Choosing the Wording For Your Wedding Invitations

Spencer Minuteman Press offers the best printing services in the CBD, but we want you to know our work goes beyond our premium business cards. We’ve already shared an article on creating the perfect save-the-date card by using your engagement photos, and today we’re tackling the wedding invitation itself. One of the trickiest parts of creating your wedding invitation is choosing the right wording. We’re about to fill you in on the basics.


Printing Services For Wedding Invitations
Printing Services For Wedding Invitations

Money Talks

Technically, the invitation is coming from the people who are paying for the wedding. Traditionally, that’s the bride’s parents; therefore, the invitation should start out:

Mr & Mrs Bryan Flandry [invite you to the wedding of]…

Of course, any iteration of that is fine. For example, both parent’s full names can be used, dropping the titles if the event is casual. The bottom line is that having the invitation coming from the bride’s parents is a clear indication that they are hosting the event. So what if they aren’t paying for it?

You’ve probably already guessed, but you simply go with the names of the hosts. If that’s the paternal grandparents, they get top billing. Nowadays it’s very common for the bride and groom themselves to pay for the event, in which case it’s their names. Most couples still want their parents’ names on the invitation, though. Here’s how to make that happen:

Please join us in celebrating the marriage of
Rachel Flandry
daughter of Bryan and Melissa
to Nathan Thompson
son of Samuel and Laurie

Can you believe this is actually the easiest part? Let’s take a look at what comes after the hosts’ names…

Religious vs. Secular Ceremony

There are two main ways to word the invitation, and they are dependent on whether the ceremony will be held in a house of worship or if it’s a non-religious ceremony. If you will be having your wedding at a church, synagogue, or even outdoors but with a full religious service, the initiation should say:

Mr & Mrs Flandry
Request the honour of your presence

This exact phrase alerts attendees that this will be a religious ceremony, helping them to dress appropriately and generally be prepared for the event.

A secular ceremony has a bit more flexibility with the wording, but will be something along the lines of:

Mr & Mrs Flandry
Request the pleasure of your company

Other Phrases

Honestly, the opening line is pretty much your only chance to inject some personality into the invitation. Everything else on the invitation will be the event details: the date, time, location, and names of the couple/their parents. Let’s look at a few more ways to word the all-important opening line:

  • ‘Ask you to join us in a celebration of love’
  • ‘Invite you to witness the marriage of’
  • ‘With joyful hearts, ask you to attend the wedding of’
  • ‘Want to party with you!’

When you’re ready to start designing your invite, get in touch with Spencer Minuteman Press for the best digital printing in Melbourne.