is a pre-invitation in a sense, so don’t send them to anyone whose a ‘maybe’ on your guest list (that will make for an awkward conversation later if they don't receive an invitation).
What Needs to Be Done Before You Send out Save the Dates?
There are a few steps you should take before sending out your save the dates, such as:
Lock in your wedding venue/date
Create your wedding website
Coordinate your hotel room blocks
What Do We Include on our Save the Dates?
You'll need to include the basic information, such as your names, the wedding date, location, information about your wedding website, and a brief note about the invitation.
It's important to add your wedding website info because this will be your guests one stop shop for all your nitty gritty wedding details. It’s also a good idea to write ‘Invitation to Follow’ on your save the date so your guests know to expect a formal invitation in the coming months.
There's no need to include an RSVP card in your save the date either, the purpose of your save the date is to solely give your guests a heads up on your big day. Listed below is everything you’ll want to include on your save the date:
Couples Names (obviously)
Wedding Date
Wedding Location (Venue, City, State)
Wedding Website Info (If you have one)
A Note About the Invitation (i.e. Invitation to Follow)
What Should You NOT Include on Your Save the Date?
These things can be included on your wedding website, or you can wait and address these things when you send out your wedding invitations. Either way, you won't need to include them on your save the date.
Accommodation Information
Ceremony & Reception Start Times
Dress Code
RSVP Request
How to Address Your Save the Dates:
Single Guests
You can address your save the dates to your single guests as follows:
Emily Ford
Ms. Emily Ford
Miss Emily Ford
Emily Ford and Guest
Married Couples
You can address your save the dates to your married guests as follows:
John and Emily Ford
Mr. and Mrs. John Ford
Mr. John Ford and Mrs. Emily Ford
Mr. John Ford and Mrs. Emily Anderson
Entire Families
You can address your save the dates to families as follows:
The Fords
The Ford Family
John, Emily, Ann, and Tyler Ford
Mr. John, Mrs. Emily, Ann, and Tyler Ford
Destination Wedding Save the Dates
If you’re having a destination wedding, it’s important to include information on travel and hotels on your save the date. You can include this information on your wedding website as well, but be sure to include the website link on your save the date.
The Nearest Airports
Hotels Close By
Do our Save the Dates Have to Match our Theme?
Nope! At this point your theme probably isn’t set in stone, so it’s ok if it doesn’t match. However, if you already have your wedding style picked out, having your save the dates match your invites can be really cute!
Photo By: Photography by Corinne
Site Ideas to Create Your Save the Dates:
There are a few sites I’ve seen couples use to create their save the dates. Ultimately it will depend on your vision, budget, and aesthetic when it comes to which site to use.
Save the Date Tips and Tricks
Send out your save the dates to each household rather than each individual
Don’t include your registry information. Instead, add that to your wedding website
Unless it’s a very formal and traditional wedding, you don’t need to put the name of whoever is paying first
If you pick a wedding template, it’ll cost more than any other type of stationary. The second you put the word wedding in front of something, the price will go up. Instead, pick a traditional template (It's way cheaper!) and customize it to look like a wedding template
Choosing a rectangular wedding invitation over a square format will save you money on postage, as the USPS considers a square envelope an ‘odd-size’ shape; they can’t pass a square envelope through their machines. They call this ‘non machinable’ and as such, these envelopes result in an additional $0.15 per envelope. That’s on top of the postage required for the weight and dimensions of your envelope!
Save the Date FAQ’s:
Q: Do I send an RSVP with the save the date?
A: Typically, the RSVP’s are included with the invitation, not your save the date. However, you might need a save the date rsvp if you have a smaller venue and need to know your guest count before you send out your invites.
Q: Who’s name goes first?
A: Typically the brides name goes before the groom, following the tradition where the brides parents. For same sex couples, consider putting your names in alphabetical order, or whatever sounds best!
Q: How much do save the dates typically cost?
A: Save the dates can be found at a wide variety of pricing, from $2-$15 a card.
Q: Who do we send our save the dates to?
A: Send your save the dates to everyone who will be invited to your wedding.