Wedding planning can get crazy busy, and a lot of my couples ask that golden question, “When do I need to order?”.
The honest answer is it depends on a few factors and it is always tailored to your schedule. But if you’re struggling to get organised, read this blog to find out when to order each stage of stationery and things to consider.
SAVE THE DATES
If you’re not sending save the dates, skip to the next section, but this should be the first stage. Once you have your venue and date booked in, this is when it’s ideal to get the word out about your wedding.
Getting save the dates sent out in advance means you don’t have to stress, you can take your time with the invitations and large planning details, and most of your guests will be able to make the wedding as they have more notice.
When to send your save the dates depends on where you’re getting married and when, for example if you’re getting married abroad you need to be sending them a little earlier so guests can save some pennies and organise work holidays, childcare and diaries. Or, if you’re getting married in peak holiday season, sending your save the dates earlier will mean guests won’t book their holidays over your wedding day.
As a general rule of thumb I advise sending your save the dates any time between 2 years and 1 year before the wedding. Of course this depends on when you get engaged and how long for, and when you have the date officially booked. If you’re marrying abroad I’d aim for 18 months before, and if the wedding is fairly local, then no later than a year before.
Bear in mind that stationery can take a few weeks to arrive with you so make sure you add a couple of weeks before you want to be sending them to guests.
INVITATIONS
With invitations a similar rule applies as to save the dates. With your invitations, if you’ve sent save the dates and guests already know the date, you can send invitations a little later to just give them the details. However, if you haven’t sent save the dates, it’s best to get the invites out ASAP.
Remember that invitations can take a few weeks to be made and with you especially if they’re made bespoke, so add on 3 weeks before you’d like to send them to guests.
Ideally if you’ve sent save the dates, I’d aim to send invitations out anytime between 6 months and 3 months before the wedding.
If you haven’t sent save the dates, I’d suggest sending invitations between 1 year and 6 months before the wedding.
Another thing to mention is don’t leave it until a month before or even a few weeks. This is because your venue are likely to need your guest numbers at least 6 weeks in advance, so don’t add extra stress for yourselves. Set the rsvp on the invitation to at least 8 weeks before, this gives you 2 weeks to chase anyone who hasn’t yet replied. And make sure the invitations arrive with guests at least 3 months before the day to give them time to respond.
WEDDING DAY STATIONERY
This is the most important part (timing wise!). Your wedding day stationery needs to be with you at least a few days before the wedding, and of course you always need to allow an extra day or two just in case of postal delays. But you also need to adhere to your stationer’s schedule.
My advice here is to order everything you need for the day 3 weeks before the wedding (if working with me). This said, get the artwork designs made up and approved before this so that you’re not rushing around. If you work with me, I’ll be contacting you around 6 weeks before to get the designs made up, and then 2-3 weeks before the day for final amends/guest names. This is because there can always be guest changes late on, and for something such as a seating chart, this can’t be amended as easily as a name card.
If you’re worried about your seating chart with guest amends, ask your stationer to print this last (I always do this anyway), this way small amends can be made if need be.
Do make sure you chat with your stationer about timelines as they will differ from business to business.
I really hope this guide helps you organise your time for ordering your wedding stationery. If you are still unsure, get in touch with me and I can add a schedule to my diary to send you reminders along the way, taking off a little bit of stress.
If you’re ready to get to work on any stage of stationery, book your free consultation here.
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