Save the Dates

      What are save the dates? They are a relatively new idea. These are notices sent before the actual invitation to an event. People have fun with them because they are more informal in nature. Mainly, these are just to state the date and event. Save the Dates are not only used for weddings, but often other events, such as anniversaries, birthdays, bar mitzvahs (and bat mitzvahs), family reunions, and more. While I sell mainly save the date magnets, I also sell invitations, and, people can still include magnets with fun invitations.

      You are planning your wedding, and considering your stationary needs... invitations, rsvp cards, programs... Save the Dates? The main question people ask is: Do you need them? The answer is usually no. There main use is to provide extra notice, notably useful for destination weddings. Then why do so many go to the extra expense, you ask? Because, they are fun. Often it provides a tone you can't get on invitations without the invitation coming out tacky. These can be formal, fun and colorful, or both.

      What to put on a Save the Date? It often depends on just how much importance you are giving to the save the date, and what style it is in. If you need something full of information, you can make a brochure. If you want something fun, like a magnet, but still want to include information, include a note, or a few relevant pamphlets from the area where the wedding will take place. Mainly, you want to have the date and event on the save the date. You wouldn't want to jam the ceremony location and time on a small save the date- details like that should be reserved for the invitation. Last names are not as important on small magnets, because you can include the last names elsewhere when mailing them out. Very often you will also see a line 'invitation to follow' somewhere near the bottom, just to insure that people understand that this is not the formal invitation. Depending on how much room you have you can also consider adding the location -not address, but city and state. The real utility of Save the Dates for destination weddings is hotel information. But, going deeper, I've also seen airline information, and information about region specific landmarks and activities included with save the dates.

      Considering the format of your Save the Date's, you've got to ask yourself how Do-It-Yourself you want to get. Some wonderful save the dates can be made at home, but you truly have to consider whether you want to spend that kind of time on a save the date. It can be as simple as a postcard, or, something for which more activity is needed. Your main component for a save the date would be some good paper, and a laser printer. See paperandmore.com and papersource.com, both good places for-Do It-Yourself ideas.

      Considering magnets, the size most people go for when considering save the dates for their wedding are about the size of a business card. That size is too small to really mail out by itself. That is the size you want to go with if mailing these out with a note, card, or brochure. The larger magnets I sell are easy to mail out by themselves, and do not cause any extra postage. When mailing out the small magnets, attaching the magnets to a piece of cardstock is the most popular method (card stock refers to papers thicker than your usual computer paper) and I've seen all of the following methods for doing so: Glue dots, double sided tape, slits, ribbon, photo squares... I do sell slitted cards for the small magnets, where you can insert the corners of the magnet into the slits to hold them in place.

      Fun things to do with a card? One popular idea is included a photo strip and several photos of the couple. Another is to take photos in which the couple is holding cards that say 'save the date'. Are your only choices magnets and cards? certainly not. Get as creative as you want, just make sure your names and date are on there. This website Here sells Save the Date mint tins. I encourage you to look around and find a way to make your Save the Date unique.

      There is little Save the Date etiquette, and much of it is up to you; For example, I've seen many brides worry about whether it is okay to send out saves the dates with or as holiday cards. Such a thing is perfectly acceptable. Using address labels? Again, it might depend. Some people do not think labels are acceptable on any personal corrospondence. If you don't mind them, then save the dates are certainly informal enough to allow for them. When considering using monograms, you are not supposed to use your married monogram, but, many do that as well. You should see if you can find a good looking couples monogram; I've made a few and it is possible. If you really want to keep these formal and personal, you should actually hand write them. For example, I offer some general 'save the date' folded cards on my 'something different' page that are blank on the inside for the couple to write a note.

      I would like to mention that it is completely unnecessary for you to worry about whether to put 'and guest' on the Save the Date. You don't need to worry about whether there is going to be a guest at such and early date. Your budget might change. Also, you should not send a Save the Date to anyone who will not recieve an invitation later. Do not ask for an RSVP. These are not invitations. Keep in mind, that you do not need to send save the dates to absolutely everyone.

     And lastly, the Big Question... When to send them out? Generally, 6-9 months in advance. If your wedding is out of the country, you can bump that up to 10-12 months.