The wedding invitation is intended to announce the civil or religious marriage of a couple, It is usually accompanied by an invitation to a reception and dinner. Here is a short overview of the different scenarios and formulas adapted to each case.

The printed invitation is a safe bet. Carefully choose the printer who will be responsible for designing and printing your invitations.
When a religious ceremony is scheduled, ill be announced beforehand in the church or religious building usually in the form of a band where the religious leader will ask the community if they know of any reasons the couple should not be married. Traditionally it is not those who are getting married who announce the wedding, but it is the parents and grandparents of the couple who do. Formerly it gave rise to the impression of two different models, one for the groom's family and for the family of the bride. Today it has become common to preserve this tradition of the announcement by the parents while editing a single template invitations. The names of the parents of the bride will appear on the top left of the announcement, and the name of the groom's parents at top right. Distinctions will be listed under the name of the parent concerned, if any.

When the celebrant is a friend of the family, one can mention his name, for example with this formula: "Father Antoine will receive the consent of the spouses." It is now well recognized that the couple announce their marriage without the parents being mentioned in the announcement. This is especially true when the couple is already together, or it is a second marriage.

In the case of a civil marriage
When the marriage is without religious celebration, it is customary to make the ceremony the highlight of the wedding. The registrar, warned in advance of the absence of religious ceremony will give the marriage a solemn speech by extending the exchange of vows. The formula of announcement will be amended accordingly.

Marriage in the privacy
Sometimes, for reasons of personal convenience or in the case of a recent bereavement, a couple wishes to marry only in the presence of witnesses and the nearest family: parents, grandparents, siblings. In this case, the wedding invitations will be sent in the days following the wedding, with a formula of the type:

Invitations to a reception and wedding dinner
When the wine reception is offered to a greater number of people than dinner, it may be more convenient to mention the announcement itself. In this case we write "Following the ceremony a reception will be served." However, if all the guests are invited to both the cocktail reception and dinner, it will be nice to mention in the book this invitation joins the announcement. Tradition dictates that the invitation comes from the mother of the bride, which gives the following formula: "Madame Davis will be pleased to welcome you from 7 pm at the cocktail reception followed by dinner." At present the married parents generally share the costs of reception, in contrast to what was formerly of use where the banquet burden was the family of the girl. Thus it became more courteous to also mention the name of the mother of the groom: "Madame Davis and Mrs. Davis will receive from 7 pm cocktail followed by dinner." Finally, just as married may choose to announce their wedding themselves, they may also invite themselves without necessarily mention their parents. This is especially the case if the couple assume the organization and financing of their wedding festivities. When deciding between two possibilities, it may be worthwhile to order two types of announcements and invitations: a classic for the family and friends of married parents, and less formal for friends married.

Practical details may appear on the back of the invitation, such as access to reception venue, a plan, or even a short list of nearby hotels.

Right in time
The wedding invitation is usually sent to two months in advance, but it may be necessary to prevent his guests even longer in advance when the marriage takes place during the summer so that everyone can anticipate when preparing his holidays. The reference to "desired response" will appear on the invitation and the date indicated will leave about three weeks to guests to give you an answer. In the case of wine of honour, it is not customary to demand an answer, so as to allow everyone the opportunity to make himself available, even at the last moment.

Thanks and souvenir card
The sending of wedding invitations, it is accompanied - or not - an invitation is usually the bride and groom receive many gifts. The existence of a wedding list should never be on the invitation. Department stores distributing small cards mentioning the wedding list, it is possible to slip into the envelope of the invitation. However, this practice can be badly perceived and it is best to communicate the wedding list the address of waiting for the guests they request themselves. The use of thanking recommends immediately, without waiting for the wedding day, the person who presented a gift: sending a note card will be perfect in this circumstance, personalizing the classic formula "Most affected your lovely touch, Julien and Aurélie thank you warmly and look forward to seeing you on the occasion of their marriage.” Sending a photo card will be very also appreciated after the wedding, and will thank the guests for their presence while providing them a photo souvenir. We can choose a formula such as "Julien and Aurelia thank you from my heart for your presence at their side during their marriage."