How to Write Wedding Invitation Envelopes

Wedding invitations are more formal than your everyday mail.

Addressing wedding invitation envelopes is more of a formal process than addressing a letter to a friend or mailing a bill to a creditor. Wedding invitation envelopes are typically the first impression invited guests see, so properly addressing the envelopes can help to provide the impressions you want.

Things You'll Need

• Wedding invitation envelopes
• Guest list with complete names and addresses of guests

Instructions

1. Start with the name. On the first line of the invitation, print the name or names of the guests being invited to the wedding. For example, a single male guest would be addressed as, "Mr. Jonathan James Miller." You want to include the guest's title or titles and full name (no nicknames). Married couples may be written as "Mr. and Mrs. Carlos Antonio Rivero," or you may use each of the couple's first and middle names, "Mr. Carlos Antonio and Mrs. Isabela Susana Rivero." Married couples with different last names may be written, "Mr. Antonio Antonio Rivero and Isbela Susana Perez."

2. Write out the street address. On the line right below the name or names, write out the complete street address, but exclude the city, state and zip code. Use the post office approved abbreviations for street directors (NW, SW, E) and street indicators (Ave., St.). While it is tempting to be more formal by writing out the complete name, the post office says it can slow down delivery times because it is harder for its machines to read.

3. Complete the third line. Write out the city, state abbreviation and zip code on the third line, right below the street address. If you have the complete nine-digit zip code, then write out the complete zip code.

4. Label the inner envelope. Now that you have the outer envelope of the wedding invitation addressed, it's time to address the inner envelope, which is the envelope that holds the invitation and is slipped inside of the mailing envelope. The inner envelope address contains only the name(s) invited guest(s). No address or any other information is on the inner envelope. For example, the inner envelope would read, "Mr. Jonathan James Miller."

Tips & Warnings

• If you are addressing your envelopes by hand, ask someone with good handwriting write them for you.

• If hand writing the addresses, you may want to use a lined sheet of paper under the envelope as a guide to keep your lines straight.

• You can also address envelopes with a nice computer font---possibly one that looks similar to calligraphy.

• Whether you address the envelopes by hand or computer, the etiquette and rules for addressing the envelopes is the same.

References

• Wed Alert: Addressing Invitations